diff --git a/src/components/categorical/categorical.js b/src/components/categorical/categorical.js
index 776063d6..28924289 100644
--- a/src/components/categorical/categorical.js
+++ b/src/components/categorical/categorical.js
@@ -8,38 +8,63 @@ import SectionHeader from "../framework/sectionHeader"
 import Value from "./value";
 import { alphabeticallySortedValues } from "./util";
 
-const Category = ({metadataField, values}) => (
-  <div style={{
-      display: "flex",
-      alignItems: "baseline",
-      maxWidth: globals.maxControlsWidth,
-    }}>
-    <p style={{
-        flexShrink: 0,
-        width: 200,
-        textAlign: "right",
-        fontFamily: globals.accentFont,
-        fontStyle: "italic",
-        marginRight: 20,
-      }}>
-      {metadataField}:
-    </p>
-    <div>
-      {
-        _.map(alphabeticallySortedValues(values), (v, i) => {
-          return (
-            <Value
-              key={v}
-              metadataField={metadataField}
-              count={values[v]}
-              value={v}
-              i={i} />
-          )
-        })
-      }
-    </div>
-  </div>
-)
+@connect()
+class Category extends React.Component {
+  handleColorChange() {
+    this.props.dispatch({
+      type: "color by categorical metadata",
+      colorAccessor: this.props.metadataField
+    })
+  }
+  render() {
+    return (
+      <div style={{
+          // display: "flex",
+          // alignItems: "baseline",
+          maxWidth: globals.maxControlsWidth,
+        }}>
+        <div style={{
+          display: "flex",
+          justifyContent: "space-between",
+          alignItems: "baseline"
+        }}>
+          <p style={{
+              // flexShrink: 0,
+              width: 200,
+              fontWeight: 500,
+              // textAlign: "right",
+              // fontFamily: globals.accentFont,
+              // fontStyle: "italic",
+              marginRight: 20,
+            }}>
+            {this.props.metadataField}:
+          </p>
+          <button
+          onClick={this.handleColorChange.bind(this)}
+          style={{
+            font: globals.accentFont,
+            fontStyle: "italic",
+            fontSize: 10
+          }}> as color scale </button>
+        </div>
+        <div>
+          {
+            _.map(alphabeticallySortedValues(this.props.values), (v, i) => {
+              return (
+                <Value
+                  key={v}
+                  metadataField={this.props.metadataField}
+                  count={this.props.values[v]}
+                  value={v}
+                  i={i} />
+              )
+            })
+          }
+        </div>
+      </div>
+    )
+  }
+}
 
 @connect((state) => {
 
@@ -59,14 +84,22 @@ class Categories extends React.Component {
 
   render () {
     if (!this.props.ranges) return null
+
     return (
-      <div style={{marginTop: 50}}>
-        <SectionHeader text="Categorical Metadata"/>
+      <div style={{
+        position: "fixed",
+        left: 40,
+        height: 200,
+
+      }}>
+
         {
           _.map(this.props.ranges, (value, key) => {
+            const isColorField = key.includes("color") || key.includes("Color");
             if (
               value.options &&
-              key !== "CellName"
+              key !== "CellName" &&
+              !isColorField
             ) {
               return (
                 <Category
@@ -85,7 +118,7 @@ class Categories extends React.Component {
 export default Categories;
 
 /*
-
+<SectionHeader text="Categorical Metadata"/>
   [on off] toggle hide deselected filters (shows a menu vs shows what you ordered in compact/narrative form. fold out animation.)
 
   <p> Sort by: Alphabetical / Count || Show counts: true / false || Collapse: all / none</p>
diff --git a/src/components/categorical/value.js b/src/components/categorical/value.js
index 2b3f75e6..a83b8159 100644
--- a/src/components/categorical/value.js
+++ b/src/components/categorical/value.js
@@ -9,20 +9,11 @@ import actions from "../../actions";
   }
 })
 class CategoryValue extends React.Component {
-  toggleOn() {
-    this.props.dispatch(
-      actions.attemptCategoricalMetadataSelection(
-        this.props.metadataField,
-        this.props.value
-      ))
-  }
-  toggleOff() {
-    this.props.dispatch(
-      actions.attemptCategoricalMetadataDeselection(
-        this.props.metadataField,
-        this.props.value
-      ))
+
+  handleChange() {
+    console.log("dispatch", this.props.metadataField, this.props.value)
   }
+
   render () {
 
     /* has this value for this category already been selected? */
@@ -40,9 +31,7 @@ class CategoryValue extends React.Component {
     return (
       <div
         key={this.props.i}
-        onClick={selected ? this.toggleOff.bind(this) : this.toggleOn.bind(this)}
         style={{
-          cursor: "pointer",
           display: "flex",
           fontWeight: selected ? 700 : 400,
         }}>
@@ -52,7 +41,7 @@ class CategoryValue extends React.Component {
             margin: 0,
             lineHeight: "1em"
           }}>
-          {this.props.value}
+          <input onChange={this.handleChange.bind(this)} checked={true} type="checkbox"/> {this.props.value}
         </p>
         <p style={{
             margin: 0,
@@ -66,3 +55,19 @@ class CategoryValue extends React.Component {
 }
 
 export default CategoryValue;
+
+// onClick={selected ? this.toggleOff.bind(this) : this.toggleOn.bind(this)}
+// toggleOn() {
+//   this.props.dispatch(
+//     actions.attemptCategoricalMetadataSelection(
+//       this.props.metadataField,
+//       this.props.value
+//     ))
+// }
+// toggleOff() {
+//   this.props.dispatch(
+//     actions.attemptCategoricalMetadataDeselection(
+//       this.props.metadataField,
+//       this.props.value
+//     ))
+// }
diff --git a/src/middleware/updateCellColors.js b/src/middleware/updateCellColors.js
index 897cda08..d1f3735d 100644
--- a/src/middleware/updateCellColors.js
+++ b/src/middleware/updateCellColors.js
@@ -27,7 +27,8 @@ const updateCellSelectionMiddleware = (store) => {
       /* this is a hardcoded map of the things we need to keep an eye on and update global cell selection in response to */
       const filterJustChanged =
         action.type === "color by expression" ||
-        action.type === "color by continuous metadata"
+        action.type === "color by continuous metadata" ||
+        action.type === "color by categorical metadata"
         ;
 
       if (
@@ -39,6 +40,7 @@ const updateCellSelectionMiddleware = (store) => {
 
       let currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors = s.controls.currentCellSelection.slice(0);
       let colorScale;
+
       /*
          in plain language...
 
@@ -48,6 +50,18 @@ const updateCellSelectionMiddleware = (store) => {
          This is available to all the draw functions as cell["__color__"]
       */
 
+      if (action.type === "color by categorical metadata") {
+
+        colorScale = d3.scaleOrdinal(d3.schemeCategory20);
+
+        _.each(currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors, (cell, i) => {
+          currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors[i]["__color__"] = colorScale(
+            cell[action.colorAccessor]
+          )
+        })
+
+      }
+
       if (action.type === "color by continuous metadata") {
 
         colorScale = d3.scaleLinear()
@@ -109,7 +123,17 @@ const updateCellSelectionMiddleware = (store) => {
 
       }
 
-      let modifiedAction = Object.assign({}, action, {currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors}) /* append the result of all the filters to the action the user just triggered */
+      /*
+        append the result of all the filters to the action the user just triggered
+      */
+      let modifiedAction = Object.assign(
+        {},
+        action,
+        {
+          currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors,
+          colorScale
+        }
+      )
 
       return next(modifiedAction);
     }
diff --git a/src/reducers/controls.js b/src/reducers/controls.js
index 9ecd1aa5..5bfea113 100644
--- a/src/reducers/controls.js
+++ b/src/reducers/controls.js
@@ -67,6 +67,11 @@ const Controls = (state = {
       colorAccessor: action.gene,
       currentCellSelection: action.currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors /* this comes from middleware */
     })
+  case "color by categorical metadata":
+    return Object.assign({}, state, {
+      colorAccessor: action.colorAccessor, /* pass the scale through additionally, and it's a legend! */
+      currentCellSelection: action.currentSelectionWithUpdatedColors /* this comes from middleware */
+    })
   default:
     return state;
   }