Vionna Wai, Mi & Ding
Left to right: Ding, Vionna, and Mi.
My social media is basically used for scrolling through cat memes and sending them to my partner. After a while of looking at other people’s cats, we knew it was time to get one of our own. That’s when we adopted Mi in 2016. I was going into my last year of Architecture school and felt like I was ready to take care of a cat. On the adoption day, we went to a cat cafe and ASPCA in Manhattan. We were beginning to lose hope in finding the perfect one. At ASPCA, a sleeping cat caught my eye and it was love at first sight when she woke up. It was 3-year-old Mi with her beautiful green eyes, silky gray fur, missing teeth, and irresistible white mittens.
When we took her home, she stole everyone’s heart with her gentle personality. She will always greet you even if you’re a stranger. She also loves the heat. During the winter, she is the best cuddle buddy who will sleep with you under the blanket. Even when she’s playful, she will never use her claws on you. She would ask politely if she can have a piece of your dinner. The only things that get her crazy are fried chicken, cheese, and laser pointers. She’s been through a lot with us, from getting our first jobs to living in multiple apartments. She’s even made us closer with other family members.
One day, we were watching kitten videos, as usual. Mi was running around the house and calling as if she was trying to find the kittens. She always had a nurturing side and would groom us after coming back from a long day at work. It sparked an idea—maybe she wants a younger sibling or someone to take care of?! She was spayed at the adoption center so we thought she was sad that she couldn’t give birth. The perfect opportunity came when we moved into a bigger apartment. It was time to get her a little brother!
That’s when Ding came into our lives, adopted in 2018 as an 8-week-old white and brown kitten. Mi thought he was the ugliest thing ever. She would hiss at him all the time!! He was hyper, playful, mischievous—completely opposite of Mi.
“When he was a kitten, he used to freak out when I took a shower. He thought I was drowning in water and tried to drag me out. He quickly grew out of that one.”
With Ding, we had to deal with new challenges that we never faced before. Like, how do you keep your cat from destroying your plants? How do you stop your cat from opening doors that have round door knobs? How do you make sure your cat doesn’t turn on the gas stove by accident (AGAIN)? How do you cat-proof your drawers so your cat doesn’t open them to play with 20 mouse toys at once? We managed to solve many of these problems and learned many tricks to cat-proof our home.
Ding has a lot of good traits too. He’s pretty much a dog-cat that likes to play and be a part of everything. He’s also very in tune with my emotions and shows concern whenever I cry, get into arguments, or when I’m just unhappy. I’ve played dead a few times and he would come crying and try to drag me somewhere for help—or maybe he was just trying to eat me? When he was a kitten, he used to freak out when I took a shower. He thought I was drowning in water and tried to drag me out. He quickly grew out of that one.
Life is a lot calmer now that we are past his kitten stage. Mi and Ding both love their human parents but are still working out their differences with each other. Occasionally, we would catch Mi giving Ding a sniff or a lick on the head when he’s asleep. Most of the time now, you will find them sharing a sunny spot with my plants or play-fighting with each other. Looking back, I’m really thankful for these experiences that made me a better cat mom and a more responsible person. Life is full with them and it's so much better than just cat memes on the internet.
Vionna Wai is an NYC-based construction manager by day and an artist by night. She loves spending time at home in Brooklyn with 100+ plants and two fur babies in her Feline Jungle.