Good Cats

It seems like it's been a hard winter for cats...

There are certain animals that we know are smarter than us. They've been sent here to keep track of us and watch over us while we do stupid people things; often with a mixture of bemusement and parental watchfulness on their faces. This look is inherently born to cats... from day one, they know they're superior to their pink-skinned, hairless friends. They try to help.. try and teach us how to do things the right way.. even to the point of dropping off some half dead rodent to try and teach us how to hunt.

But they pretty quickly learn that we're incapable of even the most basic of functions and resort to just.. keeping an eye on us to keep us out of trouble.

Barn cats inherently have it a bit tougher than their household counterparts, not based on environment but due to their increased job duties. On top of keeping an eye on the people who are CONSTANTLY striving to undertake some stupid, useless or downright dangerous task (What is that you're eating? A WHAT? Piece of cake? Let me taste it first to make sure it isn't poisoned.) they have to: keep the rodent population under control, make sure the birds are sufficiently irritated, count the horses, inspect the hay being given, monitor stall cleaning to ensure the boarders get what they pay for, lie in the driveway to keep leadfoots from plowing through the front of the barn... the list goes on.

Take 2, aka Fuzzy (and Fuzzy Lumpkins to his friends), was a proper barn cat. He did all of the above but went beyond his typical duties in that, he never let on that we were only simple people. He patiently waited until Jimmy figured out that he wanted water from the water cooler never once resorting to the usual cat painful bag o' tricks. He never worried me with the aggravation of mulling over whether my mom or Bob would be annoyed if I brought him home for the night- he made the decision for me by riding all the way home in my car and only popping up to meow a hello as I pulled in the driveway.

When Jaime was first starting out at the barn, he rode around on her hay wheelbarrow and kept her company and ensured she kept her mind off of any future lecture from a certain person if she dropped a piece of hay on the ground.

He tried to make the tough decision for us a few months back and when it turned out that it wasn't his time, he came back to keep an eye on things for as long as he could. Because that was his job- Official Greeter of the Viewing Room & Taster of Foodstuffs.

So RIP handsome man (and to all the other cats with jobs that we lost this year). We'll miss you and tell stories of you often.