Farewell, My Friends

Dear Friends,





Halloween went to the Rainbow Bridge this morning. She was home with us for two days. On Thursday and Friday, she was very quiet, and did not seem to be in pain. She ate a tiny bit of baby food - thanks for that advice - and some vanilla ice cream. But that was it. She wouldn't drink any water. She went to the back door several times, so we took her out on the deck and into the back yard where she could see her trees and garden, the domain over which she presided, for 17-1/2 very happy years. She looked at all of it with great interest and also threw one last despising glance at Slinky. Slinky the Interloper Cat responded by coming and sitting on the back deck yesterday morning. I don't know if he was trying to be supportive in Halloween's last hours, or scheming about his future plans!





I slept on the couch with her these last several nights, where she was on her heaty pad. Last night, I woke up and found her under the kitchen table. That's her safe place - where she went when she did not want to be bothered. This morning she got very sick and cried when I picked her up. She cried several more times and that was it. The vet came to our house and put Halloween to sleep while we petted her and talked to her. We are so very, very sad.





We want to thank all of the wonderful people and kitties who sent us purrs and prayers this last week. We read them all to Halloween. It meant so much to us to know that you all shared our love, concern and sorrow. Halloween was a very sweet kitty, and she was particularly devoted to me, her Food Lady. I still remember the day I saw her feral mama push her away when she tried to eat along with her feral littermates. From then on, she was ours. She loved me very much and comforted me and the Food Dude many times over the years. She was the best companion imaginable.





I want to thank every single one of you for the love and kindness we've found on the CB. What a remarkable group of people and cats!



A special thanks to these cats and their people, for all your friendship and kindness since we started posting:



Thanks to Beezer and Milton for being such good friends to me, and especially helping the Tech Dunce Food Lady to figure out how to actually do the linkie thingie - even though it took several years for her to figure it out! The kitties waved to each other across the hills of San Francisco, and their mama beans were able to spend time together and became friends.



Thanks to the cats of the North Woods in Canada, Wisconsin, Michigan and upstate New York, whose pictures of their places in the woods reminded the Food Lady of the places where she grew up. You have all been great and kind friends, and always there with kind words and support. We cannot thank you enough. These kitties and beans would be: Mickey, Georgia and Tillie, Goldie, Shade and Banshee, the Island Cats, Zippy, Sadie and Speedy, and the Meezers and Billy Sweetfeets.



Thanks to the Ohio kitties who also were such good CB friends, and gave helpful advice and support on many occasions: Parker and Family, and Mr. Hendrix.


Thanks to the grate Jeter Harris and his mom for coming to visit us and bringing flat Jeter across the continent. The evening with all the CB folks was wonderful, and meeting Jeter's mom was wonderful too. Thanks for all the love and good wishes.


And last but certainly not least, thanks to Skeezix and my love, Rocky the Gutter Cat, and their Food Lady and Mr. Tasty Face (who is indeed very tasty!) because without them, Halloween wouldn't have had a blog to begin with. They have given us lots of help and advice, and shoulders to cry on in these last few days.

Thanks to all the folks and kitties who make the CB work every day. You've sent emails, made badges for the blogs, kept the kitties up to date about Halloween's progress, and have been so helpful and kind.

We will keep track of you and stop in to say hello from time to time.

One final note: Amazingly, I've noticed a feral calico in the neighborhood recently. She just walked up on the deck to take a look at Halloween's nip plant. She's VERY PREGNANT! Hmmmm......

We loved Halloween so much. Thanks for making her life and our lives better.

Halloween's Food Lady and Food Dude

I'm Home from the Hospital

I came home from the hospital today - Thursday afternoon. I'm afraid the news from the vet is not good. My blood work is worse today than yesterday. I have liver failure. I am not eating or drinking. I did lick some vanilla ice cream off the Food Lady's fingers tonight, but I cried when they tried to give me some roast chicken. I am not hungry.

I am sitting on my heaty pad and getting lots of love and adoration from my People. They told me about all of your good wishes for me. Thank you.

The Food Lady is putting Lourdes water on me every hour and asking St. Bernadette and St. Francis to help heal me.

The vet says we will know by tomorrow if I have improved. If not, I will be resting, surrounded by all the love I could possibly want. Thank you for being such good friends to me and making my life such a happy one as we all got to know each other. And if I do have to go to the Bridge, please look out for my People, because they will be very, very sad, and they won't have me around to tell them what to do every day.

Purrs and paws to you all, especially my special Gutter Cat, Rocky.

Please Purr for Halloween

Today is not a good day. I had to get some blood taken last Saturday. The V-E-T called the Food Lady at work today and said I had to come in right away and have a sonogram taken. The vet thinks that I might have a tumor on my liver. He says that would be a very bad thing for a kitty who is 17-1/2 years old. The Food Lady and Food Dude came home and took this picture of me. I have been very quiet these last few days, and not eating much. They have been concerned about me so when the vet called they became even more worried.

Then they put me in here. I am trying to figure out how to get out. I have to stay at the vet for a few hours. Will you please send me purrs so that I can come home from the vet right away and not have to go back? I am pretty scared too. I wouldn't let go of the Food Lady at the vet's office and yowled big time when the tech came to take me away.

Update: The Vet called. He did not find a tumor with the sonogram but there might be a tiny one that is not visible. There are several other issues he thinks could be happening: something wrong with her prancreas or gall bladder. It is all quite serious. Halloween will have a short surgery tomorrow so some biopsies can be done. She will have to stay overnight at the Vet tonight. She has never slept anywhere except her own home and bed (well, except when she roamed on moon lit nights, chasing mice and cats when she was young) for every one of her 17-1/2 years. There's a big empty spot on her heaty pad and silence where her tortie voice reminded us to tend to her needs. We are really worried. Please send all the healing love and thoughts that you possibly can.

Too Many Requirements

I'm a little bit upset. Today I heard the Food Dude talking to the Food Lady and he said that I have Too Many Requirements! What in the heck does that mean??? He said that after the Food Lady had just given me some stinky goodness. You see, I have trained the Food Lady to heat up my stinky goodness to just the right temperature and put it in my bowl. Then the Food Lady brings it to me, presents the bowl of food to me to smell, and for my approval, before she puts it down in my dining location. I have to smell it and then lick my lips so she knows if I have approved the meal. Is this an unfair requirement? I don't think so!

Here I am sending a telepathic message to the Food Dude, expressing my displeasure. I must check the cat box and see if he has cleaned it lately. I think I will leave him a message there!

Here is a new friend the Food Lady received as a Christmas present from one of her oldest friends. When they were teenagers, they used to drive on back roads in Michigan in her friend's old Bug. In the summertime, these critters would stand in the road at night and get hypnotized by the car headlights. They were not very smart. The possums entertained the Food Lady and her best friend many times on those summer nights. So this possum now lives with us.

The possum is trying to make friends. GET OFF THE HEATY PAD, POSSUM!

Tell me, do you think I have too many requirements?

Also, apologies to all my friends. The Food Lady's busy at work and has been sick and not able to get around to post on your blogs lately. But she is keeping up with everyone!

Happy New Year!

Happy new year to all my friends! I am busy sleeping on the heaty pad. That's where I spend most of my time during the cold days in San Francisco.

Happy new year from the bandits who showed up on my deck a couple of nights ago. One of them stopped to pose for this picture.