At first my heart dropped when I heard that Norm Lopez–the internationally famous fat cat known for hanging out on a Midtown sidewalk–might be hightailing his fluffy largess out of Sacramento.
But rest assured Norm fans, this kitty has many local lives apparently–thanks to Nick Brunner, a Capital Public Radio producer and host of its weekly Blue Dog Jam show.
Norm—if you’re one of those people living under a feline-free rock—is the 26-pound kitty that resides on 14th street between P and Q streets. Norm’s long been admired by Midtown walkers—so much so that his owner Tyler Lopez launched an annual Friends of Norm Pub Crawl as a benefit for the Front Street Animal Shelter.
Over the years his popularity’s grown exponentially—his Facebook fan page now boasts more than 5,000 “likes” with fans as far-flung as South America, Europe and the U.K. and Malaysia.
All those friends proved useful earlier this year. In August a well-meaning Good Samaritan thought Norm was just another pregnant teen runaway–and took him to the very shelter that his pub crawls helped to support.
Luckily, a worker there recognized Norm from his Facebook page and the tubby tabby was returned to his owner.
Fast-forward to now and Tyler Lopez has taken a job in rural Colorado. Initially she thought she’d take Norm with her as well, but two weeks before departure, Lopez realized her tiny new apartment wasn’t big enough for her, two dogs, a roommate and a well-fed cat.
Enter Nick Brunner who was not only a Norm Lopez fan but also a neighbor and friend of his owner.
“Considering Norm is something of a Sacramento fixture, she asked if I’d consider adopting him,” Brunner told SN&R.
It was good timing, he adds.
“In August I had to put my cat of 10 years to sleep so I had a cat-shaped hole in my life, plus I love Norm so I agreed.”
Even better, Norm is part of a kitty two-fer, he says.
“With Norm comes Six his feral buddy, so it’s a package deal,” he says. “Two cats for the price of none.”
Technically, if we’re going by weight, it’s more like three cats in one–but hey, we know what you mean.
So yeah, big thanks to Brunner for helping keep Midtown meow-y. Fur purr, for real.
