Steve Leavenworth
Dear Cathy the Cat Lover,
I have always had cats and really enjoy them. We had two sisters, Rosinante (Rosie) and Lola, who was supposed to be Dulcinea (both from Don Quixote). Lola was the really sweet one. When I lay down for a nap, she would sit on my chest and nibble my ears. She died last year with cancer. So Rosie is our survivor, about 13 years old. They were both calicos, but Rosie is beautiful. After Lola died, Rosie became very close and loves to nap with me. If I ever had to live alone, I’m afraid I would fill the house with cats, build walkways for them and in general be a darned old fool over my cats.
Bill Twibill
Dear Feline Fan,
My sad tale happened in the 1960s when I began feeding three little chipmunks in a nearby park. They would run up to me with my handful of nuts and tomatoes and hang around until all the goodies were gone. This went on for over two years. One day a nosy neighbor followed me and saw the fun I was having. He later called a famous Hollywood mogul who had great movie success with cute mice and some dwarfs, and the next thing I knew my little chippies, Theodore, Simon and Casper were chip-napped to La La Land and trained to sing and act.
They had a hit Christmas song and their great-great-grand chippies can be seen in their second hit movie currently playing nationwide. I never heard from them again. Not even a free copy of the song or a pass to the movies. That movie studio even kept the same name of two of them.
Woe is me to this day as I still miss them, but now I enjoy feeding my garden chippies. My neighbors do not share my chipmunk enthusiasm. Can’t understand why – gotta love them.
Casper Kranenburg
Dear CCL,
Yes, when I grew up, we always had a cat at home and I miss not having a cat at this time. But with the busy life we elders live, it would be difficult to have an animal needing frequent walks, exercise and playtime. So when we donate food to the SPCA animal shelter in Penacook, we combine that visit with a generous time spent caressing the cats and dogs waiting for adoption. Just wish we could adopt one of these fuzzy cats or dogs!
Jan Stickler
Dear Cathy,
I have had pets for most of my life. The majority of them have been dogs; though there have been a few memorable cats. If I had to pick just one special pet, it would be my Black Lab, Brandy, who lived to the age of 12. I purchased Brandy at an age when most people are thinking of downsizing, even in the pet area. She remained a 75-pound puppy until about the age of 8, and an overgrown lap dog until the day she died. This time of year, I always remember her paw stocking hanging on the mantle and how she joined the circle ’round the Christmas tree and opened her presents, in turn, one by one. She never fully understood that she was just a dog.
Roioli Schweiker
Dear Cathy and cats,
I could fill a whole week of Monitors with stories about our cats and dogs. However, I would like to tell about Red, who lived with a friend named Jim. Red sort of looked like an Irish Setter. Jim and Red were often on the same club hikes as me. So it came that I invited her to stay with me when Jim took a plane to visit relatives.
I registered to lead a weekend ski trip to a cabin, but when some registrants were told there would be a dog, they declared they would not come. Eventually, everybody showed up.
When I arrived with Red, I explained to her that dogs were not allowed upstairs or in the kitchen, but she could run outside. In the corner of the living room, I put a large cardboard box with her quilt in it. Next day, we were skiing on an unplowed road. Red was never in the way, staying to the side or running in the woods. At lunch she sat on my pack and shared my fish balls – probably one reason she liked to visit me!
In the evening she retired to her box, enjoyed her dinner, with some “dessert” of leftovers. In the evening, she walked around the group, stopping to be petted when encouraged and avoiding those who didn’t. When finished, she rolled up in her blanket and went to bed. The next day at the end of the trip the dog opponents asked me if I could send Red up to the cabin again the next weekend.
