This cat... he don't like you either.

Since Chris decided to share pictures of our extended furry family I though it was only fair to introduce the yang to Murray's ying. This is Rico, formally known as War, kitten of the apocalypse. He was one of 4 kittens born in our backyard two years ago. His brother Famine still hangs around outside but Pestilence and Death have since gone ahead before us.

Rico with his game face on.

We brought him inside because he was the friendliest of the four which, as it turns out, isn't all that friendly. As a feral kitten I would coax him onto my lap and pet him. He'd see my hand coming and hiss silently then roll his eyes back and purr loudly. I must have gotten to him at a very impressionable time because now he really likes to sit on my lap, or on pants that I've worn, or squarely on my crotch while I'm trying to sleep.

Rico has relentlessly hissed and swatted on sight of the children for 10 months now and thereby has trained them far better than any of the other house cats. If the kids see him, neither will go within a 5 foot radius. They will find alternate routes. They will not go in our bedroom if they think he's under the bed. They will call for me to extricate him if he's standing in front of the refrigerator or toilet. They fear the black and white cat.

There have been several times where I've looked at that cat sleeping peacefully after we've had some massive blow out with the kids and thought that he is clearly the smartest one in the house.