1959 - 1999 Cats We Have Known ...............................

1959 Persil. (there on the right with a 21 year-old blogger)
Well, Persil began it all by adopting Glennys and I at our first post-marriage dwelling at Quebec(!) Road in Norwich. Then an all black kitten, he was to stay with us until we went to Singapore. Norwich cats are reputed to grow large and I suppose Persil was a big cat. The name? Persil was/is a major, British washing detergent so it seemed (to me) a good name for a black cat.
When time came to head for Singapore, we prevailed on Mother-in-Law Rena to take care of him. So Persil became a Blackpool resident - for the rest of his long life.

1961-3 Onion. (on right being held by Mitch)
He was our first Singapore cat. A tabby and white cat if that's an adequate descrition. A mere stump of a tail. All Singapore cats seemed to have deformed tails. Said to derive from the fact that the Chinese think that only perfect beings are admitted to heaven. Believing that only cats and humans can be perfect they break cats' tails denying them perfection lest they deprive a human their place in heaven. Just a story I heard, but Singapore cats did all seem to have 'weird' tails.
Onion was a lovely cat, we must have had him over two years beforehe died, poisoned we think.
Gherkin and Cauliflower followed (I was going through the Cross and Blackwell 'Picalilli' mustard pickle label for names) Chunky too, there may have been a couple of others but I remember them not.
Picture to the right of Mitch with Onion in Singapore ......

1967 Morticia
A brief catless lull after Singapore until we moved into The Mill. A dog called Lurch (worth a tale of his own), a cat named Morticia and Thing, the hampster. We were into the "Adam's Family" by then. Sad comment, but apart from the name I remember Morticia not at all.

1968 ...... Fred, Minnie and Bunny.
Fred (upper right)came to us from the janitor's wife in the apartment in Lachine, Montreal. He was black with white bits. He survived five changes of residence and was a favourite cat. Said to belong to the CIA! Why else would he wear a microphone on his collar disguised to look like a flea repellant attachment? Got badly injured when hiding under a car hood for warmth while we lived in Dollard des Ormeaux. (Not an uncommon event in Canadian winters it seems). He died in Enfield. Nova Scotia, struck by a passing car. Another year and he'd have got to our remote Shuby' house and doubtless have lived forever. Mitch found the body and we buried him in the back yard in Enfield. Sadly missed was Fred.

Minnie ... our first female cat, a tabby. Acquired in Montreal soon after Fred. I think she had to be put down, reasons forgotten.

Bunnie (far right) succeeded Minnie. Aquired from...? I think she came in the wicker cat basket that outlived most of the cats. Bunny had almost no tail and back legs that seemed longer than the front. I think she was a proper Manx cat. Sort of tabby above and white below. A sweet disposition, she was to live long with us, getting all the way to Shubenacadie.

1976? .... Jean Guy & Horatio ... Jean Guy was a big fluffy ginger male. Dumped from a car at the top of our road in Enfield. He went on to be a Shuby cat too. Why Jean Guy? Who knows?
Horatio, (above centre)named obviously because he only had one eye. His fate? I think he made it to Shuby. We seem to have a large cat population in the 70s.

1980? .... Meski and Brandy. Male and female Tonkinese. We took them in response to an ad. in the paper by a Halifax couple called Chan who were moving to Australia.
...Brandy, a tiny, beautiful, aloof female. One of those faster than light creatures that are the scourge of the bird world. She was a hard cat to really love - she lived too much on her terms to be owned by mere humans. She lost an eye and only just survived. The eyeball likely punctured by something like a dried grass stalk according to the vet.
A vivid memory of Brandy was duriing a visit to the vet. She (not the vet) fired a rectal thermometer half way acrss the surgery ... Brandy wasn't to be messed with. We had her put down when she was blinded in the other eye. Sadly, no picture yet found of Brandy
... Meski. (below left) Ah Meski. Said by Mrs. Chan to be named after a Morrocan oasis! Well, why not? I could reminisce about Meski forever. My all-time favourite cat! Memories: Meski dragging a garter snake, its tail in his mouth, all the way up our driveway, his feet tripping over the snake's body as he walked. Meski's crossed eyes and his head, endlessly scanning from left to right and back, both a result of serious injuries long before we got him. He was incredibly vocal, if you called him he'd answer, perhaps from the treeline and keep on yowling till you found each other. He loved to be held, he'd lie on your chest with a paw on either side of you neck and purr like a bus engine. Having old Meski put down was one of the saddest days of my life. Yes I cried. Still have his voice on tape.

1999? Eddie (on the right) .... Vivian's black tom cat. A car got him. Not really my cat of course, but black cat to black cat, Persil to Eddie, 1959-1999, 40 years ....... many cats, many years.

A strange footnote .... I met Vivian while Glennys was visiting the Chans (Meski and Brand's ex owners) in Perth, Australia.