Remembering Krista

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daftcat75

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For those who have their angel kitty cremains, did the box have some kind of seal when you brought it home? I have yet to open the box because it doesn’t just come open. And I’m afraid to force it and break it. Or worse: have an ash explosion. I tried a couple times to gently open it.

I’ve given up on opening it. Now I’m treating it like Schrodingers Box. Krista is both inside it. And not inside it. And there’s no saying which is true as long as the box remains closed. I actually find a lot of comfort in that. 👍😻
 

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I have two wooden boxes (Teddy and Mayflower) and one metal (Max), none of them sealed. They open easily. Inside each is a small plastic bag with their cremains. I wonder why they appear to have sealed yours. Can you call and ask?

I always intended to “do something” with their ashes, but I could never decide what that “something” was. And I’m not sure I could leave them somewhere anyway. Teddy and Mayf crossed the Bridge many, many years ago, and they’ve just continued to go with me as I’ve moved numerous times around the country. I’m really glad they’re still with me. Max crossed only three years ago, and I’ve moved once since then. He’s on my husband’s desk in the study, next to one of our favorite pics of him.
:angel3::angel3::angel3:
 
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daftcat75

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Gracie's (RIP - 2004) and Tawny's (RIP -1992) cremains are in wooden boxes, sealed with some sort of plastic seal. I am not opening them up.
Okay. So I’m not imagining that.

I don’t want to open it anymore. If I did, that would confirm that the bag of ashes is my last physical connection with her. And that’s not what I want. For me, the uncertainty of what’s in the box is tempered with the closest I come to faith. The faith that what’s in there doesn’t really matter. And as long as I don’t know, I can imagine it any way I like.
 

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Headlamp!

I’ve been trying for a week to remember to tell you something. I got myself a headlamp that also has a red light setting a couple years ago so that I could navigate my apartment at night without blinding cat or disturbing my night vision. Handsfree, phone free, no fuss. Or cleaning the cat box in the middle of the night. Or like this morning, to provide extra handsfree light for projects like rewiring the entertainment center and “server room” (the three small form factor servers that used to be on top of the bench instead of inside it.) I have a ton of home improvement projects ahead of me to improve home for me. But also to get out ahead of the next cat. Like moving cables and servers out of mischief’s reach. 😼

But yes. The flash light is a great use for the back tap.

And yes. It is still a great comfort to have Krista’s voice two or three taps away. I could almost always illicit a trill from her by simply touching her. I called it her trill button. And I knew I was going to miss that so much. So it’s beautiful in a Dark Mirror kind of way that I can reach across the void and still press that trill button. 😻 It’s also surprising and amusing when I sometimes accidentally trigger it by setting down the phone. 😹😻
I know! When I play Tarifa videos for Elvis and Baby Su, they always perk their ears up. *That's our Tar meowin' in there!* I wonder sometimes if it's positive or not for me to play her for them. I want them to hear her and think that she's not right here but that she's close by. That's how I think of her. It comforts me and I want them to be comforted. Elvis still patrols the living room looking for her. Their appetites are off because she's not here, I'm sure.
Thanks for the flashlight news. My ex was a private pilot and I used to buy him red-and-white flashlights because you need the red in low-light situations in the cockpit. I should get one for here.
I guess we're lucky that nothing ever really gets bothered in USB Forest. I have a wastebasket in front of the power strip and file cabinets in front of all the cables that feed into it. Tarifa has gotten back there a few times (she was the only one small enough) but she never did any harm and it didn't phase her at all. I'd chase her out of there.
 
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daftcat75

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November 24, 2018:
My cat sitter caught this gem. This was the last time I traveled without her. I skipped going home for Thanksgiving last year because of Krista’s health. 😔💩😿 And I’ll be skipping it this year because of everyone’s health. 🙊😷
390CB655-C18C-4810-9A9D-6140F594808E.jpeg
 

tarasgirl06

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November 24, 2018:
My cat sitter caught this gem. This was the last time I traveled without her. I skipped going home for Thanksgiving last year because of Krista’s health. 😔💩😿 And I’ll be skipping it this year because of everyone’s health. 🙊😷
View attachment 359965
What a gorgeous, prosperous-looking, healthy-looking Krista! Very cute pic, too.
Wishing you had that Krista with you now.:fallsmiley::yeah:
 
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daftcat75

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What a gorgeous, prosperous-looking, healthy-looking Krista! Very cute pic, too.
Wishing you had that Krista with you now.:fallsmiley::yeah:
That Krista was just a month away from a broken tooth, liver and gallbladder inflammation, and a ruptured eardrum--the hospital stay that introduced you all to her.

What I wouldn't give for the year before that Krista again. Except that I would have still been taking her for granted. Can't have the deep bond we developed without the perspective. Can't get the perspective without the adversity.

To be purrfectly honest, as much as I miss her, I am grateful for having this time to heal, restore, and grow. Until I started getting into cooking, apartment projects, non-work hacking (fixing up my smarthome setup), and work projects again, I had barely realized how much I had given up for her. Her needs became so large, they squeezed all other oxygen from the room--like a balloon that kept inflating until I was pushed to the walls. I had just enough energy and spirit to keep up with her input and output issues and not much left for anything else. I was really worried about my career this year. Even after switching jobs, my head just wasn't in it. Until recently. Krista passing was a horrible thing. But out of the wreckage, I'm finding myself again. I have an opportunity to build back better that I'm not going to squander rushing into the next cat.

All that said, her Dodger Stadium cutout comes home this weekend. I don't know where to put it. I imagine it's cheap and tacky. Great for a stadium during a pandemic. Not so much for the home decor I'm going for. It may be too much for me to see a life-sized or larger than life cardboard cutout of her all the time. I have a walk-in closet in the office. As bad as I feel about relegating her to a closet, I might hang it up in there. Better than burying it in the closet.

And it's not like the closet was totally foreign to her.
IMG_0007.jpg
 

tarasgirl06

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That Krista was just a month away from a broken tooth, liver and gallbladder inflammation, and a ruptured eardrum--the hospital stay that introduced you all to her.

What I wouldn't give for the year before that Krista again. Except that I would have still been taking her for granted. Can't have the deep bond we developed without the perspective. Can't get the perspective without the adversity.

To be purrfectly honest, as much as I miss her, I am grateful for having this time to heal, restore, and grow. Until I started getting into cooking, apartment projects, non-work hacking (fixing up my smarthome setup), and work projects again, I had barely realized how much I had given up for her. Her needs became so large, they squeezed all other oxygen from the room--like a balloon that kept inflating until I was pushed to the walls. I had just enough energy and spirit to keep up with her input and output issues and not much left for anything else. I was really worried about my career this year. Even after switching jobs, my head just wasn't in it. Until recently. Krista passing was a horrible thing. But out of the wreckage, I'm finding myself again. I have an opportunity to build back better that I'm not going to squander rushing into the next cat.

All that said, her Dodger Stadium cutout comes home this weekend. I don't know where to put it. I imagine it's cheap and tacky. Great for a stadium during a pandemic. Not so much for the home decor I'm going for. It may be too much for me to see a life-sized or larger than life cardboard cutout of her all the time. I have a walk-in closet in the office. As bad as I feel about relegating her to a closet, I might hang it up in there. Better than burying it in the closet.

And it's not like the closet was totally foreign to her.
View attachment 359968
I understand completely. But just in my case, I need all that cat involvement. That's just me, though.
Yeah! I'd shield it in a plastic bag, knot the bag at the top and suspend from a hanger. That way it's protected. OR, if it was me, I'd put it in my office itself, which is the room I reserve for anime, cartoon characters, a few dolls, stuffies and other colorful and creative items that don't really "go" in other rooms. That way I could enjoy it in an appropriate-for-me space.
What a big-eyed girl! :hearthrob: :kneading::hearthrob::heartshape:
 
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daftcat75

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November 29, 2018:
337CBD66-2BD0-4B95-BAF4-44BA10D3CA01.jpeg 73A25F9D-DDA3-4C2F-B042-97A95D72F16F.jpeg 9DC0F0E3-A11E-49D1-AA69-BDAD583B36B5.jpeg
This was with her new catnip piggie toy that the Thanksgiving weekend cat sitter left for her. That’s a good cat sitter. She not only did a fantastic job and Krista loved her but she left a little goodie bag for Krista. I look forward to working with her again someday.
 
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tarasgirl06

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November 29, 2018:
View attachment 360459View attachment 360460View attachment 360461
This was with her new catnip piggie toy that the Thanksgiving weekend cat sitter left for her. That’s a good cat sitter. She not only did a fantastic job and Krista loved her but she left a little goodie bag for Krista. I look forward to working with her again someday.
*AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!* The best cat sitters truly love cats, and well, who in their right mind wouldn't fall in love with THAT FACE???
Yes, I hope you will work with her again someday. :yeah:
 
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daftcat75

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I saw OC yesterday by the mailboxes. He was without a collar again. He looked well fed and his coat was in great shape. But he also appeared to be still intact. I gave him some scritches. But when I saw those furry balls back there, "nope! I'm not getting involved."

I just finished a week of cleaning cat pee out of the front room. I haven't even begun in the office. Though admittedly, any and all peeing in the office was done after I had a Bissell (or three!) There isn't nearly as much to do in the office as there was in the front room. Still. OC reminded me of a valuable lesson last time: if you don't want to get involved, then don't get involved!

He started to follow me back to my apartment. But he got distracted by a squirrel and I took my leave of him. I'm hoping that I saw him on the tail end of a fugitive streak and that he is hopefully once more home and collared like he should be.
 
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