Did you get her from a shelter, Ish? My mother used to be a dog person for years, then she got her first two cats and it was love at first sight.

We have two cats, Lucy and Figaro, in my household. They are sisters about six-and-one-half years old, each long-hair black cats completely indistinguishable from one another except for the tiniest white bib on Figaro's chest just under her chin.

Lucy is the social one of the pair, always wanting to be near someone. She sleeps at the end of our bed every night, and she loves curling up with anyone on the couch. She's a little cat, barely hitting 8.5 pounds, and very sleek and smooth.

Figaro has developed a bit of a nasty streak the past couple of years, which we think might have happened after a bad experience with a catsitter we employed when we went on vacation. She will let us pet her, but she will turn without warning and start hissing and biting; she also will swat at our legs when we walk too close to her, but not all of the time. Figaro is a much-larger cat than he sister, tipping the scales at a bit over 12 lbs, earning her the nicknames "Princess Fluffybutt" and "Figgy Fat Ass" (which I'm only allowed to use when our daughters aren't around).

We have Smokey and Emmie, two Siamese mixes who are not related to each other - both shelter cats. Smokey is a lilac point and Emmie is a seal point, and they both have faint tabby markings in addition to the Siamese coloring. Smokey is about 13 pounds and Emmie about 11. We've had them since 2008. They rush to greet me when I come home, more like dogs than most cats.

I can't always tell about the vocalizations, but I can tell you about some of the body language. When she brushes against your legs, she's putting her scent on you. Instead of petting her on the top of the head, try rubbing the side of her head starting near the front and going back across the cheek to the neck. That cooperates with her efforts to scent you. If she approaches you with her tail straight up in the air, that's the cat version of "hello, talk to me!"

Usually they meow because they want something, but sometimes it's hard to tell what it is. I can usually tell if they're hungry or want to go outside by where they are when they meow - in the kitchen means food, by the front door means outside, by the litter box might mean "clean this thing!" or "damn I'm constipated".

edit - this is pretty good: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_communication

We have 2 cats and a dog. They are cute. I pet them. It's uncomplicated.

I once had a cat (a Russian Blue) that would come into the bathroom and do his #2 business every time i used the toilet. He must have thought it funny to stink me out of my own bathroom. He followed a routine each and every time i used the bathroom. He would wait until i was in to enter and if i closed the door he would scratch and push his paws under the door until i let him in. Then he would rub across both my legs while i sat and then he jumped up onto the bathtub and walked completely down the edge and then went into his "igloo" and stunk up the place something awful. Then walk out and leave me there. I swear he knew exactly what he was doing the entire time and took the most perverse satisfaction at my discomfort. Then again whenever i was home ill he would lay beside me or climb onto my belly and sleep there like my solemn protector against illness. He was my best friend and worst friend all in one! I miss my Squeeky Pietrovich.