7 ms·

Requiem for a Great Cat

83 points by Hooke 4y ago

penny11k 4y ago
When your cat loves you so much, it wakes you up at 5am just to make sure you're still alive.
- LargoLasskhyfv 4y ago
  There is a solution to that. Be a night person, sleep during the day. Makes things so much easier :-)
- xarope 4y ago
  I'd like to rephrase this as "When your cat loves you feeding it so much, it wakes you up at 5am just to make sure you're still alive and able to feed it real-soon now".
  - jayd16 4y ago
    Mine doesn't want to be fed and I don't think it's worried about me...but it does want me to know about the birds chirping outside. Yes, little one, I can hear them too.
- Smoosh 4y ago
  > it wakes you up at 5am by loudly vomiting up a furball onto the carpet.
  - qbasic_forever 4y ago
    Better than quietly doing it in a hidden spot so you find it days later, lol.
    - beebeepka 4y ago
      How about puking while enjoying the warmth of my audio receiver. I almost had a heart attack because I didn't want her to get electrocuted
erulabs 4y ago
> Cats are often said to reveal their personalities subtly, over time. This was not the case with Bea, who startled our guests with her explosive hospitality protocol. She would dance on the kitchen counter, jump on visitors’ shoulders, lick their hair, and explore their ears, all the while issuing whispery meows and pigeonlike chirps. It goes without saying that she was magnificent. I think that's exactly what humans love about cats. They really have personalities. Unlike any other domesticated animal, cats aren't tasked with any job. One often thinks about mousing cats, but that turns out to have much less historical evidence than humans just... loving cats! Having pet cats and human civilization appear to be essentially the same thing. The book "The Lion in the Living Room" is excellent if you're interested in this topic, and talks about P-22 at length. Even if you're not a cat person, it's a must read for LA residents or anyone interested in anthropology. My cat Cleo is dramatically different than Bea, and she is also magnificent!
- ilyt 4y ago
  I prefer cats over dogs because they kinda live alongside me, instead of having their human as some kind of object of worship/pack leader.
  - Doxin 4y ago
    Having a cat is like having a roommate. Having a dog is like having someone who's very sure you're best friends forever and ever. There's something to be said for either.
- wskish 4y ago
  There really should be a word for “personality” as applied to a cat. “Catitude” is the one that comes to mind for me.
  - frodetb 4y ago
    "Catitude" is a good one. One might also say "felinity". Or "kittyhood". Or "purrsonality"! I've only watched the movie version, but all these feel like they were words spoken by a character in CATS the musical.
FpUser 4y ago
>"The comedy of catness lies in the juxtaposition of organically sinuous movement with the drab rectangularity of human habitation. " My brain collapsed while trying to digest this. Still I love cats.
- davemp 4y ago
  For some reason I can’t get over the word “juxtaposition”. Whenever I come across the word, it’s a pretty strong signal that a writer/speaker is simply trying too hard. Similar to the abuse of the word “unctuous” by food writers, it’s a deceptively narrow word that tempts people into seeing where they can fit it in.
  - derefr 4y ago
    "Unctuous" essentially just means "oily, but it's a good thing." But since that's a pretty rare property for a food to have, there aren't many ways to say it, or things to say past just "unctuous" — which makes it seem kind of opaque and ritualistic as a descriptor. It's similar to how we have a lot of ways to describe things smelling bad, but relatively few words to describe things smelling good beyond "fragrant" or maybe "aromatic."
    - p1necone 4y ago
      Often it means "it seems fatty/oily, but actually it's collagen" too. Like with a slow cooked cut of meat with lots of connective tissue.
    - bravura 4y ago
      Aside: Some of the high quality commentators on the internet at on the perfume + scent fragrance site https://basenotes.com/ https://basenotes.com/ I would go so far as to say that the median commentator on that site is the kind of person I'd want at a dinner party. That's high praise.
    - davemp 4y ago
      Unctuous: [0] > 1: having, revealing, or marked by a smug, ingratiating, and false earnestness or spirituality > 2 > a: FATTY, OILY > b: smooth and greasy in texture or appearance > 3: PLASTIC I’m aware of the definition. My experience with the word has primarily been under the 1st definition, so the positive connotation that food writers have been using it with seems absolutely ridiculous to me. Especially when I would use the first definition to describe the work of many food critics (maybe it’s an attempt at reappropriation :P). I don’t mean this in a harsh way, but using unctuous to describe “oily but good” properties just seems ignorant. I hear “unctuous” to describe a fried pizza the OP enjoyed, and think “slimy sales person” or “The Blob”. I also get that language is fluid as groups repurpose words. I’m just not a fan of this one. Current usage screams that some food writer pulled the word out of a thesaurus instead of their vocabulary and somehow it started to stick. [0]: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unctuous https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unctuous
operatingthetan 4y ago
It's been a rough week for my cat and best friend Nomi since last Thursday when he started showing signs of back pain, lack of appetite and GI distress. Over the week he's lost the use of his tail and back legs which is scary, but we are doing tests and working on figuring it out. I feel bad he had to spend the week in critical care, but he would have died because his kidneys were failing from dehydration. He will be back home tomorrow and I can't wait. I've been visiting him at the hospital every day.
- steveBK123 4y ago
  Good luck, hoping for the best.
- yawnr 4y ago
  Give Nomi some scratches from a stranger. Wonderful of you to care for him the best you can.
- beebeepka 4y ago
  Been there. Watching the love of life slowly fade was the most painful thing in my life. Cancer, failing kidneys and liver. She was visibly in pain for a while. I miss her so much. I even managed to shave my beard with her on my shoulders. I still wonder how we managed that
carabiner 4y ago
All cats are beautiful.
- HopenHeyHi 4y ago
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8i2WPxXxS4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8i2WPxXxS4
at_a_remove 4y ago
One of the things I enjoy most about cats is that I do not have to fear that their enjoyment of my company is slavish or out of fear. Cats will like you or not, but they will not do so because they feel compelled to do so. With dogs, their devotion is too easy, almost slavish, and for some reason end up feeling like they fear that I would transform into the dog version of Simon Legree. On my short trips, I sometimes stop by an odd store which is a combination of tourist trap (literally hundreds of varieties of bizarre sodas, Route 66 memorabilia, antiquated candies, homemade fudge, and so on) and a basic farm store, with feed and grain and other farm supplies. Apparently, a young cat had made himself known to the store by wandering in and boldly catching a few mice to display to the humans inside as a portfolio. Spec work for hunters. He had since become the shop cat, relentlessly patrolling. This was unknown to me until I saw this cat wandering about as I turned an aisle. A little surprised, I bent down and said "Hello," then to be rewarded with a leap and an armful of purring cat. The proprietors then told me the story of how he came to be there. He is still there and is still happy to see me, but ignores other people, in the way cats do.
- Stratoscope 4y ago
  This is one of the best cat stories ever! You may enjoy Three Little Kittens: https://archive.org/details/ThreeLit1938 https://archive.org/details/ThreeLit1938
bravura 4y ago
The Naming of Cats T. S. Eliot, 1939 The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter, It isn’t just one of your holiday games; You may think at first I’m as mad as a hatter When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES. First of all, there’s the name that the family use daily, Such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo, or James, Such as Victor or Jonathan, George or Bill Bailey— All of them sensible everyday names. There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter, Some for the gentlemen, some for the dames: Such as Plato, Admetus, Electra, Demeter— But all of them sensible everyday names, But I tell you, a cat needs a name that’s particular, A name that’s peculiar, and more dignified, Else how can he keep up his tail perpendicular, Or spread out his whiskers, or cherish his pride? Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum, Such as Munkustrap, Quaxo, or Coricopat, Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellylorum— Names that never belong to more than one cat. But above and beyond there’s still one name left over, And that is the name that you never will guess; The name that no human research can discover— But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess. When you notice a cat in profound meditation, The reason, I tell you, is always the same: His mind is engaged in a rapt contemplation Of the thought, of the thought, of the thought of his name: His ineffable effable Effanineffable Deep and inscrutable singular name.
- thecupisblue 4y ago
  Related - internet working group RFC, the naming of hosts (https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2100.html https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2100.html): The Naming of Hosts is a difficult matter, It isn't just one of your holiday games; You may think at first I'm as mad as a hatter When I tell you, a host must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES. First of all, there's the name that the users use daily, Such as venus, athena, and cisco, and ames, Such as titan or sirius, hobbes or europa-- All of them sensible everyday names. There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter, Some for the web pages, some for the flames: Such as mercury, phoenix, orion, and charon-- But all of them sensible everyday names. But I tell you, a host needs a name that's particular, A name that's peculiar, and more dignified, Else how can it keep its home page perpendicular, And spread out its data, send pages world wide? Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum, Like lothlorien, pothole, or kobyashi-maru, Such as pearly-gates.vatican, or else diplomatic- Names that never belong to more than one host. But above and beyond there's still one name left over, And that is the name that you never will guess; The name that no human research can discover-- But THE NAMESERVER KNOWS, and will us'ually confess. When you notice a client in rapt meditation, The reason, I tell you, is always the same: The code is engaged in a deep consultation On the address, the address, the address of its name: It's ineffable, effable, Effanineffable, Deep and inscrutable, singular Name.
hbarka 4y ago
Wildlife crossings, when an we have it in our American consciousness? In the Netherlands, there are 66+ https://unusualplaces.org/natuurbrug-zanderij-crailoo/ https://unusualplaces.org/natuurbrug-zanderij-crailoo/ Other places in Europe: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/23/how-wildlife-crossings-are-helping-reindeer-bears-and-even-crabs-aoe https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/23/how-wild...
- ajb 4y ago
  In the UK, we mostly use tunnels, which are cheaper - at least, if you are installing them when the road is built. Just stick down some tubing and you're done . I'm not sure if any are large enough for deer though.
ycombinete 4y ago
I was hoping this would be about Virtue the cat from The Weakerthans' song [0]. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmkNPOBWdGs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmkNPOBWdGs
- revolvingocelot 4y ago
  That's "Virtute", from the Canadian city of Winnipeg's Latin motto, "unum cum virtute multorum": "one with the strength of many". Not from Winterpeg or anything, just long-ago research resulting from my personal insistence that the guy from Propagandhi wouldn't be making spelling mistakes
  - ycombinete 4y ago
    Oh my. I've loved this song for over a decade now, and not once did I see that it wasn't Virtue! Thanks to you for the correction.
jt2190 4y ago
Here’s a 2013 picture and a little writeup about P-22, the “great cat”: How this photo turned a reclusive mountain lion into a Hollywood icon (2022) https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/p22-hollywood-cougar-steve-winter-photography https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/p22-holly...
ChrisMarshallNY 4y ago
This is my favorite cat: https://discworld.fandom.com/wiki/Greebo https://discworld.fandom.com/wiki/Greebo He probably could have kicked P-22's butt.

83 points by Hooke 4y ago

penny11k 4y ago

When your cat loves you so much, it wakes you up at 5am just to make sure you're still alive.

LargoLasskhyfv 4y ago
There is a solution to that. Be a night person, sleep during the day. Makes things so much easier :-)
xarope 4y ago
I'd like to rephrase this as "When your cat loves you feeding it so much, it wakes you up at 5am just to make sure you're still alive and able to feed it real-soon now".
- jayd16 4y ago
  Mine doesn't want to be fed and I don't think it's worried about me...but it does want me to know about the birds chirping outside. Yes, little one, I can hear them too.
Smoosh 4y ago
> it wakes you up at 5am by loudly vomiting up a furball onto the carpet.
- qbasic_forever 4y ago
  Better than quietly doing it in a hidden spot so you find it days later, lol.
  - beebeepka 4y ago
    How about puking while enjoying the warmth of my audio receiver. I almost had a heart attack because I didn't want her to get electrocuted

erulabs 4y ago

> Cats are often said to reveal their personalities subtly, over time. This was not the case with Bea, who startled our guests with her explosive hospitality protocol. She would dance on the kitchen counter, jump on visitors’ shoulders, lick their hair, and explore their ears, all the while issuing whispery meows and pigeonlike chirps. It goes without saying that she was magnificent. I think that's exactly what humans love about cats. They really have personalities. Unlike any other domesticated animal, cats aren't tasked with any job. One often thinks about mousing cats, but that turns out to have much less historical evidence than humans just... loving cats! Having pet cats and human civilization appear to be essentially the same thing. The book "The Lion in the Living Room" is excellent if you're interested in this topic, and talks about P-22 at length. Even if you're not a cat person, it's a must read for LA residents or anyone interested in anthropology. My cat Cleo is dramatically different than Bea, and she is also magnificent!

ilyt 4y ago
I prefer cats over dogs because they kinda live alongside me, instead of having their human as some kind of object of worship/pack leader.
- Doxin 4y ago
  Having a cat is like having a roommate. Having a dog is like having someone who's very sure you're best friends forever and ever. There's something to be said for either.
wskish 4y ago
There really should be a word for “personality” as applied to a cat. “Catitude” is the one that comes to mind for me.
- frodetb 4y ago
  "Catitude" is a good one. One might also say "felinity". Or "kittyhood". Or "purrsonality"! I've only watched the movie version, but all these feel like they were words spoken by a character in CATS the musical.

FpUser 4y ago

>"The comedy of catness lies in the juxtaposition of organically sinuous movement with the drab rectangularity of human habitation. " My brain collapsed while trying to digest this. Still I love cats.

davemp 4y ago
For some reason I can’t get over the word “juxtaposition”. Whenever I come across the word, it’s a pretty strong signal that a writer/speaker is simply trying too hard. Similar to the abuse of the word “unctuous” by food writers, it’s a deceptively narrow word that tempts people into seeing where they can fit it in.
- derefr 4y ago
  "Unctuous" essentially just means "oily, but it's a good thing." But since that's a pretty rare property for a food to have, there aren't many ways to say it, or things to say past just "unctuous" — which makes it seem kind of opaque and ritualistic as a descriptor. It's similar to how we have a lot of ways to describe things smelling bad, but relatively few words to describe things smelling good beyond "fragrant" or maybe "aromatic."
  - p1necone 4y ago
    Often it means "it seems fatty/oily, but actually it's collagen" too. Like with a slow cooked cut of meat with lots of connective tissue.
  - bravura 4y ago
    Aside: Some of the high quality commentators on the internet at on the perfume + scent fragrance site https://basenotes.com/ https://basenotes.com/ I would go so far as to say that the median commentator on that site is the kind of person I'd want at a dinner party. That's high praise.
  - davemp 4y ago
    Unctuous: [0] > 1: having, revealing, or marked by a smug, ingratiating, and false earnestness or spirituality > 2 > a: FATTY, OILY > b: smooth and greasy in texture or appearance > 3: PLASTIC I’m aware of the definition. My experience with the word has primarily been under the 1st definition, so the positive connotation that food writers have been using it with seems absolutely ridiculous to me. Especially when I would use the first definition to describe the work of many food critics (maybe it’s an attempt at reappropriation :P). I don’t mean this in a harsh way, but using unctuous to describe “oily but good” properties just seems ignorant. I hear “unctuous” to describe a fried pizza the OP enjoyed, and think “slimy sales person” or “The Blob”. I also get that language is fluid as groups repurpose words. I’m just not a fan of this one. Current usage screams that some food writer pulled the word out of a thesaurus instead of their vocabulary and somehow it started to stick. [0]: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unctuous https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unctuous

operatingthetan 4y ago

It's been a rough week for my cat and best friend Nomi since last Thursday when he started showing signs of back pain, lack of appetite and GI distress. Over the week he's lost the use of his tail and back legs which is scary, but we are doing tests and working on figuring it out. I feel bad he had to spend the week in critical care, but he would have died because his kidneys were failing from dehydration. He will be back home tomorrow and I can't wait. I've been visiting him at the hospital every day.

steveBK123 4y ago
Good luck, hoping for the best.
yawnr 4y ago
Give Nomi some scratches from a stranger. Wonderful of you to care for him the best you can.
beebeepka 4y ago
Been there. Watching the love of life slowly fade was the most painful thing in my life. Cancer, failing kidneys and liver. She was visibly in pain for a while. I miss her so much. I even managed to shave my beard with her on my shoulders. I still wonder how we managed that

carabiner 4y ago

All cats are beautiful.

HopenHeyHi 4y ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8i2WPxXxS4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8i2WPxXxS4

at_a_remove 4y ago

One of the things I enjoy most about cats is that I do not have to fear that their enjoyment of my company is slavish or out of fear. Cats will like you or not, but they will not do so because they feel compelled to do so. With dogs, their devotion is too easy, almost slavish, and for some reason end up feeling like they fear that I would transform into the dog version of Simon Legree. On my short trips, I sometimes stop by an odd store which is a combination of tourist trap (literally hundreds of varieties of bizarre sodas, Route 66 memorabilia, antiquated candies, homemade fudge, and so on) and a basic farm store, with feed and grain and other farm supplies. Apparently, a young cat had made himself known to the store by wandering in and boldly catching a few mice to display to the humans inside as a portfolio. Spec work for hunters. He had since become the shop cat, relentlessly patrolling. This was unknown to me until I saw this cat wandering about as I turned an aisle. A little surprised, I bent down and said "Hello," then to be rewarded with a leap and an armful of purring cat. The proprietors then told me the story of how he came to be there. He is still there and is still happy to see me, but ignores other people, in the way cats do.

Stratoscope 4y ago
This is one of the best cat stories ever! You may enjoy Three Little Kittens: https://archive.org/details/ThreeLit1938 https://archive.org/details/ThreeLit1938

bravura 4y ago

The Naming of Cats T. S. Eliot, 1939 The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter, It isn’t just one of your holiday games; You may think at first I’m as mad as a hatter When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES. First of all, there’s the name that the family use daily, Such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo, or James, Such as Victor or Jonathan, George or Bill Bailey— All of them sensible everyday names. There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter, Some for the gentlemen, some for the dames: Such as Plato, Admetus, Electra, Demeter— But all of them sensible everyday names, But I tell you, a cat needs a name that’s particular, A name that’s peculiar, and more dignified, Else how can he keep up his tail perpendicular, Or spread out his whiskers, or cherish his pride? Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum, Such as Munkustrap, Quaxo, or Coricopat, Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellylorum— Names that never belong to more than one cat. But above and beyond there’s still one name left over, And that is the name that you never will guess; The name that no human research can discover— But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess. When you notice a cat in profound meditation, The reason, I tell you, is always the same: His mind is engaged in a rapt contemplation Of the thought, of the thought, of the thought of his name: His ineffable effable Effanineffable Deep and inscrutable singular name.

thecupisblue 4y ago
Related - internet working group RFC, the naming of hosts (https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2100.html https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2100.html): The Naming of Hosts is a difficult matter, It isn't just one of your holiday games; You may think at first I'm as mad as a hatter When I tell you, a host must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES. First of all, there's the name that the users use daily, Such as venus, athena, and cisco, and ames, Such as titan or sirius, hobbes or europa-- All of them sensible everyday names. There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter, Some for the web pages, some for the flames: Such as mercury, phoenix, orion, and charon-- But all of them sensible everyday names. But I tell you, a host needs a name that's particular, A name that's peculiar, and more dignified, Else how can it keep its home page perpendicular, And spread out its data, send pages world wide? Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum, Like lothlorien, pothole, or kobyashi-maru, Such as pearly-gates.vatican, or else diplomatic- Names that never belong to more than one host. But above and beyond there's still one name left over, And that is the name that you never will guess; The name that no human research can discover-- But THE NAMESERVER KNOWS, and will us'ually confess. When you notice a client in rapt meditation, The reason, I tell you, is always the same: The code is engaged in a deep consultation On the address, the address, the address of its name: It's ineffable, effable, Effanineffable, Deep and inscrutable, singular Name.

hbarka 4y ago

Wildlife crossings, when an we have it in our American consciousness? In the Netherlands, there are 66+ https://unusualplaces.org/natuurbrug-zanderij-crailoo/ https://unusualplaces.org/natuurbrug-zanderij-crailoo/ Other places in Europe: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/23/how-wildlife-crossings-are-helping-reindeer-bears-and-even-crabs-aoe https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/23/how-wild...

ajb 4y ago
In the UK, we mostly use tunnels, which are cheaper - at least, if you are installing them when the road is built. Just stick down some tubing and you're done . I'm not sure if any are large enough for deer though.

ycombinete 4y ago

I was hoping this would be about Virtue the cat from The Weakerthans' song [0]. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmkNPOBWdGs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmkNPOBWdGs

revolvingocelot 4y ago
That's "Virtute", from the Canadian city of Winnipeg's Latin motto, "unum cum virtute multorum": "one with the strength of many". Not from Winterpeg or anything, just long-ago research resulting from my personal insistence that the guy from Propagandhi wouldn't be making spelling mistakes
- ycombinete 4y ago
  Oh my. I've loved this song for over a decade now, and not once did I see that it wasn't Virtue! Thanks to you for the correction.

jt2190 4y ago

Here’s a 2013 picture and a little writeup about P-22, the “great cat”: How this photo turned a reclusive mountain lion into a Hollywood icon (2022) https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/p22-hollywood-cougar-steve-winter-photography https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/p22-holly...

ChrisMarshallNY 4y ago

This is my favorite cat: https://discworld.fandom.com/wiki/Greebo https://discworld.fandom.com/wiki/Greebo He probably could have kicked P-22's butt.