Memories 6: Eleanor and Theodore

   I grew up an AVID dog lover. My bible was "The World Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds Book." I put my poor family through 6, yes! count them: SIX! dogs during my childhood. I was incredibly passionate about training and raising Samantha, Nellie, Daisy, Buster, Max, and Toby and would compete in dog shows. Truth be told: I loved animals more than humans. The problem? I lacked commitment. I gave away every one of my six dogs (for various reasons... In my defense, my family is a little overwhelming for small dogs. Our Maltese, Daisy started loosing her hair she was so stressed.)

   My love for pets and animals was strictly limited to dogs until Paul and I had been married 4 months and our apartment would only allow cats. One date night, I innocently suggested we stop by PetSmart on our way to a movie. Paul (poor guy) and I went in and got completely manipulated by system. "Buy one kitten, get one free". Seriously?! I mean wouldn't any decent human being want to save a poor, helpless kitten from potential euthanasia? I looked at Paul and that's all it took. His famous last words? "Fine, but you CAN NOT give these pets away. These are ours for life." And that's how Eleanor and Theodore became Lanphiers.

      

   Oh life, it's a funny thing and about two years after rescuing Eleanor and Theodore we discovered we were probably going to be moving to Denver (more on our future plans in another post). Even though we loved our kitties, it was evident that our lives are not stable enough to care for any living creature. We are wild and free newlyweds! We cannot be tied down to the state of Nebraska by a pair of cats. I explained this to Paul... how we can not move accross the country with cats who act more like dogs. They are incredibly neurotic and do not respond well to change.

   Maybe the reason I'm blogging this is I need to get it off my chest: It was at that moment I realized I have morphed into my mother. Like her, animals are more a nuisance than a blessing. Like her, I hated having to clean up after their fur and poop. I didn't care about them. My mom has MANY MANY amazing qualities, but being a pet lover is just not one of them. I feel like I should confess to the world: I am no longer an animal lover. This is HORRIBLE! Isn't there some study out about how people who don't love animals are more likely to commit acts of violence and are generally less caring, committed members of society?! THAT'S NOW ME! It didn't used to be, but now it is. 

   So I found Eleanor and Theodore a new home. Don't judge me. I found them such a phenomenal new mother to adopt them that you would probably even consider sending your children to live with this lady.. jk. But seriously, she is a retiree who is home all day long and loves cats as much as I used to love dogs in my childhood. She surely isn't as materialistic as I am and will not mind Eleanor and Theodore knocking hundreds of dollars in home decor items off her mantel... but then again she didn't seem like the kind of lady who is into home decor. Yes, the cats are in a better place... a virtual cat heaven. 

   The pictures below are the last pictures we have with our cats. So long guys. Sorry you are just a statistic, a mere number in my long list of pets.