It's National Cat Day!

For today's installment of my #30DayWritingChallenge, I figured I'd go with something a bit lighter than my first two entries. We can all use the distraction. Lucky for us -- well, for cat lovers, at least -- today is National Cat Day. Let the internet, which of course was built for cats, rejoice!

National Cat Day isn't just about honoring our feline overlords. (If you've ever had a cat, you know who is in charge.) It was started in 2005 as a way to call attention to the large number of homeless cats in the U.S. I had the honor of working on this issue while sitting on the Board of the Merrimack Valley Feline Rescue Society back during my years living in Massachusetts. Its Executive Director at the time, Stacy LeBaron, is now the founder and host of an excellent podcast series, Community Cats Podcast.

The Boyz, solo and in their familiar cluster.

Cats are amazing. Over the course of my adult life, I have been the proud dad to four felines. One, Triton, died while still a kitten. The other three -- Oberon, Spartacus and Orion -- were with me for 15 years before kidney disease and cancer took them from me. Losing them was as painful as you can imagine. I decided long ago not to have children, so they were my kids. "My boyz," as I used to call them. They brought me a great deal of companionship, joy and love. And, yes, plenty of attitude. I loved it!

Cats are pretty amazing. They have been domesticated for nearly 4,000 years. About as long as it seems they spend sleeping. Speaking of which, on the flip side, they spend one-third of their awake time cleaning themselves. (Pro tip: if a cat home smells, it's not the cat's fault, it's the adult's.) And, unlike humans, but like nearly all Muppets, most cats are left-han ... er, left-pawed.

They are also quite smart, sassy and aloof. What more could you want in a pet? Oh, right. Yes, they are also great cuddlers. There are a tremendous amount of homeless cats that need your help and many wonderful organizations in your area who do just that. Check out their volunteer opportunities or make a donation. Better yet, do both! And if you want a cat of your own, please adopt from a no-kill shelter (as I did for all my boyz). There are many cats that need a good home.

Plus, there's a reason why cat videos dominate the internet. They do things like this ...

Now, if only my Jets could tackle as well.

Do you love cats? Do you have one? Feel free to share your cat story/photo in the comments!