Peggy's Nine Lives Run Out

The car paused at Liberty and Oklahoma, I wait for a gap in traffic to turn right. Across the road, shoppers go about their normal Saturday business at the new Wal Mart. But this isn't a normal Saturday for me and Peggy. It's just us two; none of the children wanted to come with me, including my eldest daughter, who has a special kinship for Peggy and all animals. Resting nervously in her carrier, Peggy doesn't make a sound. It's the second time in as many days that she's been taken somewhere unpleasant, but this time she won't be coming home.

I make my turn and head for Peggy's final destination, the Humane Society of Westminster. It's an hour-drive, so I have some time to think. But I don't feel anything. I drive through Westminster and continue north towards Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

Wow! where is this place? Finally, the woman in the GPS tells me to turn right onto a country lane. It hugs a small hill overlooking a pleasant, little valley with a small pond at the bottom. I park the car and get out. Geese rest on the water; it's a beautiful day for December. I walk into the building and see a room full of cats to my left. An older woman helps me check Peggy in.

 "It will be $40 to euthanize her," she says.

 "But an employee told us it would be free," I protest.

 "Are you having financial difficulties?"

 "Well, it did cost us over $500 in vet bills to get Peggy's diagnosis."

 Though I point out she only has my word, she readily agrees to not charge us. I thank her and when we're done, another employee takes Peggy to the back. Now I have to wait.

 *** 

 It's October 1, 2013, and I'm heading to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, or AOPA, in Frederick, Maryland to check on job prospects. On the way there, I stop off at my boss's sprawling 40 acre estate to see it for the first time. The estate is well-hidden off a small road and up a small country lane in Mt. Airy.

What greets me is a stately home that's really just two homes in one. In addition to James (my boss) and his family, James's brother-in-law and his family live in the house. I pass an incomplete horse barn, which James has been feverishly building for several months. I go up to what I think is the front door and knock. James lets me and and takes me around his house.

At one point, we go into the basement, which is in reality, a pottery shop that his in-laws run. While in the shop, a beautiful Russian Blue cat, begging for an ear scratch, rubs against my leg.

"What's that?" I thought. "It's hobbling. Oh, I see, it's missing a leg."

"Her name is Peggy," James says.

James offhandedly offers her to me and explains that they keep her outside because her friendliness is a tripping hazard for the shop's customers.

"She's a feisty cat," he says. "She easily handles our two other cats who try to harass her."

Peggy wasn't always James's cat. She hobbled onto his property some time before and adopted his family. It wasn't until James's vet came to his house that they found out where Peggy came from. James never explained why the vet came to his house; maybe it was to check on James's horses.

Anyway, the vet saw Peggy and mentioned that she had been his cat, but didn't offer to take her back. Peggy had been hit by a car, the vet said. That's why she was missing her back right leg and it's why her tail was short.

I'm amazed that she had hobbled from the vet's home to James's without being attacked and eaten by a fox. It's clear that Peggy had a deep account at the Bank of Life and had been wise with her money. 

I bid James goodbye and continue on to AOPA. I later tell Micaela about Peggy and mention it might be nice to get her for Christmas. She agrees and I talk to James about it.

I arrange to take my two girls and pick her up on Christmas Eve. We bring her home and she becomes an important part of our lives, especially mine and Hannah's. Her spryness continues to amaze me as she goes up and down our stairs faster than us.

She maintains a good standing at the Bank of Life, cashing in one of her lives when she disappears soon after we get a dog. Months later, a neighbor informs us Peggy was being taken care of by another neighbor, who watches over many strays. When he finds out she's our cat, he lets us take her home. While she shied away from our dog before, now she dares our beagle to attack her by sleeping on the same couch. She's clearly taken back her domain. But her account at the Bank of Life runs out.

In November, 2015, we notice she has gained a lot of weight, which is uncharacteristic for her. We monitor her situation and finally decide her body cavity was filling with fluid. We take her to the vet, where they drain a large bowlful of fluid. Peggy has cancer, they say, and it's terminal.

 ***

"I'm sorry for your loss," the Humane Society worker said as he hands me a bag with Peggy's lifeless body inside.

The bag is decomposable, meaning I would be able to bury Peggy in the bag.

I mutter thanks and as I'm walking out another employee expresses his condolences. I think about Peggy on the way home. 

When I get home I put Peggy on the picnic table and the kids clamor to see her. I ask them not to open the bag, but they want to see her. I've never liked seeing dead bodies, even my Grandma Hess's when she died in her sleep, before the morgue took her body away.

I finally get around to burying her early in the evening, and my second daughter helps me. Or at least tries to. I'm still upset from Peggy's death that I end up driving my daughter away with my ill-temper. All day since returning home I have been snappy,

Finally, night comes and it's time for sleep, In a few days I've moved on, but will always remember the cat who never let a missing leg affect her ability to have a normal life.

Life's Perspective

I find this helpful in putting things into perspective: http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=1289877050001

Yearly Update

It's been far too long.

We are now back in Murray living in Grandma Challises basement apartment. We sold our Salt Lake home in anticipation of a job transfer, expected to happen in June. We put up our house in early January thinking it would take us a while to sell. We were surprised when someone put in an offer within the first week. After some minor issues, we were able to move out in early February. It was an aggravating house, but a good one too. I learned a lot from all of the fixes we had to make and I learned what to update in a house when one wants to sell it.

Actually, everything just fell into place. Grandma Challises basement apartment was going to be vacant until June and she needed someone to come live here (as she has been having many health problems). She was ecstatic when she learned that we sold our house because Micaela was so helpful the last time we lived here. It's also interesting to note that her health has been doing so much better since we've been here. It seems that Someone is looking out for us all.

The ward has gotten a lot better since the last time we were here. I was more than ready to get outta here the last time. The positive changes have come largely in part because several people have moved out and have been replaced by much more pleasant folks. Micaela wasn't treated well in her calling as a choir director and we were snubbed by some couples in the ward. Bottom line, a lot of worldly, unfriendly people.

Now it's different, there's some kind couples in the ward, and I think I've changed some too.

On to other news: When Eliza saw that the deacon who would be passing the sacrament to us was a little husky, she asked, "Mommy, he has a baby in his tummy?" several times. I had a hard time not laughing (not because the kid was big, but because... Kids say the darndest things). It's funny how little kids will take what you say about one person (she has a big belly because she's pregnant) and apply it to everything else.

Hannah is doing well in school. Her best subject is math (pilot in the making) and she's beginning to sound out words. She and Eliza play together really well. Hannah is a natural leader while Eliza is a follower.

As the weather has gotten better the girls have been playing outside more. I must say some of my happiest moments are watching them play together outside and talking to them about topics such as Canadian Geese, the snow on the mountains, and where Sam the Cat is buried. It's fun to see them explore and wonder at the world around them. I hope my kids never become disconnected with the real world in favor of the digital world.

Mommy's 'Day off'

Miceala took advantage of the good weather we've been having and had a coop yard sale with some other women in the ward. They decided to have the yard sale at a friend's house who was closer to a busier street than the one we live on. In addition to selling some stuff we no longer needed, Mic went ahead and printed off several copies of our MLS listing for the house and even made out a poster. More on that later.

While Mic was at the yard sale, I watched the kids at home. Admittedly, I complained because I had some stuff to do and because Saturday is really the only day I get off (forget Sundays with my calling), but I also realized that I had left Mic with the girls several times for business trips. At first, I just had Eliza as Hannah wanted to see what the yard sale was all about. Eliza is so fun to be with and easy to take care of; she can entertain herself for hours. It was a joy to be alone with her for a little bit.

When Hannah came home, I sent the two girls off to play with each other (we've been trying to get Hannah to play more with Eliza lately) while I painted the frame to our utility room door (we had to buy a new door with louvers because of the furnace (code reasons)). Afterward, I took the girls to the local tot lot and was pleasantly surprised at the absence of any teenagers (there's usually a bunch of them there swearing and such). Hannah complained to me that it was boring (no swings) but Eliza sure enjoyed the small slide there. I tried to make it interesting for Hannah by playing games with her, which included going down the slide (not a comfortable experience. Oh, I miss the old metal slides). Finally, we went home for lunch and naps.

Naptime was another adventure. Eliza hasn't had much interest in naps lately. She'll go down fine, but then it becomes a whole new level of playtime for her. From 1-4 pm, she sang to herself and played with what she had available to her in the play pen. Poor Hannah tried to sleep but gave up after about an hour. Shortly after getting up, Hannah and I went outside so I could 'till' the garden with Hannah. That didn't last long for Hannah; she ended up playing: first by herself, then with her neighbor friends. Unfortunately, her playtime was short lived because she disobeyed me and rode her tricycle down the block. In our neighborhood, we're very careful about letting our kids out of the yard because it is Salt Lake's ghetto. I was pretty upset because she had been disobedient several times throughout the day (she does have quite a strong will). Overall, it was a good day. I got to spend some time with my girls and got some good things done.

Back to the yard sell. We actually had a little more success with the home advertising than selling out stuff. Mic had one person express interest and said he would drop by on Monday. In addition, I showed a couple around last night who said they had learned about our house through the yard sale. They seemed genuinely interested; which is more than we've ever gotten before. But I'm also realistic, knowing that nothing's a done deal until the closing papers are signed.

Moving on Up...

To all my fans (Jamie and Jen), here is my latest edition:

Since taking that trip...

I transferred into the Inactive Ready Reserve (IRR) of the navy. That means I no longer have to do the weekend drills or the two weeks a year. It simply means that my name is on a list that if they ever really needed me for a deployment, they could call me up. Because I have an eight year commitment, I'll be in the IRR until August 2010 after which I will have no more obligations with the navy :-)

I thought my life would be a little less busy after I went IRR... I was wrong. I was called to be YM President and my life hasn't known very much rest. Although, I enjoy this job much more than being in the navy.

I also took Hannah with me camping down at the San Rafael Swell. My dad and brother, Ryan came along. It was really nice.

On to more recent news: We're getting ready to put our house on the market next month. We have a few things that need to be fixed, but they shouldn't be too major. We're looking all over the place (SLC, south SL valley, and north Utah County), although we have one house we're particularly interested in not too far from where we're at. It's a home built in 1895 by George Q Cannon's son. This individual (can't remember his name) was the first architect in SLC. The home is gorgeous. Most of the first floor has been remodeled; most of it's historic architecture has been preserved. It sits on almost an acre lot and fronts the Jordan River. I'm sure at the time, it was probably considered a mansion. We would love to have it, but are trying to balance our girls needs with our wants. We just hope we can sell our current home in this economy.

End of Summer

Since my last blog, we went on a family vacation to Southeastern Utah and I went on a week-long scout camp.

We took Hannah with us on our trip, but left Eliza with my parents. We went to Cove Fort, Goblin Valley (where we camped our second night. We spent the first night at my in-laws house), the Four Corners Area, and Moab, Utah. We really liked Goblin Valley and were impressed with the camping facilities (they even had showers). The most interesting part about the Four Corners area is that it's on the Navaho Reservation, so it was really like stepping into a different nation within the US. Unfortunately, on the morning of our thrid full day, Micaela got conjuctivitus in her left eye. We spent most of the day looking for a Dr. in Monticello and then in Moab. Fortunately, we got into the Moab Hospital ER where she received treatment. We spent the night in Moab, then went to the Colorado River to relax. Our last day, we went to Dead Horse State Park and Canyonlands National Park. We enjoyed our stay, but as usual, it was too short. We especially enjoyed having Hannah with us.

The week after I went to Boy Scout Camp at Bear Lake with the scouts in our ward. Turns out, it was a merit badge camp (something I never got to do as a scout). All of our boys ended up getting multiple merit badges and all were good examples to me. I'm always impressed with how much the youth teach me when I'm supposed to be their leader. I really am learning the value of our youth.

Since then, our life has kind of returned to normal. Hannah started preschool a couple of weeks ago and hasn't been enjoying it as much as I thought she would. Of course, she's been battling strep throat the whole time. Eliza still can't walk, Mic is keeping busy, and life goes on.

We're wanting to move next summer. I have mixed feelings because I like this ward and the neighborhood, but I know the school system here isn't that great and the crime is higher (along with gang activity).

Until next time.

Idaho Trip and Other News

Life has been a little hectic since Father's Day. First, I'll start off with our trip to Idaho Falls, Idaho.

We packed our bags and took the family up to Idaho Falls on Friday afternoon. Micaela has a brother who moved up there a year ago with his family because of work. Of course, we hit traffic almost immediately and were stuck in it from North Salt Lake all the way to Layton (Yuck!) We didn't arrive in Idaho Falls until around 9:30.

The next day we got ready and went to what gives the city it's name: some small waterfalls on the Snake River. We took some pictures and feed the local water fowl population.


Hannah and the Idaho Falls Temple


Haley holding Mom and Dad's Hands


Hannah & Haley Feeding the Ducks and Geese



Idaho Falls Temple

After that, we went to the local zoo (who knew Idaho Falls had a zoo?). I wasn't expecting much, but was pretty impressed what that little zoo had. They had all sorts of small primates, some big cats, and various other animals.

Lion at the Idaho Falls Zoo


Monkeys Grooming each Other


A Siberian Tiger


Aleah, Eliza, Hannah, and Haley

We then went back to Challis and Nancy's home and had lunch and put the girls down for naps. After the girls were up, we drove south the Lava Hots Springs to take advantage of... the hot springs. It's actually quite a drive (about 60-70 miles south of Idaho Falls). We were surprised to find out the local city pool is separate from the hot springs. We were told that no kids under two were allowed in the hot springs (which means we wouldn't be able to go) and that there was no swimming (like a hot tub). Based on that, we decided to hit the swimming pool. The girls had fun... actually only Eliza had fun in our family. Hannah was too terrified to let go of whichever adult was supervising us. Eliza, on the other hand, was splashing all over the place and even started kicking her feet. I even held here flat to the water and we cruised the pool; she really enjoyed that. At one point Nancy put Eliza in a kiddy tube. While I was watching her and Hannah, Eliza fell through the tube to the bottom of the pool. I pulled her out immediately and thought she would be traumatized. She was just coughing up water and trying to get her breath back; when she was all settled I put her back in the tube again and she was as happy as she was before (it was Hannah that was terrified).


Challis, Nancy, and Their Girls


Eliza, Myself, and Hannah (This was right after Eliza took the Plunge)


Challis and Nancy Having a Water Fight

On to some other topics: Last week for Independence Day we went to Mic's brother's house, Paul, for a BBQ and to watch the Sugar House fireworks display.

Micaela holding Hannah and Myself Holding Eliza (with Paul pulling a lovely pose in the background)

It was fun, but traffic was awful getting out. The following day, we toured the Beehive House (Brigham Young's home) on Temple Square and ate at the Lion House as a family.

I finally finished the pantry: finished painting the door and installed it, installed the carpet, and hung the shelves back up. It's pretty empty now, but we hope to fill it with our food storage before too long.