I have some sad news to share. Sassy passed away about two weeks ago. She was mine and my parents' cat since 1996, so I grew up with her. She was probably 16 years old when she died, which is pretty old for a cat. My parents couldn't find her in the house for a few days and thought she might have gotten out of the house somehow. They were afraid she was outside in the rain. She actually went blind about two months ago and wouldn't have known how to get around outside. But they finally found her three days later, already gone behind a shelf unit, poor thing. At least she died in the comfort of her own home, where she was safe. I'm still pretty upset and heartbroken, but I'm glad she had a good life. I thought I would share my memories of her, as well as some pictures I have of her and the video we posted a few months ago.

I remember when we started seeing her outside and how thin she looked. She didn't look like a wild cat though. She actually looked like she'd possibly been abandoned by her previous owners. Maybe they moved away and couldn't take her with them. Either way, we kept seeing her outside and my sister and I finally convinced Mom and Dad to take her in. I remember she was pretty hesitant to come into the house, but we finally got her inside.

I'd always wanted a cat, so I was really happy to have Sassy. I used to "wheelbarrow" her around the house by picking up her hind legs and pushing her forward, making her use her front legs to walk. After we had her for a few years, she was afraid to be outside anymore, so I would also take her outside across the street and sit her on the ground just to watch her run back into the house. I also put her on her back, which most cats don't like, but she never seemed to mind that much.

I remember when we used to go on long vacations and we'd come back and she'd be in the entry way to greet us, meowing for us to pet her.

The only time I specifically remember her scratching me was when she was sitting on my lap and she heard something, so she jumped off my legs and dug her claw into my thigh. I still have the scar on my leg from it.

When she was younger she used to run really fast around the house and you could hear her claws picking at the carpet. When we had her cat house inside, we'd put catnip on the top where she always sat and she'd go crazy sniffing the catnip. She was such a funny cat. It was really funny when we put a cat-sized Santa hat on her and she'd try to shake her head to get it off. It didn't come off that easily because it had an elastic band to keep it on her head.

But my favorite memories of her are when she used to play with ice cubes. We would get ice from the ice maker in the fridge door and she'd come running into the kitchen with big eyes, wondering where the ice was. I'd show her a piece and she'd watch it intently as I put it on the edge of the bar. She'd sit there staring at it and would finally stand on her hind legs and bat at it with her paw. It usually took her a few times of standing up and batting at it before she could knock it on the floor. Once it was on the floor, she'd bat it around and chase it as it slid all over the kitchen floor. She was such a silly cat.

She was a good kitty and I loved hugging and petting her so much. She was a pretty kitty too, I liked her grey stripes and short hair. I'm so glad we decided to take her in. We gave her a good home for the vast majority of her life. The last few times we've gone back to Texas, I made a point to see Sassy and pet her for a few minutes, since I wasn't sure how much longer she'd be with us. The last time I saw her was when we went back for Lauren's wedding in July. I'm sure if I was still in my parents house, it would be even harder for me to let go. I would miss seeing her and petting her obviously, but I'd also miss just hearing her collar jingle or her meow. I'll never forget my first cat, Sassy. I really miss her.

Click the picture below to see other pictures of her.



Here is the only video I took of her.

Sassy on Vimeo.