Conference misery::feline_v1

    Yes, four pair of eyes staring at me as I go out the door.
    Everybody is in the bathroom, then the crew all run after
    me to the basement, then back upstairs, then into the kitchen 
    for breakfast, then Casey grabs your leg  as you walk down the hall,
    the other two are wrestling on the livingroom floor, and B.K.
    is still downstairs with daddy helping him to iron.
    I go up to the barn to feed the critters, and the four of them
    are waiting at the door when I come back down.
    They *deliberately* sit on the mat when I am about to leave,
    knowing I cannot open the door without moving all four of them,
    and then they all cram up against the storm door, so I have to
    push the four of them back into the house so I can close the door.
    
    But, they are all at the door when I come home, all wanting to
    greet me & get patted (all at the same time!)  So I don't feel
    too *guilty* leaving them in the morning.  They even check the
    front window to see who came home.
    
    P.S. Don't we go to work just to earn the $$$ to feed them? :^>
         
    L-                                         
    

    Yes, they are the ONLY ones to greet me at the door when I come home.
    
    What's funny though, is that on Saturday and Sunday they don't go
    NEAR the door and their behavior is so different.  It's like they
    know it's the week-end and they don't have to go through the routine.
    
    And they seem to sense when we are going grocery shopping?  They
    LOVE to go through the grocery bags trying to find THEIR food and
    won't leave me alone til open something to give them their treat.
    
    M
    

    Sad eyes...........gee my heart PAINS to see Scruffy look after me,
    when I/we go out.
    
    She's been all over me (a phase she goes through) once again.  I
    believe she is part dog.........she litterally begs me into our
    bedroom, jumps on our bed (in the morning after I'm all ready for
    work), and lays there looking cute like saying:  "HEY, MOM!  this is
    real comffy......why don't you just lay down, for a little while with
    me?  Just a little whiel?  Aw...come on!" And somedays, I wish I could!
    
    I leave the radio on, after I get her settle down.  Yes, I don't leave
    for work, until SHE is all comfy!  Crazy, my husband thinks I am, but I
    do feel very guilty when I leave her.  Her Daddy has to work part-time
    most days, so he comes home before me, she sleeps with him or gets to
    go out.........So the guilt does sub-side.  But she does have me
    wrapped!...........around her paw!!!!
    
    Carol W.
    

    Oh Carol, I am happy to know that I am not the ONLY one who leaves the
    radio on (music channel of course) in my bedroom for the 'kids'.  My
    bedroom is on the South side - and the sun filters in there in the
    afternoon - so Tiffany and Otis lay on my Satin Comforter - with
    the music on and sunbathe....no wonder they are full of h*ll when I
    get home....they've slept all afternoon.
    
    Are they spoiled, or what!
    
    Next life, I am coming back as a cat - either that or I was one before.
    As it stands now - I am a Leo so my heart is already there.
    
    Marilyn
    

    
    No doubt about it.  Our two are just great at producing guilt in me. 
    Panther sleeps with me, under the covers in cold weather, Spot sleeps
    with Daddie (on his feet - kinda crowded with four of us) and both
    *hate* to see us drive off in morning.
    
    Spot is so cute, she is all over Jerry, she even jumps up and grabs his
    hand and puts it on top of her head!  She helps him pick his wardrobe
    for the day and sits in the window when he leaves.  She is also in the
    window when he comes home.  She wants him to think she was there all
    day, just waiting for him.  (We know better, don't we Kate?   Or, it must
    have been some other cat that came in and rearranged all the kitty toys
    while we were at work.)
    
    Panther gives me the saddest little face when I leave.  She waits by
    the door for a last cuddle and just looks pathetic, "Mummie, how can
    you leave me alone ALL DAY with that that CAT?!!"  (A few times I've
    come home early for one reason or another and found them sleeping
    together, but they don't want me to know ;-)  Panther also always
    greets me at the door when I return.  They have got my number but I
    love it!!
    
    Feline manipulated and trained,
    
    Sue (trainee) & Panther & Spot (trainors)
             

Honey has raised the guilt trip to an art form.  Whenever he sees me near
my luggage (I spend ALOT of time on the road), he starts this pouting and
sad eye business that really gets to me.  If I put the luggage on the bed
to pack, he jumps into it and cries.  Jeeezzzz...  When I leave the house
in the morning, he jumps onto the counter and meows his head off while he's
reaching out with a paw.  Double jeeezzzz.  Julie meows when I leave, but
only if she doesn't get Pounces.  Chauncey and Robin are glad to see me
leave...I cut in to their sleep time...

I do go around to each cat for a quick kiss or pet before I leave; but it's
more to count noses so no one gets locked in the basement (Julie) or a
closet (Robin)!

Mary

      Cats are realllllly good at making you feel guilty that you have
    to leave to go to work.   My gang is pretty good, though.  I make
    sure we get plenty of play time in. (I'll pay if I don't, things'll
    be all over the floor.) When they see me getting ready, they all 
    magically go to their afternoon napping spots. I leave at 2pm for
    work, so we've had time to play, work in the garden, clean, whatever.
    Then they all put on the cute faces.  Max shows off how devastatingly
    handsome he is,  Cleo wants to play ball just one more minute,
    Pumpkin says "see how beautiful I am with my plume tail in the sun?"
    Poo makes a really long face,  "I really wish you didn't have to go.."
    Pepper, Kitty and Mitties are more tolerant, but if they could, they
    would gladly go hunt another mole.  The faces they make are really
    great though.  Sometimes it makes it unbelievable hard to leave.
    
                               Denise

    
    I think something is wrong here. I wake up and have to shove my
    possie off the bed and get changed. They are just about awake enough
    to eat breakfast before I leave, with a spare bit of energy to climb
    the stairs back to bed.
    
    When I get home they are sitting on the pillers at the end of the
    drive and saunter into the kitchen for tea, before falling asleep
    in front of the fire.
    
    Wot a hard life.....:+)
    

    Mine don't give me such a hard time when I leave each day--I guess 
    that they are used to it since I've been working 2 jobs long before
    I had any of them.   They are used to my running in and running
    practically right out again so they have adapted.  For instance, as
    soon as I get home from anywhere, they run to the kitchen and beg
    to be fed (just in case I'm leaving soon).  Also, anytime I go
    upstairs, Brittany runs up and goes into the bathroom with the hopes
    that I'll toss her a Q-tip a couple of times.  In fact, when I AM
    home, they follow me just about everywhere especially for the first
    hour or so, probably to make sure that I am staying.
    
    When we go away for overnight, however, it's a different story!
    Evidently, they become real brats!  We hear about how they've
    played with the plants, dragged all the stuffed animals downstairs,
    knocked things off the furniture, etc.  Then, when we get home,
    after ignoring us for a while and pretending that they don't
    remember us (Brittany has a hard time doing this), they are the
    picture of innocence--all loving and sweet.  Of course they get
    all kinds of extra snuggles then!
    
    I miss them so much when I'm away!  
    
    Barbara

    
    In the mornings, Rusty always sits by the kitchen door and watches as I
    drive off.  I feel sooo guilty leaving him behind.  I always rush home
    in the evenings to give him some loving. When he is bored he manages 
    to find something to entertain him.  One time I got home and found a roll 
    of paper towels shredded to bits.  I thought it was a riot but hubby was 
    not a happy camper.  I think this summer I will have to consider
    getting him a playmate.  By the way, Rusty got into a fight with a
    stray.  Stray 1, Rusty 0 (poor baby).  I have a surprise for that stray
    when he comes around again.  Water hose city, USA.  I can't wait.
    
    Cats will be cats among other things.     

    I travel alot for my job and Schnitzel has the "I'm gonna make you feel
    really guilty" scenario down to a science!  
    
    When I pull out the carry-on piece of luggage she looks at it, then at
    me with this forlorn look. She sulks around meowing at me and rubbing
    against my leg.  Now this only goes on for a couple of minutes and she
    KNOWS that she'll be fed and well taken care of for the couple of day
    "Mom" is gone by "Auntie" Janice from next door.  BUT! when I pull out
    the big suitcase she knows it's for a looonngg stay away and she cries
    until I leave, she sits in the suitcase, by the suitcase, on the
    ironing board so it's difficult to iron (then I get to pick the cat
    hair off) and gives me this look that just breaks my heart.  Mind you,
    she also knows that when "Mom" goes away with the big suitcase that
    "Auntie" Molly moves in and spoils her rotten (she even cooks meals for
    Schnitz!).
    
    But when I return it's all purrs and kisses for a few minutes, then she
    stomps around and yells at me for a day, then it's back to purrs and
    kisses.
    
    P.
    

    I know the feeling, only when the big suitcase comes out, Samantha
    jumps into it and refused to get out (Take me or else!). Even though my
    wife and son are still home, its those BIG EYES (Sam has something
    wrong with her pupils, so although they will respond to bright light,
    they are usually very wide)!
    
    Eric