My little kitty named Iggy

I have had Igor for almost 18 years! He is a solid black cat with just a few black hairs under his chin with the biggest green yellow eyes. We had 2 black cats and I have vivid memories of Alex as a small child, jerking up their heads and asking "what kind of kitty are you?" Actually, Iggy, as we call him, owns me. He isn't aloof or even very independent but he just decides that he is going to sit or lay on me. Right now, he is sitting across my left forearm with his head in the crook of my elbow while I type. His little body is between me and the laptop and his cute little head is be-bobbling as I type. But he is happy!

For many years, the minute I went to bed, he hopped up on the bed and kneaded my shoulders for about 5 minutes and then just draped himself across my back and shoulders til I drifted off to sleep. I used to tell Jim that I can't imagine life without him doing that because I love him so much. Well now he is a very old man-kitty. I fear the end is near as he has been frail and small for a year or so. Every morning when I wake up and every evening when I come home form work, I quietly look to see if he is still breathing. Just the other day, he fell while trying to jump from one counter top to the other. He hardly ever come upstairs anymore..........I guess he is just too tired or slow. He spends about 20 hours a day on his pillow in his little basket bed I made for him on the big chair in the living room. But for now, we are both happy as he is purring gently in mommy's warm embrace.