Sarah is an elegant Audrey Hepburn of a cat wrapped in a glossy minklike coat. The few specks of white hair sprinkled throughout her dark fur are the only giveaways to her advanced age of 16 years.
According to catsinfo.com, after the first two years of a cat's life, each feline year is approximately 4 human years. Cats are adolescents at about 6 months to a year old, middle-aged at about 8 years and considered senior citizens at about 12 years old.
This means my cat would be 80 in human years. Living like Sarah the cat could be the secret to a long, healthy life.
Sarah is pretty spry for an octogenarian. She does sprints up and down the hall and around the house at least once a day. Like any athlete, she stretches regularly.
In warmer weather, she does practice attacks on blowing leaves, naps in the garden and takes frequent sun baths. She enjoys a morsel of whatever the meat/fish/fowl item is on the humans' menu but mostly sticks to her cat kibble. She never seems to overeat.
During this time of year when we are encouraged to make resolutions to cure our holiday overindulgences with diets and exercise equipment, my resolution is to live more like a cat in 2008.
First, I resolve to stretch more and practice a lot of yawning which helps to supply oxygen to the brain.
Second, naps are good. I like to nap during football games or NASCAR races on TV when I'm home. If I ever have the urge to nap at work, I have a cup of tea or some espresso instead. Cats don't drink espresso - they nap - preferably in a sunny spot.
Next is to get daily exercise. Cats are on the right track with this. When Sarah is cold, she seeks a warm lap, flops down on a vent when the heater is on or runs like a crazy thing batting a toy mouse around the room.
I equate this cat activity with being constructive at work, but you can only focus on a computer screen or on killing a toy mouse for so long and then it's time to nap again.
So I resolve to break up my new habit of napping with bursts of energetic movement. I'm writing a reminder to buy myself some toy mice - one for exercising at the office, one for home and an extra in case I lose one under the couch.
Since I haven't figured out the connection of gacking up hairballs and living a long life, I could just make the resolution to be more like my cat and not overeat.
For New Year's resolutions, many of you will be looking for the Atkins diet books that you bought a year ago and rolling out the treadmills that have been collecting dust in your garage. Meanwhile, I will be taking notes from an 80-year-old cat.
My co-workers probably won't mind me doing stretches at my desk several times a day, but flopping down for a nap on a white square of sunshine in the front office might be out of the question.
-- People Editor Sharlene Irete may be reached at sirete@recordcourier.com
or 782-5121, ext. 210.
