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I love cats. I used to dislike them before I ever had one, because of their reputation of being proud and not very intimate with people. At the time I thought I liked dogs much better, since they look so humble and loyal.

But cats are cool. They don’t bug you so much as dogs do. They often seem to enjoy themselves quietly, as if unobserved. Dogs are kind of annoying. Of course they are much more affectionate, but consequently they demand much more attentions.

I once had to babysit a friend’s beautiful Siberian Husky for a week. She was extremely sentimental. The slightest hint of being left alone would provoke her into uncontrollable howling, a sound so miserable as if someone’s sobbing.

Turning away from dogs to cats makes me think perhaps this marks different stages of one’s life. When you are young you just want to love and be loved — kind of like a dog — you want to have as much love as it can drown you. But as you get older, the so-called “true love” becomes somewhat an unnecessary accessory (not that I deny its meaningfulness or existence) — but all you want now is to live your own happy life and not to be bothered, like a cat.

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