I can't view the original thread for some reason, so I cannot see any
of the responses!  But, here's an update:
The day after I posted, my cat's ears looked REALLY bad.  We took him
to the vet the next day and the poor baby had ear mites.  He got
medicated and we separated him and the kitten until "she" had her vet
appointment (three days later).
We took "her" in and found out she was a HE!  I guess he had little
buddies that we just never noticed because we, um, don't dink around
down there (and he's all black).  :)

Anyway, that's the news with my cat.  He had ear mites, but now he's
being treated.  I don't know what anyone replied, but if you said ear
mites, you were dead on.

Thanks!