I grew up on a ranch in a town outside of San Diego called Lakeside. We had all sorts of animals, and as a result I developed a love for critters great and small. We had just about every type of animal that you can imagine on a ranch, and a few others that you wouldn't!
I currently live in a two-car garage in Southern California. I am owned by a total of two cats, one snake and four horses. I'd like to get images and bios up here for all of the critters; of course, that's what I said when I first made this page about 6 years ago. Keep checking back. Ha!
Timber is one of those cats that has thinks he's part human, part dog, and 100% cat! We've had many cats over the years, but Timber is the first indoor cat that I've owned. I've had him since August of 1991, and we've had plenty of time to decide who's boss...he lets me be the boss (most of the time) since I feed him.
Timber's pretty unusally looking. He's of questionable heritage, but he has the voice of a Siamese and is built much like a Abyssianan, although as he's aged he's lost his svelt figure and now looks like he swallowed a volleyball. He has some of the oddest markings I've seen on a cat. He's got tabby markings on his head and face, and a mackeral patterend coat with a one inch thick black streak along his spine, which seems to get thicker every year.
Timber's favorite hobbies are chasing riding whips and investigating every new foot that comes into our house, particularly those with socks on. I'm often alone at night, but I have no worries -- Timber will trip any unsuspecting visitors by rolling on their feet! After a hard day of inspecting feet, Timber prefers to lie on his back, legs akimbo. I think I fed Timber too much cat nip as a kitten.
After I moved back to California, Timber became very needy and pesty, very unlike his normal independence. I figured that he was probably very lonely, since he'd spent the previous 7 or 8 years with other cats around. So, I decided to get him another feline companion when the opportunity arose.
I ended up getting a 4-week-old kitten who's mama was a wild barn cat. Since he was so young, I had to bottle feed him for the first couple of weeks, and I think that, plus his wild beginnings, took away any chance he might have had of being a nice, sweet kitty...
My cute, darling little kitten began to show his true stripes very soon after I got him home. Once he figured out that I was the provider of food, I became his best friend and his favorite target. If I didn't get the food into him fast enough, he would climb up my legs -- whether or not I was wearing pants. If I wasn't paying attention to him, he would find somewhere to sink his claws (legs, nose, whatever was convenient for him). When I walked across the room, he would tackle my ankles. If I let my toes hang out of bed at night, he'd claw them or bit them. The list goes on.
When I first got him, I thought I'd name him "Harley", because he had such a loud motor when he purred (because, when he wasn't harassing me, he could be incredibly sweet). However, "Harley" seemed too sweet of a name for this cute little bundle of evilness, so another name was in order. It took a while to find the perfect name. I wanted a name that was cute, yet could strike fear into the hearts of those that met him. Hence, he became Chucky -- just like the doll in the "Child's Play" movies -- lots of evil, cute little package.
At this writing (early May, 2004), he has become a lot sweeter, although I get new scars weekly; and I don't dare let my toes hang out of bed. As for Timber -- well, besides my toes, Timber is Chucky's favorite toy. Timber didn't know when he had it so good. ;)
Silk, Albino Corn Snake
Silk, on the other hand, is one feisty little snake, mainly due to a lack of handling. She seems to confuse fingers with food!
(Click on the "Horses" link below to see some horsie pictures)
Back to The Solar System
Page created by: mitchel@emoti.com
Changes last made on: September 1, 1997