Travel Tips

As a very young newly wed and brand new teacher, I was thrilled when my husband Allan brought home a yellow/orange tabby kitten
whom we named "Ishy". I had always had dogs growing up, and because my Dad was allergic to cats, I could never have one.
So, this was a special cat. The picture shows Ishy all grown up...Allan and I taught for two years and then left to go back to school, so we had to give Ishy away. It was a very sad day in my life. However, the people we gave him to lived on a really nice farm, and he had lots of friends there.

Once we finished our Master's Degrees, we moved to the Western Suburbs of Chicago and got two cats. One was a grey/black tabby that we named Ernie after our favorite Chicago Cub player, Ernie Banks. Then we got a darling Himalayan cat that we called "Leo" after the Chicago Cub's mangager, Leo Durocher. They were great companions to each other. After our daughter Jill was born, they became her "buddies".

When Jill was a small child, we lived in Hinsdale, Illinois, and a stray, fully grown grey and white short-haired cat came to our house. We fed him, and he was ours. Jill got to name him, and, of course, she named him "Jack" after one of her favorite nursery rhymes, "Jack and Jill". Jack was an awesome cat...he put up with anything (as seen in the picture). Once Jill was playing Hospitable with him, and she was the doctor; he was the patient. She "operated on his ear" with her children's sissors! He had a "V" cut out of his ear and did not make a sound.
After we brought a new cat into the house and moved to a new place, Jack disappeared and never came back...our loss, indeed.

The cat who came just before Jack left did not last long. She (Ebony) was a pure black Angora cat, really beautiful. We have no pictures of her. She was killed by a car; very sad for all of us.
So, to fill the void, Jill and I went to the Pet Store and picked out these two adorable long-haired black cats. One was supposed to be mine, and one was hers. They were the two cutest little fellows. Chelsey was the dominant cat who "talked" a good deal. His docile brother, Ambrosia, could only whisper a "Meow".

These were the sweetest cats. Although they looked alike, they sure were different. Chelsey was the "king pin" and Ambrosia (whom we dubbed as "Boo Boo Kitty") was an affectionate lover boy.
Once Jill graduated from high school and went off to college, her cat Chelsey ran away and never returned. Guess what? Ambrosia suddenly found his voice and "talked"!
Ambrosia lived a few more years and then had to be put to sleep because of a serious, untreatable disease. There's nothing so tragic as having to say good-bye to your long-time pet.

After Ambrosia died, Allan and I decided not to have anymore pets.
Jill was living in Chicago, and she got Butkus (named after Chicago Bear's Butkus). When she moved, her new place did not allow pets, so Mom and Pop took Butkus in. Now, here was one Devil of a cat...he would lie in wait until you walked by and then attack your leg. Butkus was only with us about a year. He jumped our 7-foot fence and was killed by an automobile.

After about a year, Allan and I were in a pet store to buy bird seed, and Allan saw these adorable Himalayan kittens. The sweetest, friendly one attached herself to Allan, and Allan fell in love. We went home, and later that night, he said, "I just have to have that little girl kitten." He phoned the pet shop, drove back, and brought her home. He named her MY GAL SAL, but we call her Sally. She's a real beauty.
Very quiet, very obedient, and very independent. She loves to go outside on a leash. She's the only cat we've had who took to the leash and will take walks. She is so fluffy that each year we have to give her a "lion" cut so the mats can be cut out. She looks great as a lioness.

Jill went back to school and got a Minature Dutch Bunny named "Mister". Once she graduated, guess who got Mister Rabbit? Yes, Mom and Pop.
I had to slowly introduce the cat and rabbit to each other. I started outside in the secret, fenced-in garden. Then Mister got to come inside once he was potty trained. The cat and rabbit shared the litter box. Mister was so affectionate, and he loved to snuggle with Sally. She, on the other hand, tolerated him. However, as you see from the photographs, she stays pretty close to him, and in the bottom picture, she is cleaning him!
We moved again, and this house had too many stairs for "Mister" so my friend who always took care of the pets when we traveled, adopted Mister. Boy, did he have the life. She and her husband spoiled him so much.
Jill would frequently go to their home to visit him. This last year Mister died. It is so sad because he was a wonderful, loving pet.
Sally is still with us. She celebrated her 10th birthday this last July 4 (her real birthday). She will always be Allan's "My Gal Sal"!