The Jimi Hendrix Expericence 'Box Set 8 Song Sampler'

I know that I’ve written about my cat named Monroe, right?

She’s nineteen years old and she’s sweet enough to put David Crosby into a diabetic coma. I named her after Ralph Monroe, the female carpenter character on my favorite television show of all time… Green Acres.

I’ve toyed with the idea of putting her down since I sometimes hear her standing out in the driveway making moaning cat noises. For some reason, all older cats do that. I guess it’s the cat versions of old folk phrases like “my back is killing me”, “it hurts to get up in the morning”, and “back in my day…”. I’m thinking that the aches and pains can be a little too much for her at times so she starts her bellowing.

But an old friend of mine convinced me to let Miss Mo leave on her own terms.

Yes… Monroe has all kinds of different names that she answers to… “Monroe”, “Miss Mo”, “Hey Gurl! (think thick southern accent, she loves that one), and “Mo Mo”.

For the past week, I’ve been rethinking the idea of putting her to sleep. Monroe is going blind. Oh, she’s pretty good at fooling you because I have an idea that she can only see lights and shadows. I just didn’t know for sure until I opened the door for her to come inside the other morning. She almost ran straight into my leg. She would have if it weren’t for her whiskers giving her a clue that there was an obstacle right in front of her face.

Miss Mo has been a great cat even though she can be one big pain in the ass. She loves being petted while sitting on your lap, but it will cost you. She digs her claws into you with every stroke. She doesn’t care if you’re wearing 2 layers of sweats or if she’s digging into bare flesh. Petting and loving on Mo Mo can be very painful. Every time I settle in with her on my lap, I make sure to put a quilt between her claws and my legs.

Whenever you pick up Monroe, she has always taken it as one of the most dangerous things she has ever been involved with. She digs her claws into whatever you’re picking her up from and when she gives up holding onto that… She will dig those claws into you. She’s like a painful static cling.

She hasn’t been eating dry food as of late. She will, but I’m sensing that she doesn’t like it as much anymore because of her age. Maybe it hurts her teeth… So I’m switching her to soft canned food from here on out. I’m going to spoil her old little ass until she either has to take that “last ride” or go out on her terms.

I honestly don’t expect her to make it past this winter. We shall see.