This is Grey Eagle.
He's close to 20 years old; that's nearly 140 in cat-years, according to the old formula. He eats (prefers) dog food. He's so skinny you can feel every knob on his backbone, you can see his ribs through his fur, and his tail is about a foot long. Nasreen has always claimed he looks like a lizard.
But he's still as agile as he was ten years ago. He sleeps on top of me, and no matter how many times I throw him off, he comes back. Every morning when I wake up, he's staring me in the face. He's crotchety and needy and demanding. He's a pain in the neck. He's not a pretty boy, that's for sure, but he's been my faithful companion since July 1990.
One reason I like cats is that they are so independent. Give 'em a plate of food, a water dish and a litter box, and they're good to go. You can leave 'em alone for a few days with no problem. But I was headed off for six days to spend Christmas in Santa Ana with my daughters, favorite son-in-law and favorite grandson. That was just a little too long for comfort, even for King Kat.
That's why, last Sunday morning, I realized I needed to get him a present.
He had to have an automatic cat feeder. I'd thought about getting him one before, but they are very expensive, and I'd never left him alone long enough that it really was a requirement. Suddenly it was urgent. (Yes, it doesn't seem to make any sense--the guy's 20 years old and NOW he needs an auto feeder. But that's the way my brain works sometimes.)
Never mind that I'd already been to Fresno once earlier in the week, and going back again wasn't on my list of favorite things to do. My boy NEEDED a feeder. I let my fingers do the walking and discovered that PetSmart had one listed for $39.95--$30.00 less than its list price. Pretty costly cat paraphernalia, but the guy's worth it.
Three hours and $80.00 later ('cause Carol, Farida, Hunter and I had to have lunch while we were in town), and Grey Eagle was the proud owner of his very own automatic feeder.
We'll see when I get home how well it worked out.
Dear Grey Eagle,
ReplyDeleteYou're obviously the latest incarnation of the late, lamented and lovely Petunia and probably a distant cousin of the world-famous curmudgeon Poopsie Fessler. Merry Christmas to all!!!!