FAREWELL (KIND OF) SWEET TIM!

When I moved on 10/5 into my new house, something rare and precious and utterly beloved did NOT move with me. I'm referring to the beloved little bluepoint Siamese named Tim. The reasons included: 1. He is madly in love with Linda; 2. Linda is madly in love with Tim; 3. Zeus is madly in love with Tim; 4. Tim is ecstaticly happy at Linda's house; 5. I knew I could see Tim whenever I wanted and 6. I wasn't sure Tim was safe at my house.

This may have been the most difficult decision I've ever made but since Tim is thriving at Linda's house and is, as mentioned, head-over-heels in love with her (actually HE has HER wrapped around his dainty little paw) and I could not, in good conscience, surrender his best interests to my own selfishness.

Meanwhile, Sam's entire crabby disposition is rapidly evaporating since he has had me all to himself. He has also found himself a lady friend, albeit at a distance. There's a very lovely lady tuxedo cat who traverses my back yard from time to time - and Sam has been known to mewl at the window upon sighting her! I have assured him that she is unaware of and unimpressed by his importunings. Over the weekend, people kept coming by to fix things or bring things over or whatever - Sam was either cordial or completely oblivious to their presence, a major relief to me.

Unpacking is a pain in the fundament. However, it has occurred to me that there actually is NO schedule I need to observe - so I'm doing it one load of laundry and one box per evening - naturally more on weekends. If I could just find the can opener and my spatulas and knives, I'd be a happy woman!

R.I.P. BELOVED GIGI

Saturday at noon, Linda had the sad duty of euthanizing her beloved little female cat, Gigi. Gigi had a rich and interesting nearly 18 years on this planet and the beginning of the end was sudden and swift.

Gigi was originally the pampered little princess of Linda's mother. When Rita entered into her final illness, Gigi came to live with Linda and her then-fiance in Huntington Beach, California. Already resident in the household were two of the most wonderful Golden Retrievers anyone would ever want to meet, Amber and Cassis.

Now you have to understand, Gigi was an only child until that point and a totally inside cat. She didn't know what to make of these two enormous doggies, but rather quickly decided that she too was a Golden, to the point of sleeping with them in their doghouse! When I moved out to California for about 6 months and stayed with Linda and Doofus, Gigi was quite seriously annoyed that I brought my two boys, BooBoo and Rocky. She wanted nothing whatsoever to do with either of them and her attitude never changed. After all, SHE was a Golden Retriever!

When Linda moved cross country to Virginia, Gigi accompanied her in the moving truck, leading to one memorable episode during the trip when Gigi went into convulsions due to an excess of insulin in her little system. But all survived and for the past 8 years or so, Gigi has been a lady of Virginia, and she still had a dog - her beloved pit bull mix, Zeus, who loved her right back.

When I moved here, my two cats didn't know what to make of Gigi, who by this time was quite elderly, but still very much her own person. Sam was actively hostile (well - he's pretty much hostile to everyone but me at this juncture) and Timmy, ever the affable sweetheart, wanted to play with her. She wanted nothing whatsoever to do with THEM, but my lap was an instant destination and a frequent one.

The rapid onset of her illness left her, by late last week, completely blind and deaf as a yard of grass. I accompanied Linda to the vet on Saturday and Gigi has left to join her original family: Rita, Amber and Cassis. Our roommate swears he has heard her meow in the middle of the night, even though he knows she's no longer with us.

She was much loved, quite a personality, and a beautiful and loving (to people and dogs) companion. Linda is bereft, as am I, but with this post, I am celebrating the life of a wonderful companion and a very cool lady!

Rest in peace, sweetheart. Be seeing you.

CAPTAIN THE WONDER CAT - R.I.P.

Fellow blogger and exceptional online friend Lauralee Donohoe and her family have lost their beloved Cappy. I fully understand how important a beloved animal can be to a family - albeit that family consists of one or some! There's a gaping hole in the family structure right now, and I understand that. After reading about this remarkable and treasured feline companion, I can fully understand the depth of your loss. From me - and Tim and Sam (and the temporary roommates: Zeus, Harley and Gigi) - our loving thoughts to the entire family.

DOGGIE HIJINKS IN FREDERICKSBURG!

Last night I was in the basement taking laundry out of the dryer and heard a godawful racket from upstairs. The next thing I heard was Linda laughing hysterically. Now you have to understand that Linda's two dogs like to troll in Gigi/Tim's litter box for whatever! So Harley was rooting around in the litter box and her HEAD got stuck in the opening. The next thing Linda saw was poor Harley running around the bathroom, flinging the scooper and the brush used to clean the floor against the walls, the vanity and anything else available to be assaulted by Harley's frantic attempts to get her head OUT of the litter box opening, then she ran down the hall, shaking her head from side to side, wearing ONLY the lid of the litter box and attempting to escape its grip! Eventually the lid of the litter box went flying free!

Meanwhile, Zeus had sensibly decided to absent himself altogether from the proceedings so this explains why I heard him hightailing it out through the doggie door for the safety of the back yard! The next thing I see, while still hearing Linda's over-the-top hilarity, is poor Harley (no longer sporting her new litter box chapeau) running downstairs and to me for comfort! I'm starting up the stairs and Linda appears to regale me with the whole story (laughing so hard that tears are running down her face), and now I'm laughing hysterically - and Harley (no doubt disgusted with our merriment) follows Zeus out the doggie door! Neither of them ever returned inside to eat their substantially ignored dinner!

I walked into my room and cowering in the corner of the room I spotted my 28-pound behemoth Sam who runs up to me chattering, as if to tell me "It wasn't my FAULT, Mom, honest!" I snuggled him and cuddled him and assured him that this time it was the D-O-G's fault! He looked quite smug about that! Sam really needs to have his own home - and soon!

Never a dull moment when you live with 3 cats and 2 dogs - all of whom consider the two female humans in the house to be either their concierge (the 3 cats) or their mommy (the 2 dogs).

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY - A LITTLE LATE!

Independence Day was a little daunting. I don't like mid-week holidays so much anyway but this one was particularly annoying.

For starters - there are a lot of really fireworks happy idiots in this neighborhood and they started scaring the bejabbers out of the dogs on Sunday evening. Literally, Zeus couldn't stop panting and ended up sitting (all 70+ pounds of him) on Linda's lap for comfort. Eventually, he decided to seek comfort on MY lap! To say that this was a good news/bad news situation is a mild analogy. The bad news was that my lap went to sleep. The good news is that Zeus and I are now VERY good friends and this very timid boy has become very attached to me. Since I was already madly in love with him, this is definitely a good thing!

The noisy celebrations continued through last night, with the ensuing episodes of frightened doggies. Harley is made of sterner stuff than her brother, but even she was clearly frightened by the loud noises.

Add to that the thunderstorms that rolled through the area fairly frequently (but not nearly enough rain - at least here) and we had some seriously nervous animals.

Tim has no nerves I am convinced. NOTHING bothered him, dedicated as he is to maximizing lap time with any lap that makes itself available.

Sam, on the other hand, in his prior life was left out in the rain and storms far too often and he has a visceral need for my comfort that is truly touching. As cranky and difficult as my Sam can be, he is a complicated fellow who loves me without reservation. He may not be too terribly open to the friendship of others of his kind or dogs (or even Linda) but that is all out the window when it comes to me. And I truly hate seeing him so distressed because I am acutely aware that his history still informs his behavior, even though that happened in the first 16 months of his life and he has now had 4 years of my devotion and protection.

Of course, actual Independence Day followed my 65th birthday which happened on July 3rd. Every year on my birthday, I remember with love and no small amount of bemusement that immensely stubborn woman (my late beloved mother Irene) who did NOT want a 4th of July baby (too hokey, according to her) and thus, I was born at 11:56 p.m. on July 3rd. Do not discount my mother's enormous stores of determination. I love her and I miss her every day, but especially on my birthday.

Linda took me to dinner for my birthday at a marvelous Chinese restaurant named Chiang's Bistro here in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Fantastic food, superb service. This place is a keeper and to anyone who lives in the area - I highly recommend it. It's on Plantation Drive in Fredericksburg - Area 540, 373-9777. If you live in the area - go there. You won't be disappointed.

IN PRAISE OF DOGS - WELL 2 DOGS AT LEAST!

I am spending considerable time these days (in the final stages of recuperation) with 2 remarkable animals named Zeus (an 18 month old Pit Bull mix and a total sweetheart of a boy) and Harley (a Corgi mix girl that I describe as my "co-dependent sweetheart") and am gaining a new appreciation for the canines of this world. And yes, before you ask, I am taking tons of vitamin supplements and drinking gallons of water. Adult diapers cannot be far away!

Zeus is a totally lovable, very shy fellow who is quite mellow and laid back. He is now fascinated by Tim the Siamese cat. Last night, much to Tim's nervous consternation, Zeus spent considerable time washing Tim's head and butt! Harley is completely uninterested since she prefers focusing her enormous amounts of affection on ME!

To say that they have been instrumental in my recovery from my recent illness is an understatement. Their constant attention and affection has been most appreciated.

Incidentally, both Linda and Sam have mostly recovered from their recent altercation primarily because I am keeping them separated. Sam is welcome to roam freely when Linda isn't home as long as he is polite to the other animals. I figure that's a necessary first step.

Tim has not lost his feisty little edge either. Yesterday afternoon he caught a fly AND gave Sam a cuff in the face (and didn't SAM look astonished) when Sam hissed at Tim. It was like - "Get over yourself fool!"

So to Harley and Zeus, I love you both and much as I may be a total cat person, there is room in my heart for you guys in perpetuity!