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In the summer of 1994, my husband and I adopted our first kitten. He was cute, tiny, and black as coal. We were so excited about our new family member we couldn't wait to bring him home, but first we faced the dilemma of what to name him. Everyone could tell he had quite an attitude even at his young age, so my husband said we should name him Rufus after George Carlin's character in the film, "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure."

Rufus rode nestled on the top of the headrest of my car seat for the entire fifty-mile trip home. He loved to ride in the car. On future trips his favorite position was on my husband's lap with both paws on the steering wheel. Probably not the safest travel arrangement for us or the cat, but at the time, it seemed just right. We used to joke about having our own "Toonces-the Driving Cat" like the sketch from "Saturday Night Live."

He had an abundant amount of energy. My husband would play with him in the evening and as he grew we started to discover just how smart Rufus really was. His intelligence astounded us when my husband decided to teach him how to play fetch. We had a bi-level home and he would sit at the top of the stairs and throw Rufus' favorite toy mouse to the bottom of the stairs. Rufus would run down to it and then my husband would entice him back up the stairs with a kitty treat. This went on for several throws, until Rufus decided he didn't need a treat the game of fetch was more fun.

We were very proud of Rufus until the game became his obsession. Whenever we would sit down, he would run in and bring his mouse to us. If you didn't pick it up and throw it, he would drop the mouse in your lap. If you still didn't throw it, he might actually nip at your hand. He was very insistent but a great retriever.

Rufus' obsession with his mouse toys was legendary. We would put his mice away at bedtime or else they would all end up in our bed. Because we kept his toys in a kitchen desk drawer, we had a hard time figuring out how the toys kept reappearing on the floor or in the bed after we had put them away. I originally chalked it up to forgetfulness on my part, but that wasn't the case. Smart cat that he was, Rufus had figured out how to get his toys.

One day I watched him perform the most amazing trick. He went under the desk drawer and with his front paws slowly pushed at the bottom until it slid in the track and opened. He then hopped up onto the top of the desk and proceeded to remove his toy of choice out of the drawer. I was

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