Unit was born in late May of 1993. I found him at the county animal control center in Los Angeles. I had for the first time in my life been living alone. My last roommate had a wonderful cat that I was missing a lot. I was also newly involved with a wonderful woman, her name was Elicia. Elicia had a cat that had died a few years earlier. Elicia and I lived in the same apartment building. She loved Niniva so much that she never wanted another. Even thou the building we lived in did not allow pets I noticed many cats. I decided that Elicia and I both could use a furry friend and so she and I went to the pound. I had in mind to get a female cat because my old roommate's cat was female. The lady at the pound told me that most of the cats there were female and that I could take my pick. I selected Unit because he seemed to follow me with his eyes, where ever I moved paying no attention to Elicia or anyone else. In addition he meowed constantly and I had in mind to get a cat that liked to talk. The lady at the pound however informed me that Unit was male. I picked another cat that was also male and then picked yet another with the same result. As it turned out they were a bit short on females in fact they had none. So we started talking about my perceived problems with males. Well obviously Unit was it and home we went. He was only 6 weeks old very cute and talked so much I was concerned that he would never stop. I got two litter boxes and two sets of bowls so he could stay with me when I was at Elicia's. This went on for only about a week when Elicia fell very ill and was diagnosed with Leukemia. This brought about many changes. First off Elicia and I decided to marry. And she began a six month long cancer protocol that kept both of us at UCLA medical center most of that time. I slept at UCLA and friends family and neighbors took care of Unit for most of his kittenhood. My Mom and Sister had a great story one day. Unit had several balls of yarn to play with and when they arrived at our apartment to find yarn going thru every place in the house. Including a three level cat scratch tower that also had yarn furiously strung in and out of each port some leading back to other rooms and others going back into another hole of the tower. At the end of the string was Unit, immobilized crying for help. I had to imagine what this must have looked like and the vision of this makes me smile every time I think of it. It took them some time to cut thru all the yarn. I hope he wasn't stuck there to long. Elicia and I were married in July of 93 and her treatments were finished in January of 94. The result was complete remission that lasted less than two weeks. Two days after we got the bad news came the Northridge Earthquake which to spite cracks in the walls resulted in little damage. At this point Elicia's prognosis was quite bad and she passed away April 4, 1994. Unit and I were all alone. My relationship with him was now very close. After Elicia and I married we took her apartment as our home. This apartment was on the 5th floor and had a balcony. He loved it out there. He also liked the hallway. I would leave the front door open and he would lay out there and keep an eye on things. He made friends with the girl cat down the hall and seemed to be quite the gentleman. I found that other cats might hiss at him and when that happened he would just lay down on his side. Everyone on the floor liked him as well as all the employees of the building. In April of 95 I met Sheila. We dated for over a year and decided to live together. She also has a cat. Julius was a local outside cat that Sheila adopted. Unit being an indoor cat and Julius being an outdoor cat was a concern for me. Julius came and went thru a kitty door and Unit had to be trained to do the same. This took two days. He loved it outside. My neighborhood is a quiet one with many other cats. Unit not only adapted but seemed to take charge. He was in everybody's yard on everybody's roof and the problems that Sheila was having with possums coming in the house disappeared. On occasion we would here a cat fight in the back yard and Unit would emerge calm and without a scratch. Unit was in and out all day and night long and seemed to love his new freedom. Unit was much like a young kid always pushing his limits and always getting into trouble. That was his way. Sheila was not used to a cat being so rambunctious. I was frequently either punishing Unit or sticking up for him.

He was always happy to see me come home and when I did he was most often outside. He'd come up and say hello. He talked a lot and had many different styles of speech. He would like to be near me when I was on the computer so he'd curl up on my laser writer and look cute. The last time I saw him alive he was laying in the sun on the driveway. My van was in the street and as I pulled out we watched each other. My neighbor was there when it happened. He heard a car screech and Unit was killed instantly. His neighbor was kind enough to put Unit in a recycle bin so I could take care of him the way I want to. Unit will be cremated. I feel like I've lost one of my best friends.

In reality I have spent more time with him than any one else during his short life. If he had been kept inside safe this would not have happened but Unit would have missed the thing that made an already happy cat happier. His outdoor life lasted only 8 months. I still can't believe it happened. I miss you Unit.