Don't get me wrong, I loved all my pets; dogs, a wolf (which was more cat-like than dog-like), tortoises, a pigmy goat (which no one knew about), iguanas, newts, hamsters. tarantulas, scorpions, hermit crabs, koi, ducks, parrots. I've always had a zoo around me. But my closest confident has always been the cat. I don't know why. They seem to understand me. When I was little I'd talk to my cat Shadow about how hard it was to be alive when things were rough around the house. Shadow would sleep next to my side. He was a big black alley cat. He use to beat up the neighbor's doberman Bullet. He wasn't afraid of anything. When I was forced to get rid of him, because we went to Italy, he survived in the back alley for a year until I returned. He was pissed at me. He raped my new cat Twinkle and ate my pet parakeet. He beat up my brother's cat Razzmatazz, which is why he probably had a crooked neck. He even beat up our afghan Leon. Like I said he was pissed at me. I couldn't get mad at him though. He was a survivor, no matter what. That's what he taught me. And after all the mayhem was done, he still slept by my side and purred. After Shadow came Guido, probably the smartest animal I've ever had. I found him at a pet store in a fish tank with a broken leg. They told me he was a Burmese without papers. Someone threw him out of a car which is why he had a broken leg. He had a funny piece of orange carpet in his mouth. Apparently, he couldn't live without it. I bought him for $15. He lived for 21 years. He fetched that piece of orange carpet like crazy. We even made a game called "hockey fetch" in which I would try to flick the piece of orange carpet past him and he would leap and catch it like a great goalie. He also sat on the piano while I composed. He loved music. He'd let me know if he liked something by jumping down on the keys and licking my fingers. He was a good friend. Now, I have Otto, the famous Biker Cat. He's also a Burmese. He's definitely the bravest animal I have ever had. He loves to ride. I don't mean a little pansy Sunday ride through Central Park like that dude with his cat in New York. I mean on the freeway ride, goggles and all. I mean we have places to go, things to do kind of ride. He's my biker pal. He's been keeping me company while I recuperate from this nasty bug.