I can taste again but I'm still not very hungry

I put my cat Ernie to sleep last night, as if being sick this week wasn't bad enough. They don't make a lot of cats like Ernie. He was the most affectionate, mild-mannered cat you could ever imagine.

Three years ago he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Fortunately the doctor was a quack and it was just asthma. They still tried to kill him with steroids but after 7 days in 3 different hospitals in 2 different states, he pulled through.



A couple of months later, I had my son but I made it a point to never push Ernie aside, as often happens to a pet after a baby is born. In the three years they shared together, my son never treated Ernie badly. Only once, in that age when babies like to painfully grab things did Ernie ever scratch Nick. They couldn't have gotten along any better.



I'm actually not nearly as sad as I'd thought I'd be. I think because it was obvious it was time for him to go and because I had those three extra years with him. I lost his buddy, Mookie, just a month before my son was born and that hit me hard because it really came out of left field.



Now, I'm catless for the first time in almost 17 years. Feels weird.

Rest in peace, sweet Ernest.



I'll be back with recipes on Monday.