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parallel lives

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Cat With No Name Age: Four years (human years). That's 28 in cat years.

Occupation: Vermin catcher - rats, cockroaches, general pest. A pet of sorts to a veggie-cigarette-and-odds-and-ends stall owner. A lover to all available females in the Tin Hau area, a father to countless children I have never met. Your regular cat-about-town.

Career path: My first memory of life is being wet. I was born in a lane near the Urban Council Wet Market in Tin Hau under a pile of wood and canvas and the summer rains had made the whole world soggy. My mother, as I dimly recall, was a mixture of colours and had a short crooked tail (an Asian cat trait, I'm told). She was tiny and thin, but that was probably from having so many children. One day when I was still very young she left us, scavanging for food, and never came back.

One of my sisters died after a couple of days, somebody picked up my brother one day and took him away (he was jet black and undoubtedly the best looking of the litter) and I realised I was on my own. I started off down King's Road, the area I have come to call my own after all these years. It was terrifying at first - so much noise, so many feet to avoid - but I got used to hiding in safe places during the day and coming out at night. Early one morning I found a particularly cosy spot and overslept. My stallholder friend saw me and didn't shout, but instead threw down a lunchbox of rice and fish bones. I stuck around his stall that day and this has become a habit. I watch out for rats and he feeds me.

Cat's day: During the day, I take it easy at the stall. At night, I go where I like but generally in this area. I show up shortly after my human friend opens his stall in the morning and sometimes I let him put a collar on me because it makes him happy and, besides, I have no burning desire to go anywhere during the day.

I sit on a box usually above the vegetables and watch the world go by, although I also nap a lot during the day. There's always lots to see on King's Road - people rushing around and plenty of noises and smells to think about so it's not boring. Sometimes I see another cat although most of my mates who don't have a daytime human to hang out with hide and sleep during the day.

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