Suz's funeral

I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it, as I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small, loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.

"Takayuki" wrote in message
...
I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged
around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would
talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and
had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be
difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it, as
I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small, loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.

It sounds as though it was just what you and the others needed. That's the
important thing about a funeral or memorial service - that it be comforting
and helpful to the mourners.

Joy

On 9/21/2012 7:43 PM, Takayuki wrote:
I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it, as I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small, loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.


I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

On Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:18:49 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

On 9/21/2012 7:43 PM, Takayuki wrote:
I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it, as I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small, loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.


I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

It was nice that you could go and I hope Spicey finds a new home that
suits her . I worry about my cats and even read the book on "When Pets
Outlive You". I need to decide who is going to get the cats and how
to finalize it. It's tough to foist a cat or three on someone. And it
may go up to four again fairly soon.

On Mon, 24 Sep 2012 10:30:08 -0400, dgk wrote:

On Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:18:49 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

It was nice that you could go and I hope Spicey finds a new home that
suits her . I worry about my cats and even read the book on "When Pets
Outlive You". I need to decide who is going to get the cats and how
to finalize it. It's tough to foist a cat or three on someone. And it
may go up to four again fairly soon.

I wish Suz had left some written instructions! But this came on fairly
suddenly, and apparently one of the first things that Suz lost when she got
hospitalized was the ability to speak in a voice that could be heard. I'm
sure she was trying to say something about Spicey. She loved her cat.

"dgk" wrote in message ...

On Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:18:49 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

On 9/21/2012 7:43 PM, Takayuki wrote:
I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes
were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged
around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and
we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of
the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting
that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz
had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would
talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and
had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be
difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be
in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it, as
I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small, loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.


I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

It was nice that you could go and I hope Spicey finds a new home that
suits her . I worry about my cats and even read the book on "When Pets
Outlive You". I need to decide who is going to get the cats and how
to finalize it. It's tough to foist a cat or three on someone. And it
may go up to four again fairly soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
I made arrangements several years ago for someone to care for my cats if
anything were to happen to me. Then, I put it in my will and also left a
small bequest for their care. Many people could not make financial
arrangements, but everyone should make care arrangements.

MaryL

On Tue, 25 Sep 2012 00:50:08 -0500, "MaryL"
wrote:



"dgk" wrote in message ...

On Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:18:49 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

On 9/21/2012 7:43 PM, Takayuki wrote:
I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes
were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged
around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and
we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of
the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting
that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz
had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would
talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and
had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be
difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be
in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it, as
I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small, loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.


I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

It was nice that you could go and I hope Spicey finds a new home that
suits her . I worry about my cats and even read the book on "When Pets
Outlive You". I need to decide who is going to get the cats and how
to finalize it. It's tough to foist a cat or three on someone. And it
may go up to four again fairly soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
I made arrangements several years ago for someone to care for my cats if
anything were to happen to me. Then, I put it in my will and also left a
small bequest for their care. Many people could not make financial
arrangements, but everyone should make care arrangements.

MaryL

The financial part is pretty easy. And I'm sure there are some
sanctuaries that would work, but after that one in Florida it would be
a last resort. I need to find someone in my dwindiling group of
friends/family/acquaintances who would be willing to handle them.

The key is that there is an executor separate from the caretaker. That
way you can be sure that the cats are treated ok.

"dgk" wrote in message ...

On Tue, 25 Sep 2012 00:50:08 -0500, "MaryL"
wrote:



"dgk" wrote in message ...

On Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:18:49 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

On 9/21/2012 7:43 PM, Takayuki wrote:
I was at Suz's funeral today. It was beautiful and intimate. Her ashes
were
in a very pretty blue urn adorned with birds in flight, all arranged
around
an exquisite bouquet. There were about twelve of us at the service, and
we
arranged our seats in a semicircle and chatted and reminisced. Most of
the
attendees were Suz's current and former aides, but it was interesting
that
they generally didn't know each other very well, because one might be a
Sunday aide and another a Wednesday aide, and so on.

Suz's mother was there, and I told her how we met on RPCA, and how Suz
had
many, many online friends who all gave their condolences. She was very
appreciative of that, and told me of the many online friends Suz would
talk
about.

Another significant topic of discussions was Spicey. Everyone there
loved
Spicey - and everyone also had stories of being attacked by Spicey, and
had
the scars to prove it. There was a consensus that Spicey would be
difficult
to rehome. No one in the group was willing or able to take in Spicey,
except for me, but it was agreed that an ideal home for Spicey would be
in
a household with no other pets. I was to be the backup in case no other
home could be found.

I had thought briefly about bringing a camera, but decided against it,
as
I
was afraid it would be tacky to take pictures at a funeral. But the
wonderful and funny thing was that at the end of the services, everyone,
including Suz's mom, were taking out their smartphones, snapping
pictures
of Suz's urn and floral boquets before it was to be taken away.

About half of us went to dinner together, which was nice. We were able
to
dry our eyes a bit and continue our reminisces about our small,
loveable,
slightly cranky friend, and her small, loveable, slightly cranky cat.


I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

It was nice that you could go and I hope Spicey finds a new home that
suits her . I worry about my cats and even read the book on "When Pets
Outlive You". I need to decide who is going to get the cats and how
to finalize it. It's tough to foist a cat or three on someone. And it
may go up to four again fairly soon.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
I made arrangements several years ago for someone to care for my cats if
anything were to happen to me. Then, I put it in my will and also left a
small bequest for their care. Many people could not make financial
arrangements, but everyone should make care arrangements.

MaryL

The financial part is pretty easy. And I'm sure there are some
sanctuaries that would work, but after that one in Florida it would be
a last resort. I need to find someone in my dwindiling group of
friends/family/acquaintances who would be willing to handle them.

The key is that there is an executor separate from the caretaker. That
way you can be sure that the cats are treated ok.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
I would only use a friend or family. That's what I did for Holly and
Duffy--had a long discussion, received permission and listed the caretaker
in my will. I would never make arrangements to place them in a sanctuary
unless I had completely run out of friends who would agree to take care of
them. ( Fortunately, I am not facing that situation. You do need a
friend/family member that you consider to be absolutely reliable and who
will agree to conditions that are important to you (in my case - indoors
only, no declawing, veterinary care, etc.).

MaryL


MaryL

"Takayuki" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 24 Sep 2012 10:30:08 -0400, dgk wrote:

On Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:18:49 -0400, Cheryl
wrote:

I had no idea that she'd passed away. I'm glad you could go to the
funeral. My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones. My
condolences. I hope Spicy gets a nice new home soon.

It was nice that you could go and I hope Spicey finds a new home that
suits her . I worry about my cats and even read the book on "When Pets
Outlive You". I need to decide who is going to get the cats and how
to finalize it. It's tough to foist a cat or three on someone. And it
may go up to four again fairly soon.

I wish Suz had left some written instructions! But this came on fairly
suddenly, and apparently one of the first things that Suz lost when she
got
hospitalized was the ability to speak in a voice that could be heard. I'm
sure she was trying to say something about Spicey. She loved her cat.

I thought you said Joanne had agreed to take Spicey? Has she changed her
mind? It's not easy to take on on a fiesty scratchy cat, I know, but surely
Joanne spent so much time with Suz that Spicey knew her best of all and
would have the best chance of settling with her.
I hope Spicey finds someone who is prepared to take her on - where is she at
the moment?

Tweed

On Tue, 25 Sep 2012 20:57:38 +0100, "Christina Websell"
wrote:
"Takayuki" wrote in message
.. .
I wish Suz had left some written instructions! But this came on fairly
suddenly, and apparently one of the first things that Suz lost when she
got
hospitalized was the ability to speak in a voice that could be heard. I'm
sure she was trying to say something about Spicey. She loved her cat.

I thought you said Joanne had agreed to take Spicey? Has she changed her
mind? It's not easy to take on on a fiesty scratchy cat, I know, but surely
Joanne spent so much time with Suz that Spicey knew her best of all and
would have the best chance of settling with her.
I hope Spicey finds someone who is prepared to take her on - where is she at
the moment?

It's a long story. It turned out that her friend Christine didn't know
Joanne's contact information, or even her last name. So I started calling
and visiting the local senior services center and such, checking if anyone
had Suz in their client database, or an employee named Joanne.

One person at least knew what town she was from, so I dug up an old phone
book. I went through it and suggested a couple of potential matches. I
called the one that was the most probable, but the number of out of
service, and I went to the address, but a different family was living
there. I finally found that Joanne had moved a few towns away.

When I talked to her and told her that Sue had died (she was shocked, of
course), and that Suz wanted her to have Spicey, Joanne said that first,
Spicey hated her, and second, she'd moved in with her asthmatic FIL. So
we're back to the drawing board.

Suz's apartment's lease runs until the end of the month, and Spicey is
still there. Three of her former aides have been going over to take care of
her. Yesterday, Spicey hissed at Suz's mom.