I grew up in Hollin Hills, a suburb of Washington, DC, just south of Alexandria in Virginia. Hollin Hills was populated by government employees, diplomats and many artists. Cats (and dogs) were abundant as pets. Solveig Cox was a successful potter—putting her two kids through college with her ceramic earnings. She made tons of whimsical cat pots—some 3-D and others painted. She had a big gas kiln at her house, which she generously let community members fire their pottery in. That’s when I first started doing pottery. These two cats sit on my stove and remind me of home.