The Non-Childless Cat Lady

Today I had a visitor at my front door. He was a beautiful feline with a bluish grey collar that matched his fur and green eyes that I pegged as a Blue Russian. Now, I’m not a cat person due to bad allergies, but for some reason, cats keep trying to adopt me. My last kitty applicant, a tiny feral, hung around on my porch for four days being way too adorable, while I desperately sought and found her a home. My heart nearly broke as she drove away.

Determined not to let this cat take up as much of my time or become as endearing to me as the last, I took a picture from the window and posted Blue’s general location online on several “lost pet sites,” hoping to find his human. If they responded, fine, if not, I vowed not to get any more involved. I did my part. And then it happened. Again. Blue consumed my thoughts, and the more I thought about him, the more worried I became. He was a pure bred. What if he was snatched up by someone other than his human? What if someone with ill intent came to hunt him down? What if he ran off before the owner saw my post? I nearly tumbled downstairs and out the door to find Blue. He was gone, but thankfully not too far. The little bugger was cozying up with my neighbor on her porch. My neighbor, being a cat lover with two of her own, helped me get him into my dog’s kennel—it wasn’t too hard because Blue seemed to love people and definitely loved to be held. Then, with cat-in-kennel, I set off to the vet, hoping he was chipped.

Well, this rescue story, too, has a happy ending, because Blue was chipped and the vet found the owner. She called me immediately in tears, thanking me for finding her beloved cat. It turns out Blue, whose real name is Machete, loves to ride in cars, and a few months ago hopped in a service truck and traveled forty-one miles to find my doorstep. I also found out he was not a pure bred, but very much loved just the same. If you think this tale cannot get more bittersweet, you’re wrong. His human is going through chemo and missed and needed her little buddy profusely. Tonight, after a long adventure, Machete is home with his human, and all is well with the world, at least in his little corner of it. Sigh. The End