Driving from Hagerstown Maryland to Roanoke Rapids North Carolina via I-81 and I-64, I passed Charlottesville Virginia, the birthplace of all my Eqyptian Maus. The stretch of road on I-64 between I-81 and Charlottesville is the most beautiful road I’ve driven during the 2000 miles on this trip. I-64 runs east from the Shenandoah Mountains through the Shenandoah Valley, and between Shenandoah National Park and the George Washington National Forest. The forest was among the most beautiful I have ever seen. Today’s drive was 320 miles and took over seven hours.
While driving by Charlottesville, I was very tempted to stop by where I got my Maus and see if there were any Egyptian Mau kittens available. The wonderful lady who I got my Maus from won’t ship the kittens, you have to come there and retrieve them in person. In 1998, I flew to Charlottesville VA to pick up Sunwapta. Sunwapta was a magnificent cat. Later that year I got another Mau named Lnyx. Tragically Lynx died very unexpectedly at a young age due to an enlarged heart. The woman who provided me with Sunwapta and Lynx felt so badly that she asked me if I wanted Spirit (Lynx’s mother) and Cheetah (Sunwapta’s mother). A year later Spirit and Cheetah both came to live with me. Cheetah and Sunwapta, although separated for six years, both knew immediately that they were mother and son. I could on and on about those cats, but will save that story for another post.
About four years ago, once again I flew to Virginia to get another Egyptian Mau. Her name is Paso Robles, and she is the Mau who lives with me now. The trip to get her was simply crazy. Very early in the morning I flew to Philadelphia, then to Richmond VA where I met the woman from Charlottesville with the Maus to pick up Robles. Then Robles and I got on an airplane in Richmond, connected through Charlotte, and flew home back to Tampa. The entire round trip lasted 15 hours. By the way, little kittens are chick magnets in airport bars.
The man seated in the aisle seat next to me on the final leg to Tampa was not as thrilled. He was MR GQ, dressed in a fancy suit, looking at stock quotes on his laptop, sitting next to me was his worst nightmare. By this time I was quite sweaty and smelly from the very long day. I was now on my 4th plane ride of the day. I kept having to get up to use the bathroom after drinking wine in Charlotte. Finally after several trips to the bathroom we switched seats. We looked at each other with disdain. I thought why was he in the back of the aircraft in row 36 if he was such a hotshot smarty pants businessman. He probably thought, what did I do to deserve to sit next to some sweaty smelly guy with a kitten in a cage with stinky cat litter spilled throughout the cage. Robles was also quite vocal, similar to a baby screaming on an airplane, except this was a kitten making quite a fuss. Well he got off the plane worrying about his stocks. I exited off the plane with a new beautiful friend for life, who is sitting next to me now. Robles’s great great great great grandmother was Cheetah. Every time I look at Robles, I see both Sunwapta and Cheetah.
For those that are wondering, I finally decided not to get another Mau only while I was driving past Charlottesville. Logistics in the RV would have been difficult to add a kitten. First, Robles and Mountain Lioness would have freaked out with a new kitten in the coach. The poor little kitten would have to ride in a cage with food and cat litter. I think the ride and noise would have terrified the kitten. Although when I brought Sunwapta home, the first flight being on a 4 propeller commuter jet, he calmly sat on the seat next to after I let him out of the cage. With all the traveling I plan to do in the future, two cats is a good number to travel with, three would start to become a menagerie.
I’m not sure where to head next, I just know I am heading in a southernly direction towards home. However, the drive back to Charlottesville where the Eqyptain Mau cats are is not that far away.
Year of the Cat – Al Stewart