• Another week at Oma [grandma]'s house... reading books from the library, running through the snow with Kade, lighting the carved pumpkins.
• Stuff on my Cat. The cat's name is Pumpkin Jack because he showed up on our doorstep one Halloween and never left.
• Bottom row middle photo is taken by Erika. She borrowed my camera, told me and Oma to "go stand over there... move to the left... OK, smile!" and took our photo.

This photo was taken January 9, 2004.
It's a photo of Tyler, Poseidon, and Ratso; three of the six cats that once lived with us in our Barnegat house.

This photo makes me sad because I miss them all.
The time this photo was taken was such a happy period in our lives: I was engaged to be married in six months, I had a great job as a fisheries biologist, we had a home with a large backyard, we had cats that loved us. Life was good.

We moved to an apartment in 2007 so I could be closer to work.
As a result of our contract agreement, we could only keep one pet-- so we kept our dog Kade and all the cats went to live with my mother-in-law. Five of the six of them died within 1 year.

When I see this photo, it makes me miss them so much and I can't help but feel... regret? Guilt? Sorrow?

Ratso passed away this morning in mom's bed. She was 15 years old.

I was fast asleep and I must've rolled onto my side or squirmed the wrong way, but my cat Ratso who sleeps in bed with me bit down hard on my thigh, hissed, and ran off.

All this happened at 2 in the morning, so I really have no idea what happened. Other than the fact that I was awakened by a cat biting me, which is a frightening experience. I hope none of you are ever awoken by someone biting you!

I turned on my bed lamp, and there's quite a bit of blood. I wanted to run and find her and punish her, but I know it's not her fault. She was probably sleeping too and I rolled onto her and that's a frightening experience too!

Damn cat, she's as bitchy as I am!

When Pumpkin showed up at our house on Halloween, he was malnourished, dirty, and mewing. I gave him a bowl of dry cat food, which he hungrily ate, then I kicked him out of the house. He waited on our front porch. He was there the following day, so I pulled the ticks off his body, wiped the mud out of his fur, and cleaned out his dirty mite-infested ears.

Based on his size (6 lbs.) and small lime-size testicles, we figured he was about 8 or 9 months old. When I took him to our vet, the vet said he was much older; based on his teeth, he was closer to 18 months old! I asked about the small size of his testicles, since by 18 months, they have fully descended, and the vet shrugged and said to schedule him to be neutered a.s.a.p. Price quoted me $250.

We waited 2 months (since Halloween basically) and nobody has called looking for him, so we figure we're now stuck with him and we should go ahead and get him fixed. I called the SPCA and they would charge only $55, so I made an appointment with them. Guess what I found out?

Pumpkin doesn't HAVE anything to neuter! Apparently he's already been neutered and the sacs are empty and shrinking already. The vet was going to screw me out of $250, claim they did the deed, and send me on my merry way! Can you believe that!?!?

(Post-note: When I told the story to a few people, they asked if we donated to the SPCA anyway. We did-- $55 well spent!!)

I don't like the name Pumpkin. I think it's like my friend, whom in high school, we called Billy. He was Billy in elementary school, and Billy in middle school, and Billy in high school. And when he went off to Harvard, he used "Bill", but all of us "old-timers" still keep slipping and saying "Billy" even after he's told us to use "Bill.

That's going to be Pumpkin. He's going to be a 10-year old cat with the most humiliating name. And when he gets lost? Brian has already said he's not going around the neighborhood yelling "Pumpkin" because he think that looks silly.

So I've taken to calling him "Jack". As in, "Jack O' Lantern". Still a Halloween theme. Brian looked at me, and said "His name is Pumpkin". *SIGH* I'm taking him to the vet tomorrow for a general check-up, rabies vaccination, dewormer, and tick/flea medication. Not getting him fixed because they want $250 for it!! (So I'm taking him to the low-cost animal clinic next week for $82. OUCH. When did it get so expensive?! Even I know how to do the procedure!) At registration, I'm putting "Jack Pumpkin" as his name. Brian said "why not Pumpkin Jack? Pumpkin should be his first name". OH HELL NO. Pumpkin = nickname, which means it's the middle name, no?

[Poll #1084791]

On Friday, October 27, 2006, we had to put Patches to sleep. She was fifteen years old. She lived with my mother-in-law.

Patches was Eddie's litter-mate. Eddie, who belonged to my brother-in-law, was put to sleep at age fourteen in May 2005 due to renal failure.

We also lost Rufus this year in May 2006 at age seventeen years, due to old age (he died in the house on his own).

Three cats in two years! All this just makes me want to cry.
I know fifteen years old is a good, long time for an indoor/outdoor cat to live. But I still miss Patches and her white paws, the way her tail quivered when your rubbed her on this one spot on her back, the way she purred.

I came home and looked at Ratso and just wanted to grab her and shake her, and tell her to stay healthy and not leave me anytime soon.
I love her so much, but she's next on the list!

Current age of remaining pets:
Ratso 13 years old
Tyler 12 years old
Kaiser 7 years old
Poseidon 5 years old
Kade 2 years old

Born summer 1989 in Virginia.

The "cat that lived on love". Who cherished all others. Who perservered against odds. Who loved all creatures on this Earth. Who showed compassion for everyone.

Passed away today, Wednesday, May 17, 2006.

Last Thursday, he lost control of his bowels and started soiling himself. This went on for three days, and then it stopped, we realized, because he had ceased eating. I guess he realized it was time. There was no more need to eat.

After almost a week of not eating, 17-year old Rufus finally died today.

Lately, these games have been very entertaining. I am thus spreading the joy:

1. For those that like finding 3-of-a-kinds:
Zookeeper @ http://www.bobpitch.com/zookeeper/zk.html

2. For those that like finding similarities in a Family Feud manner:
Fastr, a Flickr game @ http://www.randomchaos.com/games/fastr/

3. For those that enjoy geography, either single or multiplayer style:
Geosense, an Online Geography Game @ http://www.geosense.net/

4. For those that enjoy driving themselves insane:
Sudoku @ http://www.fiendishsudoku.com/sudoku.html


Oh.. and here's what I spied on our sofa!

(Ol' boys club, I see-- they left the one remaining cat, a female, out of their snuggling)

... your husband yells at one of the cats and tells him to return to the yard, so he won't beat up the 100-pound Rottweiler that lives next door.