Freddy Has Left the Building

Freddy
June 20, 2009 - September 16, 2019

A few weeks after my dad died, my mom’s cat had kittens the day before Fathers Day. It was a sign. We had been looking for a kitten for my girls so I asked my mom to tame them for us (her cats are mostly feral farm cats). She did a great job of visiting them every day and teaching them about humans. They were pretty little white things with big blue eyes and friendly as they could be. When the time came to choose one, of course my girls each wanted a different cat. I called my husband and said “What would you think if we brought two cats home?” He thought I was kidding and said "do it". He knows now I do not kid about two cats instead of one. Each girl happily held their kitten and smiled all the way home.

Freddy and Mr. Fluffypants and their adoring girls.

His favorite chin rest.

My younger daughter, at three and a half, couldn’t choose between many wonderful names like Sparkle and Sunshine. My oldest, at almost seven, quickly named hers after a TV character, Freddy from iCarly. From the start Freddy was a real character himself. Playful and silly, he was the more energetic of the two. He was spunky and smart. He loved teasing our slightly older and much grumpier cat, Birdie. Menda, the other kitten's eventual name for a while until he became Mr. Fluffypants, was funny and fun, too, but he was also content to snuggle for hours if that’s what his girl wanted. Freddy was good for a very short snuggle and then he was off again. Freddy played with our dogs and stalked birds in the yard. He chased yarn and jingly toys all day long. He was also a strange cat. You never knew where you'd find Freddy or what he'd be up to. He was the kind of cat who wriggled into impossible places and would bat at your hair from behind when you had no idea he was even there. He also drank with his paw like a raccoon. Or, he'd put his paws on the side of the bowl and lean all the way across the bowl to drink from the far side. And nobody liked a chin rest more than Freddy. He loved to lay under our coffee table and rest his chin on the cross pieces, or use the backs of our bar stools as chin rests. It became a family joke how good he was at finding places to lay with chin rests. His love for Squinkies - tiny rubber toys that bounced crazily when he'd bat them across the room - was unrivaled. He was known to have a little stash of them in a closet because he'd knock them under the door then come begging for another when he realized he had lost one. Even as an older cat Freddy was playful, right up until last April.

We had been teasing him about getting kind of chubby, but one day I noticed he wasn't so chubby anymore. I started paying attention to his condition and what he was eating. He had kind of gone off dry food. I thought it was his teeth. I took him to the vet who diagnosed one thing and treated it, but the treatment didn't help. Another vet concurred with the first vet, but by this time Freddy had other mysterious symptoms. Blood tests were inconclusive. The second vet prescribed an antibiotic, which helped a lot, until it was gone. Freddy went downhill again. Another antibiotic also helped, until it was gone. Freddy held his own for several weeks though, until he didn't. His final decline was dramatic. He went from eating well last Monday to barely eating by Friday to giving him water with a syringe on Sunday. I took him back to the vet, who by now had named him Freddy the Mystery, submitted him to more blood tests and brought another antibiotic home. He won't get to finish this one though. He woke me up this morning crying pitifully. He had crawled out of his bed but was too weak to go far. I held him for over an hour. I cried and told him thank you for being such a good friend to my kids. He breathed shallowly and his heart raced but he seemed to appreciate my warmth. After some time, he flopped off my chest onto the sofa and I got the feeling he was ready to be left alone. I laid him on a dog bed beside me where I know he is dying. Ironically, Mr. Fluffypants has unearthed a jingly ball and is chasing it around the kitchen. That seems an appropriate send off for his playful brother.

Rest in peace Freddy. You were a good cat.

Freddy loved laying on my son's giant stuffed penguin.

Back in his chubby days.

With one of his favorite toys - a squinkie!

Typical Freddy

Cat in a box.

He was a handsome devil.

I really did find them like this one morning. I guess he did like snuggling after all.

Young Freddy exploring.

Winter, I'm Tapping Out

The view from my warm truck beats the heck out of shivering in a nasty cold wind on icy sidewalks.

I try to be stoic about winter. I swear I honestly like it (😄). Well, I don’t hate it. I’ve been something of a wimp this week though, as temperatures haven’t risen above freezing for several days. I normally walk my son the short block to school no matter the weather because come on, it’s one block. Not this week though! Icy sidewalks, frigid winds, I’ve had enough. As I looked around in the drop off lane this morning, I noticed two of my neighbors also dropping off their lucky children. I felt a little less guilty about wimping out over 14 degrees and a little more confident in proclaiming that I am over winter! Got that Mother Nature?! Serve up some spring!