orson 1995-2009

heidi meets orson at the animal shelter
Originally uploaded by stutefish

The day after Cardiff died in January I knew I wanted another cat, so I headed off to the Berkeley shelter with Lori. "Max" had already caught my eye on the Virtual Pet Adoptions Web site, and once I saw his sad face peering out at me from his cage with one of his ears all tattered my heart was similarly caught. I changed his name to Orson, and as soon as I brought him home he was already showing signs of perking up by exploring his new environs with abandon, purring deeply at the slightest provocation, and pushing Richter away with a disaffected paw when the other cat tried to make friends. Orson was very sure of himself right up until the very end. He was going to be the one to decide when he wanted to be on your lap, what he wanted to eat. But he was also there to greet me at the door every day when I came home from work, meowing his chirpy meow, until he was too weak from cancer to stand anymore. I'm so grateful I had the last six short months with him, and that I could give him sunbeams to sleep in and windows to look out of as happier alternatives to that cold shelter cage. You can see a small photoset of the sweet kitty right here.