Sherman, aka The Sherminator

Well, it's been about a year since you found me my wonderful new home and I just wanted to write and tell you the mischief I've managed to get myself into over the last year. Dave and Nadene, my new Mom and Dad, recognized that I was a scared little boy when I first came to them. They were very patient and let me warm up to them and approach them for the first few months. I preferred hiding in closets and under beds but once I got more comfortable Dave would brush me daily. Now I love to see the brush come out!! I don't like the weekly nail clippings I get but I've managed to endure them since Mom got her new furniture. She doesn't like me sharpening my nails on the couch, which I don't understand at all since the couch is perfect for nail sharpening, but I humor her because it makes her happy. She tells me what I a good boy I am when I sitting quietly on her favorite chair. My new Vet, Dr. Bill, is nice but I just don't like driving over in the car to see him. Fortunately, I haven't had to go to the doctor many times this year.

I've managed to almost double my weight since I moved to Sacramento and now am a whopping 19 pounds. Nadene has said Sherman is a perfect name for me since I'm almost as big as a sherman tank. I outgrew my old cat tree so I got a new one during the summer. It's right in the front window where I can watch the world go by or watch the birds that land in the front yard. I have to share the new tree with Smokey, my brother, and Curly, my mean sister, so it's a good thing there are 3 levels and a cube I can crawl into for uninterrupted sleep. Smokey and I are best buds and spend most of the day either sleeping side by side or bird watching. When Nadene takes the dog, Romeo, for his daily walk Smokey and I use the house as our personal speedway and race around the livingroom, bedroom and kitchen. We also have impromptu races at bedtime....somehow Nadene and Dave don't appreciate us jumping across them when they are trying to sleep. We all try to ignore Curly since she is just grumpy but sometimes she'll forget and play with me. When she does I have to remember that I'm better than twice her weight so I have to not to play rough or she'll hiss at me and then play is over. I love to play!! When nobody will play with me I look for a fly that I can swat at. They are pretty fast but not as fast as me!!

Dad sent a picture he took of me in my old cat tree to the maker of the cat tree. They put it on the front of their booklets so if ever you get a Armarkat Tree booklet look for me on the cover. They also sent in a picture of Smokey and me in our new cat tree to the Sacramento Bee for a contest. I think they said that they wanted pictures of best buddies so they took a picture of us in our new cat tree. We were sharing the same spot in the sun. We haven't heard back from them yet. We think if we didn't win then the contest HAD to be fixed <smile>!! MCA even put a picture of me in their newsletter in the plop n' pet section this month which is so cool because they called me the "Sherminator"!!

I've adjusted to my new home, my new family and my new friends. Everyone who came over this Christmas brought over presents for us and I love my new treats called Feline Greenies. They are really good and I get a few several times a day. They say they're dental treats but I just know they taste great!! Nadene and Dave are getting ready to retire and they think we're going to all move to Oregon next year. I'm not sure where Oregon is but we've been promised a outdoor area where we can play and chase bugs and I think I'll like that alot. Dad has a playground in mind that has all sorts of fun stuff to play on but will be enclosed so we'll stay safe.

Well, it's time for my nap but I wanted to say thank you for finding me such a good home and such nice humans to take care of me. Best wishes for a happy 2006 to all the wonderful people at MCA .