My family is a cat family. We loved animals, but we always gravitated towards cats. There was Catso first, in the early eighties, and she was funny. When my brother and I would kick a soccer ball around in the backyard, she would try and get herself involved and play with us. She often jumped on the ball, and the ball would roll over her. She was a great cat, and gave us a lot of great memories.
After that, we had a few cats. There was Poof, who, true to his name, lasted a month. Then there was Popsy, who had the most hideous meow of any cat whom I have ever heard, even to this day. She was in heat, so we heard that dreadful meow a lot. Particularly in the wee hours, and that was just not working for us. So she lasted one week.
Then, there were the two twins, who ended up being named the Mec (French for "guy") and the Zuch, or Zooch, which means nothing in either French or English, or any other language, for that matter.
We had them for about four years. After that, we took a break from pets for a while.
But when I was a young man, my parents got another cat. I remember coming home, and there was this tiny little kitten there, who was hiding from everyone. He was so small, he eventually sat in my own hand, comfortably, and with room to spare. I was able to get him to drink milk from my fingertip, and we named him Scribbles. Yet, he came to be known as the Mec (the second cat of ours named Mec).
Years later, we would get two more cats. One only briefly, because the original owner wanted her back. She was Miranda, the magic cat, and actually, she did not seem all that magical, but nasty. Sometimes, out of nowhere she would bite, and when she did, she meant it. The other cat was Genevieve, and the owner did not apparently think much of her. But she wound up being the sweetest cat, and one of the sweetest animals, that I would ever meet. She was so light, and very, very nice. At night, she would want to sleep on me, and she would walk around casually on my head at times, with her light little footsteps feeling like someone's fingertips walking across. I really, really miss her.
Finally, we had the Foof, a cute, orange Maine Coon cat. He had such incredible energy for a long time, and he was truly exhausting initially. But he calmed down...eventually. Somewhat. In fact, he came to be one of our family's most believed cats.
There were other cats in my life during adulthood, too. Harley and Cali, who had belonged to my ex-wife's family. There was Rex, the cat my son remembered. There is FiFi for my parents. And currently, my girlfriend and I have Baby (not the most original name, I know) and FeeFee, a fluffly, beautiful white and gray mix. They are great company.
But we never had a dog. In fact, the first real dog that I ever had was just recently. But it was my girlfriend's dog, really, and his name was Max. When I came into the picture in 2012, he was still relatively healthy, and not too old, but getting there. Within a couple of years, he would have diabetes and would go blind. His condition worsened, and eventually, it got so bad that she decided to put him to sleep. She could not see it through, and made me be there. I agreed, but was not very happy about it. One of the worst days that I can remember in recent years.
Other people close to me had dogs that I spend some time with. My uncle in France had two dogs, although one of them was rather frightening. My cousin had a gross dog that she named after a famous artist, but again, that dog was disgusting. My aunt got a dog, similar to Max in some ways, including the blindness. And my friend had a dog named Sparky that I got to spend some time with.
Going back farther, though, there was one other dog that really stood out, more than others. This was Candy, a local dog in my old neighborhood in West Milford back when I was a kid. She was really sweet, and she really loved me. She belonged to a family, or perhaps just one owner (I never actually knew them). But she seemed to be free of them as often as not, frankly. And whenever she was free, she would come to me. She visited us at our house on occasion, and I used to pet her and play with her a bit. Once, she had a litter of puppies, and there are some pictures of that occasion.
The most memorable time, and one of the main reasons that I felt she was almost kind of "my dog," if you will, came one day when she followed me to the bus stop. When the bus came, she wanted to get on the school bus with me. Finally, she was dissuaded, and I thought nothing more of it on that particular day. Until later, in class, when I suddenly heard a bunch of kids going, "Awww!" I saw Candy walking around the school, looking for me. I felt like running out there after her, giving her a hug, feeling loved.
I miss her.
She was an unusual dog in some ways. A mutt, with some white, black, and orange, almost like a cat. Her most notable physical distinction, at least for me, was that one ear was almost always up, while the other ear was almost always down. Truth be told, I do not remember seeing any other dog that seemed to have that, and it is a mystery where she got that from. It made her feel a bit unique.
Candy was just about the sweetest dog. She was always happy to see me, I can remember her. And the feeling was mutual, of course. It did not happen all of the time. And perhaps, it did not even happen often. Maybe it is my childhood imagination making it seem like she was around a lot more than she actually was. But when she was around, she seemed to be around for days at a time. And she always gravitated towards me.
Again, I was glad.
Also, she often seemed to have puppies. A lot of them. At the time, not understanding, this thrilled me. Now, it would kind of make me angry towards the irresponsibility of the owners. To this day, I have no idea whatever happened to those cute little puppies.
Truth be told, I was not sure that there even were pictures of Candy, let alone as many as there wound up being. For that, I am thankful, probably to my father, who surely took these pictures. I remember being with Candy and all of those puppies, and feeling like I was in seventh heaven. These really were a great set of pictures to remember a great dog by, and just wonderful memories!
Anyway, here are some pictures to remember Candy by.
We had them for about four years. After that, we took a break from pets for a while.
But when I was a young man, my parents got another cat. I remember coming home, and there was this tiny little kitten there, who was hiding from everyone. He was so small, he eventually sat in my own hand, comfortably, and with room to spare. I was able to get him to drink milk from my fingertip, and we named him Scribbles. Yet, he came to be known as the Mec (the second cat of ours named Mec).
Years later, we would get two more cats. One only briefly, because the original owner wanted her back. She was Miranda, the magic cat, and actually, she did not seem all that magical, but nasty. Sometimes, out of nowhere she would bite, and when she did, she meant it. The other cat was Genevieve, and the owner did not apparently think much of her. But she wound up being the sweetest cat, and one of the sweetest animals, that I would ever meet. She was so light, and very, very nice. At night, she would want to sleep on me, and she would walk around casually on my head at times, with her light little footsteps feeling like someone's fingertips walking across. I really, really miss her.
Finally, we had the Foof, a cute, orange Maine Coon cat. He had such incredible energy for a long time, and he was truly exhausting initially. But he calmed down...eventually. Somewhat. In fact, he came to be one of our family's most believed cats.
There were other cats in my life during adulthood, too. Harley and Cali, who had belonged to my ex-wife's family. There was Rex, the cat my son remembered. There is FiFi for my parents. And currently, my girlfriend and I have Baby (not the most original name, I know) and FeeFee, a fluffly, beautiful white and gray mix. They are great company.
But we never had a dog. In fact, the first real dog that I ever had was just recently. But it was my girlfriend's dog, really, and his name was Max. When I came into the picture in 2012, he was still relatively healthy, and not too old, but getting there. Within a couple of years, he would have diabetes and would go blind. His condition worsened, and eventually, it got so bad that she decided to put him to sleep. She could not see it through, and made me be there. I agreed, but was not very happy about it. One of the worst days that I can remember in recent years.
Other people close to me had dogs that I spend some time with. My uncle in France had two dogs, although one of them was rather frightening. My cousin had a gross dog that she named after a famous artist, but again, that dog was disgusting. My aunt got a dog, similar to Max in some ways, including the blindness. And my friend had a dog named Sparky that I got to spend some time with.
Going back farther, though, there was one other dog that really stood out, more than others. This was Candy, a local dog in my old neighborhood in West Milford back when I was a kid. She was really sweet, and she really loved me. She belonged to a family, or perhaps just one owner (I never actually knew them). But she seemed to be free of them as often as not, frankly. And whenever she was free, she would come to me. She visited us at our house on occasion, and I used to pet her and play with her a bit. Once, she had a litter of puppies, and there are some pictures of that occasion.
The most memorable time, and one of the main reasons that I felt she was almost kind of "my dog," if you will, came one day when she followed me to the bus stop. When the bus came, she wanted to get on the school bus with me. Finally, she was dissuaded, and I thought nothing more of it on that particular day. Until later, in class, when I suddenly heard a bunch of kids going, "Awww!" I saw Candy walking around the school, looking for me. I felt like running out there after her, giving her a hug, feeling loved.
I miss her.
She was an unusual dog in some ways. A mutt, with some white, black, and orange, almost like a cat. Her most notable physical distinction, at least for me, was that one ear was almost always up, while the other ear was almost always down. Truth be told, I do not remember seeing any other dog that seemed to have that, and it is a mystery where she got that from. It made her feel a bit unique.
Candy was just about the sweetest dog. She was always happy to see me, I can remember her. And the feeling was mutual, of course. It did not happen all of the time. And perhaps, it did not even happen often. Maybe it is my childhood imagination making it seem like she was around a lot more than she actually was. But when she was around, she seemed to be around for days at a time. And she always gravitated towards me.
Again, I was glad.
Also, she often seemed to have puppies. A lot of them. At the time, not understanding, this thrilled me. Now, it would kind of make me angry towards the irresponsibility of the owners. To this day, I have no idea whatever happened to those cute little puppies.
Truth be told, I was not sure that there even were pictures of Candy, let alone as many as there wound up being. For that, I am thankful, probably to my father, who surely took these pictures. I remember being with Candy and all of those puppies, and feeling like I was in seventh heaven. These really were a great set of pictures to remember a great dog by, and just wonderful memories!
Anyway, here are some pictures to remember Candy by.
Beautiful photos and touching memories. BTW, are those not the neon socks you have on in some of those pictures? Just wondering . . .
ReplyDeleteYes! I forgot to mention that. Proof positive of just how much those socks stood out. It appears that these were the beloved pink socks. Look how much they suit a growing boy!
Delete