Sad news on the homefront...  Jasper the kitty is doing pretty poorly and it appears as though we may have to...  you know.
 
So, I thought I would jot some thoughts about Jasper.  Honestly speaking, I have always been a bit jealous of him.  Scott has always completely adored him and has always told him 10,000 times a day how pretty he is and how much he loves him.  Wakes Jasper from a nap to snuggle with him, never leaves the room without telling him what a good boy he is.  Frankly, I'm overly needy in the verbal affection department, so all of this sounded pretty good to me.  I always said I wanted to come back to life as Jasper so I too could be worshipped in my lifetime.
 
But the thing is that Jasper loved Scott just as much and just as unequivocably as Scott loved him.  Came running when Scott called him, brought out his toys when he felt like playing and in general behaved much more like a dog than a cat.  We always told people he was in fact part dog.  And as jealous as I could get over their relationship, it always made me feel really good knowing that I had a man in my life that was capable of such love and devotion to such a small animal.  How can any man be bad that is reduced to babble when talking about his cat?? 
 
Jasper and I had an understanding.  I understood that with me -- he was a cat and with Scott, he was a cat/dog.  He might come when I called him, or he might take a message.  Sometimes he would let himself be seated in my lap and would even pretend to enjoy being petted.  He would act as though he didn't miss me when I was gone, but would secretly hang out with me from time to time.  I knew where I was in the pecking order and frankly, I was just glad to get in a little kitty time.
 
It's not the same without him around.  He had the most beautiful face of any cat you've ever seen -- very long and unusual.  And his meow was always like he was trying to use a stage whisper to get your attention.  Scott said when he was really upset that when he yelled it sounded like "daio" but I never heard him get upset.  He was too easy going.  In a lot of ways, he's like the cat version of Scott.  Loyal to a fault, loving and tender, and totally has your back if you need it.
 
Farewell to our Jasper -- if there's a Heaven, I hope we all can hang out again.