She's still here. For the past week, this sweet, friendly calico kitty has been hanging out/living on our back deck. Because she was also hanging out at another house a block away, I know she wasn't "dropped off."
I have a terrible feeling that I know where she used to live. Her family packed up and moved away and I believe she was left behind. It breaks my heart. I no way/no how/can not/will not keep her. We already have four fixed, declawed indoor cats and after our Opie episode, I no way/no how/can not/will not go through that again! If she is still here at the end of the week, we will find a home for her. Somewhere. Not here. I do have a soft spot for animals. I can't help it. It was the way I was raised. One of my earliest childhood memories is of my mom telling me that all animals have feelings, just like me. She also told me all my stuffed animals and dolls did too! Messed me up a bit there, it did. Gave me quite the guilty complex everytime I dropped one or sat on one! But, I guess all moms are guilty of messing up their kids at sometime or other. Guess I was lucky. She could have told me they wake up and walk around at night or something! When I was a small child, I lived on a little hobby farm in Breckenridge with my parents and my brother, Mike. Some of my best childhood memories are of that hobby farm and all our animals.
They were like my family.They were my family. I loved them all.
This is my pony Cindy. (My scanner doesn't work, so I had to take a picture of the picture! Not too good here.) I named her Cindy because that was the name of my favorite babysitter. I didn't ride her often because she couldn't run very fast. She could do a little trot and that just wasn't doing it for me. I loved my dad's BIG horse, Goofball! I would ride him bare back with just the reins as fast as he would go!! (Doubt I would be that brave these days, though.) So, when our family went riding, my brother would ride his pony, Pony. (Yes, Pony is what he named him!)
My mom would ride Cindy, my dad would ride my mom's horse Honey,
and I would ride Goofball! Guess I was a little spoiled.
This is my lamb, Pretty Boy. He was one of a dozen. My parents, brother and I had to wake up in the middle of the night and feed them all with big ol' green, glass 7-up bottles. (Remember those?) I loved my lamb. He was just like a puppy to me. We also had a few cows. They weren't for milk or beef. They were just ours to love. We also had chickens and roosters and a goat named Lollypop. The goat was wonderful!! My dad had taken a huge tractor innertube and blew it up for my brother and I to play/bounce on. Lollypop thought she was one of us and jumped and jumped on that tube too. She also jumped on cars. Whenever someone would come to visit, we had to lock her in the barn. She did not like that one bit and would cry and cry until we couldn't take it anymore and let her out. She also was an escape artist and no matter how many times we tried to tie her up so she could enjoy a little grass, she escaped. She could always be found on top of our car. Sadly, Lollypop had to go and live at the zoo in Wahpeton. I remember her riding in the back of our car (Yes! The back seat!) and my brother, Mike and I crying and holding on to her all the way to the zoo. But the zoo was the perfect place for her. She was so happy to be with the other goats. She even had a few kids and she always came up to us when we went to visit her. She was a good goat. So, if I am a softy when it comes to animals, it isn't because I am just a crazy cat lady. It's my parents fault. And I love them for it. I thank them for teaching me to have compassion for all creatures, human and hairy.
I love you Mom and Dad!
