The King on His Throne

We have what are quite possibly the most spoiled pets in the world. My in-laws, sadly for them, have no grandchildren. That would be because Gordon (an only child) and I (an only child) have no offspring. The line dies with us. So my in-laws, who brought Gordon up in a petless household (well, there was a budgie, who stiffed it while being boarded, and some fish that used to engage in suicide leaps onto the carpeting; apparently aquarium hoods were a new concept in the 70s because I had similar issues with MY fish), have thrown themselves into the roles of grandparents to our cats and dogs. They can't remember the 15-year-old leopard gecko's name, so she tends to get left out! :) (Her name is Kartini, and she is named after this woman. Kartini the gecko was a wedding gift to us, and the hubacious one and I honeymooned in southeast Asia, including Indonesia.)

Upon visiting this weekend, my in-laws handed over two puffy pillows for the cats and a piggy-bank for all the hairy kids, with over THIRTY BUCKS inside for the pets to spend on what they wish! I had to hide the bank, because Gordon can and will steal from his own fur-children. just as he relentlessly pilfers from my wallet. ("That'll be $13.59, ma'am." "Uhhh... I apparently only have 12 cents in my wallet. Do you take debit or credit cards?" "No, ma'am.")

And here is King Alex, tripod-kitty extraordinaire, enjoying his new butt-cossetting throne:


This time last year, he had recently been rescued from a leg-hold trap by some caring individual, had his injured, maggot-infested leg amputated, and was awaiting adoption at the Cornwall SPCA. Things seem to be going a whole lot better for him this year!

"What dost thou want, scum-sucking serf?"

My in-laws have been very sweet about loving up the pets. I know they would have adored grandchildren, but among other things, my own personal plumbing was not up to the task. So they have graciously thrown themselves into pampering the furry monsters, all of whom are rescues. And I think that's lovely!