DaytonDailyNews.com

I haven't known many band leaders, and I can't guess what qualities they possess that would make good pets. So I did a little digging for details.

The test divides cat personalities into three major groupings, each with three subgroups: "Leader of the Band," "Party Animal" and "MVP" cats are described as savvy, unflappable and adventurous; "Sidekick," "Executive" and "Personal Assistant" cats are good companions; and "Secret Admirer," "Love Bug" and "Private Investigator" cats are quiet, shy cats who stay out of trouble.

Obviously the Sidekick model is a good starter cat for most people. In our house that would be Toby, our big orange cat, also called Tobes, Tubs, Tubby, Wubby and Tubs J. Wubs.

This is the cat that can capture the heart of a hardened dog person. Case in point: My daughter's boyfriend, Jon, who used to respond to her myriad Toby stories with a wary, "You really like cats, don't you?" That was before Tubs wubbed up onto Jon's lap and settled in. Now, when Jon comes over, he asks, "Where's Toby?"

"Private Investigator" is a euphemism for "painfully shy." That's the cat you have to convince people you have through photographic evidence, because it'll never come out when company's around. That would be our little black cat Julie, also called Jules, Julsie, Julsie-Wulsie and Little Black.

She can be sitting on my lap, happily purring away, but the second the doorbell rings all that remains is a little puff of smoke and a few gouges in my flesh where she launched herself to safety with her back claws.

And then we come to "Leader of the Band," behind whose eyes lurk a sinister intelligence and certain sense of superiority. They are the reason we should be thankful cats don't have opposable thumbs, because they are just a few fine-motor skills shy of world domination.

Pumpkin — also called Pumps, Pumpy, Pumpy-kins, Pumpity and Mrs. Nosey-Butt — is a fearless ruler of the household. She will stare down strangers and vacuum cleaners alike with equal, unflinching disdain. She will climb ladders and ride in cars. She will steal my husband's chair when he gets up, then stand her ground. She is opinionated, vocal and not open to uninvited affection. But when she wants your attention, she extracts it like a dentist pulls teeth.

Among the three of them, we have one whole cat personality. And once you've had multiple cats, you'll never go back. Why limit yourself to one when you can experience the full spectrum?

It's that way with red sauces for pasta, too. Most of us have a go-to marinara-with-meatballs version, but real Italians will tell you that red sauce — also called gravy — is a traditional dish made with a tomato base and flavored with whatever meat Grandma had on hand to throw in the pot on a Sunday afternoon.

Country-style ribs add a rich, savory component to the sauce. Slow-cooked all day, the meat is shredded for melt-in-your-mouth tenderness. This hearty sauce holds up well served over a hearty pasta, like penne.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 medium onions, minced

Salt

3 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs, trimmed

1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 bay leaves

Heat oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, tomato paste, pepper flakes and one quarter teaspoon salt, and cook until the onions are softened and lightly browned. Stir in the wine, scraping up any browned bits.

Transfer the onion mixture to the slow-cooker and stir in the ribs, tomatoes, soy sauce, oregano and bay leaves. Cover and cook on low 8 to 9 hours, or on high 5 to 7 hours.