Posted in Autism, Cats, Family, Parenting, Uncategorized

It’s A Cat’s World…Adjust

Posted on by D. Parker

It’s World Cat Day and I think that’s a tad unfair, isn’t everyday Cat Day, well, at least they think so.1cat20

I don’t currently share my home with any feline characters unless I count my son who has Asperger’s (see earlier post, http://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/07/27/all-cats-have-asperger-syndrome/ ), but I’ve had a lot of experience in their world.

My friend George (loved Curious George) was pure black except for a white bib and apron. George liked to sit on the front porch, even more on Halloween where he got maximum effect. He lost one half of an ear being out in the cold; we lived in Coniston, near Sudbury, it was very cold at times. In those days most cats were outdoor cats, this also led to us calling his name or saying, bad George which got a hearty laugh from my Grandfather because his brother, George lived right across the street.

Other cat friends?

Candace, regrettably insane; eventually needed little kitty pills to keep her calm (those were sooooo much fun to give her). My Mom let my Dad take me to the SPCA to find a kitten. We were two big saps who came home with a tiny runt kitten who needed to be fed with an eye dropper for days and the SPCA said they would replace her when she passed away. I didn’t want her replaced, I loved her. Candace lived 17 years. I don’t think she had many other fans.

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Note how we picked a cat to match the groovy 70s carpet and furniture.

We had Tanis (yes, my Raiders of the Lost Ark phase, which I’m sort of still in) who my Mom (the only one of the family who professes not to be a cat person), saved when someone threw it out of a car. We couldn’t keep her because of Candace, er, aforementioned krazy kitty. We found her a good home.

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There was also Xena and Luna who were lovely. Luna had to find a new home because she decided she wanted to play with my son as a baby, just his head. And Xena, her sister had to find another home when I found out my son had Asthma.

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No cats since.

If you do get a kitten or cat, please, adopt from an animal shelter or rescue; or family or friend.

Our extended family has had so many beautiful cats over the years, we don’t think of them as pets so much as companions.
They think of us as staff.

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Very me

48 thoughts on “It’s A Cat’s World…Adjust”

      2. I hope this makes you think of Banky but with happy memories. Maybe they’re all somewhere together chasing slow mice. 🙂

  4. I have two 12-year-old brothers who were shelter cats. We also have a dog from the shelter. It’s definitely the way to go! They’re all awesome, although the cats, being cats, are definitely temperamental creatures. 🙂 I love your reminiscing about past cats!

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  7. We BEGGED our mom for a cat – and finally got one: a grey long-haired tabby called Claudius. Had him six months until he “ran away.” (Quotations are there because there is some suspicion my mom “gave away” the cat. She’s not talking…).

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    1. But at least you had him for the 6 months, hope Claudius found a good home. Yes, I did a lot of begging for cats in my time and wrote a very sad poem too. 😉

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  8. I love cats and I love this post. I’ve only ever had 2 cats – the first one over 30 years ago and now my current one. He was a rescue cat and I love him to pieces. Based on the love I get back from him, the feelings are mutual.

    I agree with your message – go to an animal shelter and find your new fur-friend there … not a pet farm, not a breeder, not a pet store. Shelter animals spread a special kind of affection!

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  10. Ah-ha! For some reason, this didn’t come up under Cats, despite its allocated category.

    So now I have the picture 🙂 And you apparently have a picture of one of my felines in this post! The “What my friends think I do” tabby is the dead-spit of our 17 year old, even down to the pose. I imagine that wasn’t a picture of one of yours, though.

    Loving that groovy 70’s carpet 😉

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      1. Nice to see all yours were rescues, too. I’ve had our 17 year old since he was an abandoned 8 week kitten handed in to the vets where I used to help out. Love at first sight for both of us, and my longest relationship with any male outside my family! So hard seeing him getting older, struggling a bit more each day. How did you cope when your 17 year old went off to rainbow bridge? X

      2. I loved Candace so much, I held her as she went off and I still think about her and want a wonderful friend she was. It’s difficult, but they stay with you. 🙂

      3. (((Hugs))) She was lucky to have owned you.

        Breaks our hearts every time we think about it, but that’s how we want him to go….with us, at home, painlessly. No major illness, just a peaceful winding down of life, knowing he’s loved.

        Oh ffs, it makes me well up just thinking about it. Did Candace have any major difficulties in her last years/ months/ weeks? X

      4. I know, another quirky human thing, we get friends, furry ones, who we know won’t outlast us…but those tortoises that live for hundreds of years just aren’t as cuddly, they don’t purr, and have you ever seen them trying to catch a string, that gets weird fast.
        When the time comes, you’ll cry, and miss him, but you’ll know that those who touch our hearts live in them forever. 🙂
        No, she was frisky and crazy up until about 3 days before.

      9. Me neither, nor “cheap at half the price” – well it probably WOULD be, if it was 50% off! Youth IS wasted on the young, though.

        Umm….wasn’t it “Patience is its own reward”? Not that that makes any more sense. Must mean that the benefits of being patient (not missing things or screwing things up by rushing) make the waiting worthwhile. Or something. X

      10. There’s also, “The oxen are slow, but the Earth is patient” – not as deep as it sounds, I heard it in a Tom Selleck movie, I don’t care what anyone says, I still like High Road to China. 😉
        I think youth is enjoyed by the young, but as we get older we forget that if we knew then what we know now…scary thought. 😉

      11. God, I would have been LETHAL! Lol! If only we could retain what we’ve learnt this time round for next time round……. X

        PS I think that’s why it’s wasted on the young – they haven’t got a clue what potential there is out there. Oscar Wilde was spot on.

    1. Ginger cats especially! lol 😉 😸😸😸
      Thank you kindly for the lovely reblog, Jonathan, it’s purr-fectly delightful of you! 😸
      All the best in the holiday season and all year long! Me-ow! 😸

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