All is quiet.
A brisk ratatattat on the door rouses Thumbs, who stumbles from her hammock to peer through the spyhole.
"Yes?"
"Pickup for Her Grace."
"What??"
"Pickup for Her Grace and Sleekness the Duchess of Yowl."
Thumbs opens the door to find a uniformed man with a rolling trolley like those used by hotel bellmen. His name patch reads "Picu Andropov."
"What are you picking up?"
He consults a work order.
"Two steamer trunks, misc. cans of tuna, and an aquarium."
Thumbs is befuddled, so she simply opens the door and stands aside.
Clunking and huffing ensues. Water splashing. Muffled curses.
Soon Picu returns pushing the cart, now laden with two steamer trunks, a tuna-scented Saks shopping
bag, and an aquarium full of fish looking seasick as their watery home is now suitable for surfing.
"I left a copy of the work order on your dining room table."
"Ok, thanks."
Picu clanks and splashes all the way to the elevator.
Thumbs checks the work order.
Sure enough, two steamer trunks, cans of tuna and an aquarium. Pickup address
Chez Yowl, but the destination ....is blank?
What the dogfearing heck is this?
A note at the bottom:
Dear Thumbs,
I have gone on ahead to my next life.
I took the tuna. I left the cannoli.
 |
| Her Grace, Katy, the Duchess of Yowl |
I knew she could not live forever,
I hoped I would be wrong.
88 comments:
I'm so sorry for your loss, Janet. It's hard to lose a furry friend. My best wishes to you and the Duchess's family. (((hugs)))
I'm so sorry to here this. Sending positive thoughts and prayers to you and the Duchess's family.
Aw, it seems as if we've all lost a friend. I'm so sorry.
Oh, Janet, I'm so very sorry.
I have nothing to say to make this easier, but I do wish for you some peace.
Oh no! Hang in there.
What a lovely tribute to a beautiful girl. I am sorry to hear this but know she had a wonderful life with all her servants. Thank you for making us laugh all these years, Duchess!
What a wonderful tribute to a unique and much adored duchess. I'm in tears.
I'm so very sorry for anyone who's life the duchess touched. Prayers to you and to her family as well.
So sorry, Janet. But, oh, the memories.
Oh no! So sad to hear this, Janet. I have so enjoyed hearing about the Duchess and her adventures. Kia kaha.
This is why I don’t have pets anymore. It’s hard enough when friends have pets that order a change in domicile. It wrecks me for years when they are my companions. Ref. Mr. Bojangles and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.
Wait! She had her own fish tank?? Holy Cat! A true Duchess indeed.
Been there many times. I am sorry
This is a heartbreaking but beautiful tribute. I'm so sorry for your loss.
Oh, I'm so sorry. The Duchess has brought smiles to so many, and I know she meant the world to you. Virtual hugs.
Aw, so sorry to hear this. On top of everything else, too.
Be well.
My heart breaks for you and your loss, Janet. Thank you for sharing The Dutchess with us so we could love her, too.
I bet one of those steamer trunks was full of memories of you.
So sorry for your loss, and Her Grace's owner's loss as well. It's so tough losing a beloved furry companion, and doubly so in times such as these.
Goodness knows Her Grace will have many at her beck and call at her new destination.
Thank you for sharing her with us over the years. She will be missed.
I'm so sorry. We'll open a can of fish in her honor.
I burst out into full sobs when I got to end of this. Your DOY posts cheered ms through so much in the last five years. I will miss her.
Oh, Janet. I'm so sorry. I know how hard it is to lose furry friends. They leave so many empty spaces.
It really says something about my current mental state that I'm sitting here crying like I'm reliving the grief over every pet I've ever lost. :shaky breath:
Much gratitude to you, and to Her Grace's other family, for sharing her pics and stories here. Thank you especially for this beautiful post (the snort-worthy "Picu Andropov" notwithstanding), for giving us this image of Her Grace off on yet one more adventure. I can see the tear stains around the edges. I know, generally, One Does Not Hug The Shark, but I'm sending virtual hugs your way just the same.
Deepest, deepest condolences, Janet. The Duchess had style through the very end.
I'm sorry for your loss. She will be missed <3
From all of us at Proud Spirit to everyone who served Her Grace, we send our love. To the DoY, thanks for the laughs.
I must say, I've always had a cat crush on that diminutive graize version of the pink panther. My heart breaks for you.
All the love and devotion she gave you, and you gave her, she stored, it transfers to them and their journey, they won't be alone...the little brats will wait for you and continue to torment you when you catch up to them.
Be strong, stay well, and know TDOY is waiting, napping, and scheming. ( but mostly napping.)
We have 5 cats on our farm, you are welcome to visit.
Cheers fro Naiya, Moxie, Roux, Barney ( the barn cat) and Elle.
So, so sad. I wish they could live forever.
The Duchess was a fortunate cat to have been loved by so many! Your DOY posts always made me smile. She will be missed.
Oh, damn.
I can't even.
(Goes and weeps in the corner because this sort of loss is all too familiar.)
I hope you can feel us sitting with you on your green couch. And I hope the generosity of spirit and encouragement you’ve shown your readers comes back to you one hundred-fold.
So now I fly my freak flag. (Lurkiness is my default mode, but desperate times and all that). I offer you this:
Something I’ve always suspected: cats and dogs and horses (and squirrels and maybe birds) come back. They come back. And the turn-around time may be pretty fast. (I know what you’re thinking…there’s no explaining the squirrel part. Just something I know.) I have looked into the eyes of a dog more than once and said to myself, “Simon?”
Even if I’m wrong, you knew Katy, and she knew you, so there’s really no such thing as the Duchess gone.
My heart is broken. Rest in luxury, Duchess.
Heartbroken for you. I'm so sorry. She will live on in your stories.
Very, very sorry for your loss. You made all of us feel as if we knew her too, so she will live on in our memories as well, most of all in your moving and perfect tribute. Keeping a very good thought for you.
I'm so sorry. I picture Her Grace lighting out for the territory on a well-appointed yacht.
Farewell your grace, the Duchess of Yowl, we never, ever, have enough time together.
Im pretty sure at this moment she's wondering when her jazz funeral parade & six course seafood bruncheon including tuna ice cream will begin, that 22 ft handcarved marble memorial in her likeness of Goddess Bastet will be erected, and how long all of us followers will be wearing black from head to toe including face veils with dangling toy mice. Your entertaining stories of the glorious Duchess of Yowl brought her to life for all of us, even though we never had the honor of meeting her in person. Oh JR, its never easy to say goodbye to someone that special! (((hugstoyou,thumbs!)))
Dear me. I'm a little bit speechless. I only just checked in to the blog and saw 33 comments. For a Sunday..., I thought 'something' must have happened.
I did not expect THIS.
Sigh! Because, yes, I too loved her stories here.
:( :( :(
So very sorry, Janet. What a loss. A treasured Duchess.
So very sad to learn this. Thank you for sharing her with us — and know that we share your sorrow now. Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half sorrow. We’ll treasure your memories of the DOY.
What a wonderful tribute to a life well lived.
I'm quite sure the Duchess is enjoying her next life and has already selected a being to fetch delicacies for her.
Our pets never stay on this earth long enough, do they? And when they move on, they inevitably break our hearts.
Please accept my condolences, Janet. I know Katy will be missed.
“We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than our own live within a fragile circle, easily and often breached. Unable to accept its awful gaps, we still would have it no other way. We cherish memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the necessary plan." Irving Townsend.
I’ve always loved this short paragraph. We adopt animals and they enrich our lives in ways most of us can not even begin to fathom. Their lives are often so much shorter than our own and saying goodbye is always so painful. Yet, we do it again and again because the idea of being without a dog or a cat is unimaginable. Someplace along the way, we learn that the price of love and companionship is all too often sorrow.
I’m so sorry for the loss of Her Royal Yowlness. I know she will be greatly missed.
I am so, so sorry for your loss. I adored reading about Her Grace. I hope her can of tuna is forever opened in the next life.
So sorry for your loss, Thumbs. Thank you for sharing the Duchess with us over the years. My condolences to all those who were at her service.
Sorry for the loss. Moving tribute.
Farewell, dear Duchess. You will be sorely missed. I hope that wherever you are, the tuna is plentiful and the worshipers devoted, though I fear none will ever surpass Thumbs. I'm so sorry for your loss, Janet.
Goodnight, sweet Duchess.
We will all miss you.
Oh, Janet. I am so very, very sorry to hear this.
Katy, Your Grace . . . we will miss you more than words can say. You brightened so many of our mornings with your inimitable cattitude. You were loved and will be long remembered. We are all richer for the stories about you that Thumbs so generously shared with us, and we are all saddened that this is the last one.
I'll be hugging my little Jenny-Cat a little closer tonight (when she awakens from her fifth catnap of the day) in memory of Her Grace and Sleekness, Katy, Duchess of Yowl.
So very sorry for your loss, Janet. Sending you all the love and e-hugs in the world. She was (and always will be) magnificent.
Very, very sorry to hear this! Having gone through a pet loss, I understand how painful it is. Sending condolences.
Oh no, no, no, no no no nono. Oh Janet. How heartbreaking. Her Grace and Sleekness was one of a kind - and one of the good kinds. Funny. Haughty. Imperious. Yowlaciously entertaining.
If you ever doubt you're a writer, Janet, return (when you can bear to) and read the Duchess's collection - storytelling at its finest. Even in grief, Picu Andropov. Thank you for letting us know, in your and Her inimitable style. Thank you, and will weep with you a while.
Oh, Janet...
I do hope that her next Thumbs realize what a special person she is. I also hope that you can cherish her in your memories.
I have too many memories of pets gone by. The hardest were those that were inherited.
As we stand on the threshold of this Brave New World, it seems like horrid timing. So many things falling, we need something to lift us, not add on to the list we already don't want to look at.
Sorry, but know she will be missed by more than just you.If we could add some love for the ferals that pass without any knowing their stories.
No! This must be a mistake. 😢😢😢
Oh no! This is such sad news. You must be heartbroken. I loved hearing about the Duchess and her royal antics. Such a beautiful cat and so full of personality. Even though I never met her, I will miss her very much.
Janet, I'm so sorry for your loss. Clearly, The Duchess lived a wonderful life with lots of love. Thank you for sharing her wonderfulness with us.
The Duchess has always been a bright spot on this blog. Thank you for sharing her adventures with all of us. She will be remembered.
I'll miss my fellow Duchess and her adventures. May she be enjoying her next life.
Janet, thinking about you. I've tried off and on today to read the comments but haven't made it through - two or three in I start crying.
Lots of us will miss the Duchess dearly.
Sending good thoughts tonight.
That your stories of Her Grace can make someone who never met her tear up says something. My heart goes out to you and those in her regular home. I know the DoY will be making her presence known in the land of cat nip she now resides.
Oh wow. I just saw this on Twitter. I'm so sorry for your loss.
I’m so sorry. This is heartbreaking.
I am so sorry. May God’s mind-boggling peace and impossible joy wrap and fill you at this time. And may I offer a hug?
Her Grace brought a lot of joy even to strangers on the net. She may well be the only cat I never met whom I remember fondly.
I'm so sorry you lost your beautiful friend.
Oh no! It's 3:30 am, I got mum back in bed and when I saw a DOY post, I knew it would cheer me up before going back to bed, or so I thought. I'm so sorry for your loss. You shared her with us that she became an integral part of the reef, our own little mascot. She will be sorely missed. My thoughts are with you, Janet.
Oh! Janet. I'm so sorry :(
I'm so sorry Janet. May Her Grace's next life be full of tuna and attentive servants.
I'm so sorry. As a cat person, I so enjoyed every story you shared of her. A true loss, especially at an already difficult time. I wish you the healing and all the fond memories you need to help with the pain.
This makes me so sad. I'm very sorry for your loss.
So sorry for your loss, Janet. I still think often of my beautiful black cat, Bill. In fact, she watches me as I type, two photos pinned to my cork board. One she's curled "asleep," her eyes just open enough to say, "what do you want?" (The shelter folks thought she was a he, so her name of Bill became part of her collection of oddities.) In the other photo, she looks up expectantly, for it was time for lap sleeping and lots of petting.
Well. This sucks beyond measure.
Hugs and love from me, Milo Cat, and Lucy Cat. We get it.
I'm so sorry. Hang in there.
What a tribute, what a life your Duchess, Katy, had. I am so very sorry for your loss. We loved her through you and your stories of her. My paws in prayer for you, Janet.
I am so, so sorry. There's really nothing else to say. I can't believe that even in your grief, you found a way to make it semi-funny. Picu Andropov is something I would have been too busy crying to think of.
I read the whole post, and it didn't really sink in until I'd re-read it and was halfway through the comments section. Now I'm tearing up and will be full-out blubbering soon so I'd better get this done first.
I once read that no one is ever truly gone until they are forgotten (okay, more than once). If that's true, then some part of the Duchess will live forever. Bless her royal heart.
My condolences and my sympathies on your loss. I’ve been there. :(
So very sorry. We'll all miss her rollicking tales, but none so much as Thumbs. :(
This is not the only reason I am weeping, now, I suspect.
My heart seized when I read the bottom of the post. I am so sorry for your loss.
I haven't commented much on this site, but have to now. Though there really are no words to make you feel better.
My sincerest condolences to you. May all the memories of THE DUCHESS make you smile as your posts about her always made me!
This may be trite, but sincere: It's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. I'm sorry for you loss.
I am so sad about the Duchess of Yowl. Her distant cousins live at my home. There is no greater honor than to be owned by a cat. Take care my friend. Grief is a terrible journey that will end.
I'm so very sorry to hear about the Duchess of Yowl. Her stories were always entertaining and made me laugh.
The two of you shared friendship, loyalty and love. For the DoY, it was a life time. For you, it was what likely felt like a few short years. Thank you for sharing her with us.
I'm so sorry, Janet. Pets are family. There is never a good time to lose a loved one, but on top of everything else happening right now it's especially hard.
Tears running down my face, having been there too many times.
Janet, I am so sorry. I just read this and I'm sitting here crying. We all loved her so much because you made her so real for us.
Oh my gosh! I am so sorry I missed this, I was sick this weekend!
Many condolences!
Oh, no! I'm so sorry
Oh, Janet. I am so sorry to hear this. We have lost one of our most treasured members. Godspeed.
Janet, I'm so sorry for your loss. Your love for her was inspiring. My cat, Penny, and I send our deepest condolences.
I'm coming to this very late but I just wanted to say how sorry I am, Janet. Your epitaph for Her Grace is so perfect and devastating and I'm sitting here bawling my eyes out, having lost my own duchess, Pringle, six weeks ago. She was seventeen, but she was in great health and it was unexpected. I feel like all my pores are wide open and just soaking up every bit of sadness and grief in the world, which would be rough at any time but right now... well, right now is a hard time. I loved her so much, as I know you loved Katy. I hope you're OK.
I'm so sorry for your loss. My heart breaks for you, evidenced by a dozen soggy crumpled up tissues on the floor. For the whole story, I thought that she was just going on a charming adventure, testing her independence.
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