One tenet of the legal profession is "Possession is nine points of the law," and at our house that translates into the unwritten rule that "if a cat is there first, a human must have a mighty good reason to move it."  The comfort of the cat takes precedence over everyday domestic neatness, thus Pat's determination to keep the house tidy sometimes hits a snag when she finds Lizzie napping in a room she intended to vacuum, or Nicky sleeping on an unmade bed.

   However, if you think they repay us in kind, you don't know our Good Cats.  Case in point:  I'm in the love seat in the family room, and Caitie-Belle decides her mid-afternoon nap would best be taken there.  First she stares at me, with intent to intimidate me into voluntarily giving up my seat, also known as her bed.  When that doesn't work, and she really, really wants it, she prances around for several seconds, giving me my final warning, before leaping onto the chair arm.  She hurdles any limbs that may be draped over the arm before settling down behind me on the back of the chair.  Naturally, if and when I get up, our Calico Diva takes possession under the precept "Use it or lose it."

   Kelly tends not to bother with legal niceties when he wants to sit somewhere.  It doesn't bother the Big Guy if I'm already sitting there; he simply hops up, crawls around behind me, and settles in, his 19 pounds gently but firmly pushing me out of his way.