Jen Hsieh, Bubba & Jeff Goldblum

“We first welcomed Bubba, our 12-year old, flat-faced, grandpa of a cat, into our lives after his first human passed away and then was bullied by other cats at his second home. He was too big to fit into a cat carrier, so when his second human's car arrived to drop him off, Bubba was just curled up on the floor of the front seat. We ended up smuggling him into our apartment via a pillowcase. He spent the first two weeks hiding in the depths of our closet. When Bubba would make a rare appearance, my boyfriend and I would automatically freeze up at the sound of his paws and just followed his every move with our eyes (and our phones), trying not to scare him away while soaking in his little face. Now Bubba is the biggest sweetheart who follows MY every move (especially into the bathroom) and is the expert cuddler.Jeff Goldblum, on the other hand, is just over a year old and is the playful baby of the family. Jeff was an orphan found in East Harlem who landed himself into a vet's office, up for adoption. After a few months, all of his fellow orphans found new homes while people kept passing on Jeff. Luckily for him, my boyfriend and I paid him a visit with a few drinks in our system. We made the tipsy decision to adopt the little guy after many rounds of "OMG HE'S SO CUTE HE'S THE BEST YAS". Now I can't fall asleep unless he's curled up inconveniently on my face for the night.As a child growing up, I never had the responsibility or companionship of pets (aside from fish, who I had to learn not to get emotionally attached to, due their short lifespan). So, providing much needed homes to these furry nuggets has been such a game changer. Not only have I learned to love more unconditionally and work on my patience - seriously though, how many plants can one cat knock down - but it's also given me and my boyfriend a way to strengthen our relationship by caring for Bubba and Jeff Goldblum together.”Jen Hsieh is a production manager who currently resides in Astoria, Queens with her two derpy fluff balls and her equally derpy boyfriend.