I feel for you regarding the passing of Ginny. I cared for my mother during her last year of life. It was hard to let her go, but she was ready and eager to pass. She was not depressed or in pain. I guess it may be considered a bad thing, but I do not grieve for her passing.
Even more, I feel for you and Tigger regarding Tigger. I know all about that. I grieve – deeply grieve for the passing of my dear friends, and loving companions, Kilo, Taz, Callie and Blue Eyes. All were biologically cats, but were people as much as any human can be. All had a strong sense of empathy and compassion. More about them later…
Some back story. This is the subject of my deeply life affecting PTSD. I can’t discuss this in any lengthy detail (even though I really want to) without breaking down. Thus, I am writing this in little bits at a time to be posted later.
Very early in my childhood, I realized that being a person was not species dependent. I learned that “animals” were not mindless robots. I became resentful for the common distinction between humans and animals. I resented this because I knew that humans were animals. I knew there are many different species and humans are just one of the many. Also early in life, I became friends with most of the animals within my range, including a bed of giant harvester red ants. I would sit four hours at their nest and watch how they worked. They are clearly not at all mindless. I made friends with a mud dauber wasp. I would follow her around on her runs. I learned her route and would sometimes give her a lift on my finger. I became fiends with all the farm animals including horses being trained for racing. I was too young to understand the role of “farm animal”. Eventually, while still young, I experienced what that role was. Thus my lifelong devastatingly traumatic PTSD. I’ll stop here on that subject.
I also realized early in life that most humans are chronically self-glorifying narcissists. Humans like to believe that they are superior to all other animals – sufficient to think in differentiating terms as humans verses animals. They like to believe that only humans can think. Humans believe that technology is proof of intelligence and that humans are the standard example of intelligence. It is believed that since other animals are not like humans then they are not intelligent. The flaw in that logic is that a one-of of anything is not a standard. It is also a fact that humans are also not like other animals. (Note the math: if A equals B, then B must also equal A).
I have never believed that technology was any indicator of intelligence. I believe that is just something humans do. However, it is a very, very small percentage of the human population that actually invents technology. The bulk of the human species use technology with absolutely no clue how it works. Even our cat, Mr. BJ loves to use my wife’s smart phone. Observing humans on the street, in the cities, etc., (in the human wild) does not appear any more intelligent as any other animal I have watched. There are other animals that by brain size and neuron count per body mass should be more intelligent than humans. I believe they actually are, they just don’t need technology for a quality life. I find humans intelligence is inhibited by chronic greed, evidence by our pressing forward consuming, stripping and polluting beyond the Earth’s capacity. Humans ability to infest the planet is also not an indicator of intelligence. Most animals with abundant resources will infest their environment. But, many animals that we consider inferior seem understanding of their environment. The squirrels living in our back yard busy themselves planting trees that will benefit their future generations. Human interest in benefiting their future generations is almost always limited to money and wealth – never environment. Sorry... enough of that rant.
My wife has always wanted to have cats. We have had five cats since we were were married. Two at a time. This has been very hard for me. Their lifespans are too short and I become deeply attached to them – my best friends. All of them are rescue cats. The first was Kilo, Then Taz, Then Callie, Blue-Eyes and now, the last remaining is Mr. BJ. The passing of each one has been devastating for me and it never goes away. Each “new” cat was introduced younger than the current cat who would adopt the younger as a parent, except for Blue Eyes and Mr. BJ who were best of buddies. Each cat was very unique in personality, but they all loved each other. And each was devastated with the passing of their friend or parent. Unlike the common stereotypes about cats, they were all very personable and social with us. The stereotypes are because they are afraid of strangers. But then, so am I. I would love to tell all about them and their individual personalities, but I breakdown attempting to do so. My wife and I have agreed to no more cats after Mr. BJ. The stacks and stacks of devastation is just too much for me.
Sorry for such an overdone dissertation. I meant to just express that I feel for your loss and Tigger’s health and got carried away. I’m afraid I get like this during depression season.
Even more, I feel for you and Tigger regarding Tigger. I know all about that. I grieve – deeply grieve for the passing of my dear friends, and loving companions, Kilo, Taz, Callie and Blue Eyes. All were biologically cats, but were people as much as any human can be. All had a strong sense of empathy and compassion. More about them later…
Some back story. This is the subject of my deeply life affecting PTSD. I can’t discuss this in any lengthy detail (even though I really want to) without breaking down. Thus, I am writing this in little bits at a time to be posted later.
Very early in my childhood, I realized that being a person was not species dependent. I learned that “animals” were not mindless robots. I became resentful for the common distinction between humans and animals. I resented this because I knew that humans were animals. I knew there are many different species and humans are just one of the many. Also early in life, I became friends with most of the animals within my range, including a bed of giant harvester red ants. I would sit four hours at their nest and watch how they worked. They are clearly not at all mindless. I made friends with a mud dauber wasp. I would follow her around on her runs. I learned her route and would sometimes give her a lift on my finger. I became fiends with all the farm animals including horses being trained for racing. I was too young to understand the role of “farm animal”. Eventually, while still young, I experienced what that role was. Thus my lifelong devastatingly traumatic PTSD. I’ll stop here on that subject.
I also realized early in life that most humans are chronically self-glorifying narcissists. Humans like to believe that they are superior to all other animals – sufficient to think in differentiating terms as humans verses animals. They like to believe that only humans can think. Humans believe that technology is proof of intelligence and that humans are the standard example of intelligence. It is believed that since other animals are not like humans then they are not intelligent. The flaw in that logic is that a one-of of anything is not a standard. It is also a fact that humans are also not like other animals. (Note the math: if A equals B, then B must also equal A).
I have never believed that technology was any indicator of intelligence. I believe that is just something humans do. However, it is a very, very small percentage of the human population that actually invents technology. The bulk of the human species use technology with absolutely no clue how it works. Even our cat, Mr. BJ loves to use my wife’s smart phone. Observing humans on the street, in the cities, etc., (in the human wild) does not appear any more intelligent as any other animal I have watched. There are other animals that by brain size and neuron count per body mass should be more intelligent than humans. I believe they actually are, they just don’t need technology for a quality life. I find humans intelligence is inhibited by chronic greed, evidence by our pressing forward consuming, stripping and polluting beyond the Earth’s capacity. Humans ability to infest the planet is also not an indicator of intelligence. Most animals with abundant resources will infest their environment. But, many animals that we consider inferior seem understanding of their environment. The squirrels living in our back yard busy themselves planting trees that will benefit their future generations. Human interest in benefiting their future generations is almost always limited to money and wealth – never environment. Sorry... enough of that rant.
My wife has always wanted to have cats. We have had five cats since we were were married. Two at a time. This has been very hard for me. Their lifespans are too short and I become deeply attached to them – my best friends. All of them are rescue cats. The first was Kilo, Then Taz, Then Callie, Blue-Eyes and now, the last remaining is Mr. BJ. The passing of each one has been devastating for me and it never goes away. Each “new” cat was introduced younger than the current cat who would adopt the younger as a parent, except for Blue Eyes and Mr. BJ who were best of buddies. Each cat was very unique in personality, but they all loved each other. And each was devastated with the passing of their friend or parent. Unlike the common stereotypes about cats, they were all very personable and social with us. The stereotypes are because they are afraid of strangers. But then, so am I. I would love to tell all about them and their individual personalities, but I breakdown attempting to do so. My wife and I have agreed to no more cats after Mr. BJ. The stacks and stacks of devastation is just too much for me.
Sorry for such an overdone dissertation. I meant to just express that I feel for your loss and Tigger’s health and got carried away. I’m afraid I get like this during depression season.
