Popeye's mom Tyke found us one November afternoon at the town dump. The year was 1990. Just a kitten herself, she climbed into the bed of Jimmy's truck and wouldn't leave. A few minutes later a solid gray kitten with a funny walk joined her tabby friend. I was never much of a cat lover, but leaving these two was not an option. We had Buddy at home. He was a large lab/collie mix who loved people, but not animals. They were young cats, I figured I could find them good homes. I did. Mine. The vet estimated both cats were under six months. He had seen two more someone else rescued which he thought might be related. We talked about having both cats spayed when they were old enough. Having never owned a cat before, I had no idea how young they could get pregnant. I was scheduled for surgery and a ten day hospitalization in February. I dropped off two cats at my aunt's house. I brought home six. There were four kittens in the litter. Tyke picked the best time to have the kittens. My cousin had just completed med school. There were two females and two males. Jim and I would shut off the T.V. and spend hours watching the kittens play. They were so entertaining. Eventually, we realized we would have to find homes for the young ones. Buddy and six cats would be overwhelming. I sat outside a friend's car wash on a warm Saturday afternoon. Me, Buddy and four kittens. Surprisingly, all went within 4 hours. I was heartbroken, we had really bonded with the two males. Popeye, the runt had developed a very bad eye infection. He couldn't open one eye, but he was the most adorable thing. Jim spend days sleeping on the couch holding Popeye. He made a complete recovery. Three of the kittens were black and brown tabby's like Mama Tyke, Cooper, the fourth was a very handsome grey and white tabby. He looked very much like his "Aunt" Shadow. Anyway, the family who took both males lived behind the car wash. The wife and two sons had brought the kittens home only to find her husband was allergic. I was so happy my boys would be returning home. Life in an 800 square foot lake house with five animals can be interesting. We had given the cats the spare room. They were somewhat destructive, plus, Buddy the dog was still not completely accepting of his new housemates. The cats had free roam of the house in the early morning and after work. It was not enough. We would put four kitty's in the room at night and wake up to an empty room. They would shred the window screens and roam the neighborhood. We replaced the screens a few times. Then we conceded. We would let them go outside. Shadow, the grey cat with the funny walk had the habit of climbing things and getting stuck. Jim would routinely have to climb the roof and rescue her. Terrified of heights, I once managed to convince myself to rescue her in frigid January weather. Unfortunately, we lost Shadow on the road about a year after we found her. Tim, a cop who lived around the corner, had seen her get hit. He woke me up around 10:00 pm. We took her to the vet, but lost her on the exam table. Surprisingly, Buddy the dog took it hard. In the short time we had Shadow, Buddy relented and agreeably became her pillow. I had a training class at work the day after we lost Shadow. It took me an hour (pushing the speed limit) round trip to come home at lunch time and give Buddy a hug. Yes, I think I border on insane. Buddy became ill November of 1996. He collapsed under a tree in the yard late at night. I carried him into the house. We took him to the vet the next day. He hung on for a week. His blood work indicated he was sick, but the vet said he had seen dogs live with worse blood work. The vet thought he might be homesick and suggested I take him home. Friday, on my lunch break, I picked Buddy up at the vets. I baracaded him in the kitchen to contain accidents to one room. His favorite place to rest was by the front door. When I came home from work I couldn't move the door, I knew Buddy was at peace. The stubborn old dog could barely walk, but pushed chairs and a tray out of his way to get to his favorite spot. The day Buddy died, we met Red. We had taken Buddy to the vet to have him creamated. While there, the vet suggested we see the puppies in the kennel. Jim and I reluctantly agreed. All muts, there were two pointer mixes and one rust colored wrinkled pup. Before we had left the house, Jim was adamantly against getting another dog. He spent the whole weekend trying to pick a name for the rust colored pup. Red came home Monday night. Red is a handful. At six years old today, he is still a perpetual puppy. He has a herding instict and chases anything that moves. He has a four foot vertical leap. Has the bark of a vicious dog, but really is a big moosh face. A few months after we brought home Red, his brother returned to the kennel. Scrappy is home now too. He and Red fight like all brothers do. They also share a bed. Somewhere in this insanity, our first human child was born. Two dogs, three cats who do not like the two dogs and an infant. Overwhelmed, the cats decided to become permanent outdoor residents. They moved into our crawl space. Popeye, Cooper and Tyke became fixtures in the neighborhood. They had regular stops for meals at several homes. I'd set up kitty buffet every day in the driveway. Tyke would follow me when I walked the dogs. All three would chase my car up the road. Many times I had to leave the car in the middle of the road, while removing a cat from the driveway. Summer nights I would sit on the porch hanging with the cats. Tyke was aloof but friendly when she wanted to be. She was not fond of her children, but she would tolerate them. I leaned on Tyke to get me through Buddy's illness. She had a soft side too. She was found dead under a neighbor's deck last year. Nobody knows for sure what happend to her. She had no signs of physical trauma. She was a great friend. I miss her. Cooper is the great hunter. A real feline, his trick is the high head. Cooper still likes to leave presents. I feel honored...hahaha. Popeye, everyone knows Popeye. Popeye seems more like a dog than a cat. Very small, he still looked like a kitten. He was not shy and made friends easily. There were the middle school girls who Popeye greeted on the way home from school. The neighbor next door who left him food and enjoyed his company during coffe and a smoke. There's the Amanda across the street, known to the cats as "Milk". I'm learning there were others who Popeye followed home and spent time with. Jim and I called him the neighborhood ambassador. He even befriended the neighborhood racoon. On Saturday Feb. 15th, 2003 at around 7 pm, Amanda found Popeye bleeding on the road. Thanks to her compassion and kindness, I was given the opportunity to attempt to save Popeye. The vet thought Popeye had a good chance for survival. He would lose an eye, and his broken jaw would heal. I asked to see Popeye before I made my decision. He was crying loudly. When I held him and stroked his back, he purred. I made the decision to go for the surgery. Jim saw him the next day. Popeye recognized his voice. He got up almost saying "Hey dad, take me with you". Because of his weakend state, Popeye's surgery didn't start until 3am on Monday. They almost lost him on the operating table. He came out of surgery early Monday morning on oxygen. He eventually could breathe on his own, but his body temperature and blood levels were unstable. Amanda and I visited him on Tuesday. Although heavily sedated, he responded to us. I started planning to bring him home. He made it this far, what could go wrong now? He took a turn for the worse on Wednesday around 1:30 pm. Because I was out, I didn't find out until 2:30. I rushed to the vets office to say my goodbye. He was gone when I got there. Even with all the trauma, he still looked like my cute little boy. I know this is long winded, but it's been very theraputic. I have kept my only kitty, Cooper inside since Popeye's accident. He is begging to go out. I'm spending alot of time with him and the dogs. Surprisingly, they seem to be getting along beter than ever. My five year-old son said it best, "Popeye's mom will take care of him now". Sometimes children understand more than we give them credit for. Shadow,Buddy,Tyke and Popeye...Thanks for the wonderful memories. Mom