RIP Smolder

 Smolder died today, my big black old boy, who liked to sleep curled against my head.

He wasn't always that way.  Most of his life here he preferred the cat yard and garage room and sometimes was a bit of a bully towards other cats, but usually not.

As he got older, he wanted to be inside winters and came in.   He liked to be brushed and petted.

After his dental ten months ago, where his remaining teeth were pulled, he began to lose ground, losing weight and in the last couple months, faltering in his hind quarters.  Then Sunday morning I awoke to his cries.   He was obviously in a great deal of pain and could barely walk.  I imagine he fell off a run.  Or something.  I was horrified for him and tried to find somewhere he could quickly have his pain ended.

No luck, but I did make an appointment for 1:00 p.m. today at Heartland.  But this morning he was cryng again, and the only walking he could do, I saw his rear feet from ankles down, were splayed out.  I've never seen anything like that.  So I called Lebanon Animal Hospital who said I could bring him in as drop off.  

Well they did bloodwork and found him in kidney failure, also with anemia and elevated white count.  That coupled with his pain level from whatever injury he'd incurred to his pelvis or spine was enough for me to ask them to end it all for him.  So they did.

He came to me with his brothers and mother in a big carrier, soaking wet.  The man said he'd had them in it a couple days so he hosed them down because they stunk.  He was a teenager then.   I told the man not to bother picking them up after they were fixed, that they would not be returning to him.

I called him Smolder, son of Sage.  Sage, his mom, was the smartest kitty I'd met, a torti.  A very smart OSU student adopted her.  Perfect match.

   Smolder previously went to two different homes but was too scared once at the homes and was returned.

So he stayed here where he fit in just fine and had lots and lots of friends and a pretty good life all in all.

I loved him.

You know what I'm a little worried about now too?   What if congress does not raise the debt ceiling?  The US may go into debt default by June 1.  The Republicans are using the debt ceiling increase needed to assert power and refuse to just raise it, as has been done multiple times recently, like during the Trump years, for instance.  But now they want to flex muscles and apparently, hurt Americans with this shit, by hanging that over our heads, of not getting our SS checks or throwing us out of healthcare, since they might not be paying medicare providers. They'd have to choose what bills to pay and who to screw over.   Sure I'm worried.  How to pay the electric and water and garbage and buy food.   All that.  Sure, who wouldn't be worried.   I asked my brother would the Republicans screw over the country in a power quest.  He said sure they would.  I don't know what to think.  I can't believe they'd do that to people.