ABSTRACT
Of course, such weighty philosophical considerations were not the basis of my career choice. My interest in biological issues had much more primitive beginnings. From my earliest memory, my interest in domestic and wild animals, plants (flowers and gardening), weather patterns, and my larger nonsocial environment has been enduring. My love of cats and their independent and subtle behavior has been a lifetime passion. Having had as many as 16 cats simultaneously provided limitless opportunities
for studying feline behavior. When my mother decided to get rid of some of the outdoor cats and anticipating much grief with the loss of the cats, my solution was to keep a few of the cats in a dresser drawer, preventing my mother from finding them. An older sister helped me to understand that this was not a good solution but she also was instrumental in convincing my parents to allow the cats to live out their natural lives. A highlight of my love for felines was stalking a leopard in the bush in Africa; seeing its skillful-beyond-belief hunting and eating habits and how this leopard protected her young was a highlight of my love for felines. My interest in cats exists today but my interest has moved on from understanding the nuances of feline behavior to the ever-so-subtle dimensions of adolescent behavior.
