I was destined to be a cat person since birth.

Arrow pointing right

My parents had cats before I was born. And I’m an only child. This means my siblings were cats.

It all started in Tennessee, back in the early 90s, when my parents’ neighbor’s cat had kittens. My dad was totally down to welcome home two cats (as a first time cat owner) but my mom was not for it at all.

The neighbor planned to give my dad one boy cat and one girl cat, but somehow my dad ended up with two boy cats. Their names were Smartie and Bubble.

My mom was totally pissed and put signs on the door that says “NO CATS ALLOWED”. But soon, the cats won her over and she’s a cat lady since then. When I was born, the cats cuddled with me in the crib.

Since then, we’ve welcomed home a number of cats, all of whom spent their entire lives with us. No cat was ever left behind, even when we relocated from country to country.

My mother decided we will name all of our family cats after candy or chocolate. Here are the names of our cats:

  1. Smartie

  2. Bubble (Maybe she meant “bubble gum” lol)

  3. Kit Kat

  4. Hershey

  5. After Eight

  6. Lindt

  7. Ghirar (Part 1 of “Ghirardelli”)

  8. Delli (Part 2 of “Ghirardelli”)

  9. Tai Chi (Okay so we adopted him from the shelter when he was already quite old so he’s used to his original name)

  10. Meiji

  11. Pocky

  12. Milky

For myself, at the time of writing, I currently one cat, named Nugget :) Together, we live with my husband in sunny Singapore.

The Team

Cheryl Lau

The Thought Leader Club Podcast | cheryltheory.com

I am the coach for aspiring thought leaders and the host of The Thought Leader Club Podcast (previously known as The Side Hustle Club Podcast). I believe that sharing your story, becoming known for your thought leadership, and building a body of work is the foundation for creating your own version of a successful life, career, and business.

Persian Cat | Not a lap cat but will sit beside you | Screeches for breakfast

I got Nugget back in 2016 when I was still in Toronto, after seeing an ad from an old lady who couldn’t take care of Nugget anymore. Her name was not originally Nugget, but I think this name suits her.

She has a habit of facing the wall. Like, she’ll literally smoosh her face against the wall lol.

Nugget