Otis

Last Saturday (2/10) my mom found a cat hanging around our front yard. We could tell it was an inside cat and it was declawed so we ended up bringing him in. We looked for signs to see if anyone was missing a cat, and my dad found a sign on Thursday. We called the people and it took them over 24 hours to get back to us. It then took them another 3 days to come and pick him up. In the week that we had him, we definitely fell in love with him. It was sad seeing him go today, especially since his owner was such a jerk. She came into our house, picked him up, called him a "bad cat" and left. She didn't even say thank you to us for finding him. Knowing what we know now, we would have never called them to come and get him. We called because we knew if we were missing Cedric we would have wanted someone to call us. Right now we feel like we betrayed this cat. Anyway, here are a few pictures of him.

Me and Otis

Otis

Goodbye, My Gus

In memory of Gus, January 10, 1993 - January 16, 2007

My last picture of Gus alive - taken about 10:45am this morning

Today was a hard day for me, as we knew it was time to put Gus to sleep. Over the last 8 months, Gus' back legs have been deteriorating and it has been very difficult for him to get up and walk. On Sunday afternoon, he really could not walk well at all and he had no interest in food. Over the past 48 hours we were having to carry him to the yard on the striped blanket above and then carry him back into the house. Last night he started growling at us and getting upset when we tried to help him. I called a traveling vet, as we knew that there was no way that we could get him in the car to go to the regular vet. I was extremely apprehensive about putting him to sleep, mostly because I knew how much he hated vets and I did not want to hurt him today and have that be his last memory of me. God was good, as the vet that came was very gentle with Gus and did not hurt him at all. He used a comforter to cover his head and gave him a tranquelizer to calm him down a bit. About 10 minutes later, Gus was calm and the vet put a soft muzzle on him. The vet, my mom and I knelt down next to Gus. I was petting Gus on his side and my mom was petting his head. The vet gave him the shot in his front paw and 10 seconds later, at 11:12am, Gus took his last breath. The vet went inside to fill out paperwork and I sat outside and petted/brushed Gus for about a half hour. While the vet was filling out the paperwork, he saw a Bible sitting on the hutch and said that he was also a born-again Christian.

I was also thankful that Gus got outside one more time because Gus has been sleeping out in the guest house with me (he pretty much had not left the guest house since Saturday night). This morning about 9:45 I was out there sitting/crying with him, and he got up on his own and walked to the door. He ended up walking all the way across the patio by himself and got one last drink out of the pool (he always loved drinking pool water). He then came and layed down on his blanket and we fed him a tangerine (he was a big fan of tangerines too). Anyway, I am happy that he was able to walk outside and that we were able to put him to sleep outside since he pretty much owned that backyard. When I was out there sitting with him after he was gone he just looked so peaceful laying there in the sun.

I am definitely going to miss him. Being in the backyard is difficult and I know tonight will be a long night out in my room by myself. Gus has slept in my room with me for the past 11 years and I am going to miss him being out there with me. I would always hear him in the night licking his feet or just barking a couple of times for no reason. This is also hard for me because this is the first time in my life that I can remember with no pets. I think that there was a period of time when I was 2 that we did not have a pet, but we got our cat Skeeter when I was 2 and then in 1993 we were up to three pets, Skeeter, Cedric and Gus. Skeeter died in 1995, Cedric on February 25, 2006 and then Gus today.

Guser (as I called him quite often), I love you very much and I am going to miss having you here with me. When you died today you took a piece of my heart with you that I will never have back. I can't wait to see you again someday (Luke 12:6b).

Here are some pictures of Gus throughout the years...

Me and Gus in 1993 - I was 13 and Gus was 3 months

Kyle, Kellyn, Me and Gus - April 1993

Happy 1st Birthday Gus! January 10, 1994

I love him

Looking out my window at the Cox truck - 1999

Laying under the tangelo tree - February 2006

2006 By City

Each of the below cities included at least a one night stay in 2006. Cities denoted by an asterisk include multiple visits. Good idea, Paul!

• Waikoloa, Big Island, HI
• Topeka, KS
• Montvale, NJ *
• Dallas, TX
• Albuquerque, NM *
• New York, NY
• Orlando, FL
• Flagstaff, AZ

QotD: The Best Part of Summer '06?

What was the highlight of your summer?

This past summer could be considered "uneventful" compared to summer of '05 when I traveled to Alaska and then one week later left for a three-week backpacking adventure through western Europe. However, I was able to travel in '06, and I would say the highlight of one of my NYC trips was walking Manhattan in a day. We started in the Bronx at 225th Street and finished 5 hours later at Battery Park.

Cancer Kids

A few months ago, I came across the website of a 5-year old boy who had cancer. I don't even remember how I found his site, probably through a prayer link at church. I followed the daily blog of this boy, Jacob, until he passed away in June. I have continued to follow his website as his mother continues to occasionally post. She is a woman of great faith, and even though she has lost one of her sons (he was a triplet), she continues to inspire me by her trust and reliance in God. A couple of weeks ago, there was a link on Jacob's site to a 9-year old girl, Christi, who has been battling cancer for the past 4 years. She passed away today.

Reading the blogs, it has been so easy for me to feel like I know these kids. It also inspires me to live every day to the fullest, knowing that the only two things that will last forever are the Word of God and the souls of men. Romans 8:38-39: For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

QotD: I Get Around (Not Really)

How many places have you lived in your life?

3 places...The house I grew up in on 66th Street (16 years), Mikele's condo in Ahwatukee (6 months), and the house I am currently living in on 61st place (10 years).

Walking Manhattan

I was in New York City for the weekend, and yesterday walked from north to south on the island of Manhattan. I had been wanting to do this for some time, and this trip finally did the walk. Lindsay Turner was also in town for the weekend, so it was Lauren, Lindsay, Jenn, Kelly (Jenn's co-worker), Brad (Lindsay's friend) and myself. We started in the Bronx at 225th Street at about 9:15am and finished at about 2pm at Battery Park. We walked through Harlem, Central Park and then 5th Avenue and Broadway. It was warm and humid, but we had lots of water and a Jamba Juice pit stop at 42nd Street. We all had a good time, and I had lots of blisters on my feet by the time we finished. After the walk we stopped at Magnolia Bakery for a cupcake, and then went back to Jenn's apartment for a much needed shower. My legs are sore today, but I would definitely be up for walking the island again sometime
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