It’s a sublime Saturday afternoon. I have this cute little gal cuddled up beside me while I attempt to write this column.

Said ‘little gal’ is of the four-footed variety, extremely fetching, maddeningly curious, rather naughty and yet oh, so easy to forgive (those huge hazel eyes, that pink nose, her silent meow…)

Her name is ‘Callie’, short, as you might have guessed, for Calico. She is just that—a confection of chocolate, caramel and creamy white colors, a soft as your favorite old chenille robe.

Caress her dense coat and you touch velvet.

(You’ll also probably feel some sharp little teeth and a sandpaper tongue. The cat is a true tactile smorgasbord.)

She is the newest member of our indoor family of felines.

I won’t say she replaces our beloved Mary Ann (she who rests in peace out yonder beneath the tall and shady tree); yet there is that undeniable sweetness, the funny silent greeting, the way she lets you cuff her little face.

These are all reminders of that funny old tabby that came to claim our hearts.

Callie is somewhere around five months old—big enough that she can get into all kinds of mischief, young enough to be a bit of a klutz.

She desperately wants to sit on the desk in the office and attempt to eat the computer mouse (&uot;wrong kind of rodent, honey,&uot; I explain).

She finally gives up—for now—watching wide-eyed from some nearby vantage point ’til Morpheus claims her and it’s time for a catnap. Oh, to be able to relax and unwind like a cat!

I would almost kill for such flexibility.

Everything in the house has, of course, become Callie’s plaything, including the luxuriously full and fluffy tail of our resident diva, Puddin’.

Puddin’ reclines on the coffee table in the den, twitching that magnificent plume while Callie hides underneath, just waiting to make a grab for this irresistible toy.

Puddin’, like Queen Victoria, is distinctly not amused with the game.

Eventually she (of the cameo profile and sea green eyes) departs in full ‘huff’ mode. &uot;Children!

What wretched creatures!&uot;

Ah, but she certainly does liven things up, doesn’t she, old girl?

Angie Long is a columnist and Lifestyles writer for the Greenville Advocate.

You may contact her via e-mail at along@alaweb.com or leave a recorded message at 382-5145.