The music is "Round Midnight"

Indiana Jacquet Edwards Birthplace: Morgantown, Indiana Birthdate: September 6, 1990 Nicknames: Jackie, Zacky, Yacky, Jackalopus, Yacky Poodle, Zhak-ee-bwah. Likes: Smarmin up ta Mom an Dad. Gittin me butt whomped and raisin it high in de air wile buttin hard wit me hedd. Terrerizin da udder mailcats arown heer.

Watsa matta, ya don't like jazz? Ya don't like BeBop? Reely? Ya mean ya don't even like Thelonious Monk? Wow-meow man, thassa downer! Think I'll go back ta sleep...

Jackie is the son of Poppy and Hootie--Tiffy's brother. I named him after Illinois Jacquet, one of my alltime favorite jazzmen, changing the Illinois to Indiana because--well, because I could! Also because Jackie is a Hoosier--that's a native of Indiana, folks, in case you didn't know--and a lot of people don't. I didn't know it myself for a long time, and I izz one! Now, apologizing for my feeble attempt at humor and space-filling at one swipe, I'll get right back to the real reason for this page.

Jackie doesn't do much during the day except eat a little and sleep a lot. He doesn't even bathe much, as you can see. The minute the sun goes down, though, he's ready to patroll! He slinks around the house looking for victims. Translated, that means timid male cats who don't want to fight anyone, and will run and hide to avoid it. Once he has chased these innocents under tables and chairs and into cupboards, he starts bluffing his way through the ones who don't care one way or the other--like Bubby, who just gives him an offended look, then walks away. Finally, he works his way down to Harry--and that, kitties, is a mistake! Harry is a Siamese-Manx mix, and Harry is tough. He's also mean and stubborn. If you start something with him, you'd better jolly well finish it, or he will.

It starts like this: Jackie approaches Harry in a belly-to-floor slink and wails his challenge. Harry bunches himself into a hard ball and wails his acceptance in a higher voice. Jackie begins a slow circling around Harry, who holds the same position, but turns his head to follow his opponent's movements. This goes on for quite a while before any paws are laid on, and if I'm in the next room I can usually stop it by calling to Jackie in a sweet voice, "Jaaackie, come here to mommy. Come on, Yacky, mommy wants to pet you." This often works, because Jackie is a big fake and a bully. He keeps forgetting that Harry is not a fake, and won't back down.

There have been a few times we've come home from shopping, or in the house from our workroom, to find huge clumps of black-and-smoke and beige fur covering the dining room floor. On examining the cats, we find no injuries--just hair loss! And it doesn't show, because Jackie is one big loose hairball!

Jackie looks like Darth Vader turned horizontal. He has a very puggy nose, like DV's mask, and his fur is so long it practically drags the ground when he walks. And he's a real headbutter. If you even touch his back at the base of his tail, he raises it till he's almost vertical--then he butts whatever happens to be in front of him; usually my (ahem!) bust, or Tim's armpit, as hard as he can, and boy, that's hard! I like to tell him he has the hardest butt in town, and I think he likes to hear it, 'cause he redoubles his efforts.

Jackie is a big sweetie, even if he does often resemble the Prince of Wails!