Friday, May 28, 2010

oh, lois

I've been meaning to post this for awhile, but have had such a busy couple of months that my blog is in a rather sorry state of neglect. As of April 5, Lois the cat is no longer with us and I think a blog post in her honor is the least I can do.

I never had a pet before Lois. I don't think Shadow the cat counts, really, since he only lived with us for a couple of months before mysteriously leaving with my dad one day in a haze of scratched skin and broken ceiling panels. Mourn him we did not. But sweet, sweet Lois we do. Anyone who met her can attest that she was a very, very special creature. Will I miss the cat hair everywhere or cleaning the carpet after her rapidly increasing accidents or the funky odor I can't seem to get out of the corner of the room? No. Will I miss dropping a fat stack of cash at the vet's each month for unexpected medical bills and special gluten-free cat food? No. Will I miss not being able to have friends over because of their allergies? No. But I will miss the way she would jump up on the bed to snuggle at my feet every night and the way she would purposefully bump her head on the coffee table and the way she would always sit on the one sheet of paper I would need and the way she would come get me for bed about 10pm every night and the way she would wait patiently at the screen door for me to let her out so we could sit together in the sun.

More than anything, I learned from Lois that language is way overrated (funny thing to write in a blog, eh?). Here was this little being who loved me and who I loved yet we could never speak to each other (though I still catch myself saying goodbye to her when I leave the house). She knew me and I knew her without using any words. She comforted me and I comforted her without any talking. By having a relationship without any language, I learned to listen and to be patient and to not always need to analyze everything to death. I am a better person because of a cat. If that makes me a cat lady, so be it. She will be missed.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

post 100 - better be a good one!

And I think it is. Meet Evan.


He is my boyfriend and I adore him. We met last semester when I was his TA - he asked me on a date the minute after class ended and kept patiently asking me out until I finally wised up in mid-March. After officially dating for a couple of months, the vast majority of our pictures are with funny faces or dressed absurdly, which I think bodes well for us. This was taken a few weekends ago when we drove back home with Abbey for the ovarian cancer walk. We jammed more into a 20-hour trip than should be possible: sing-a-long birthday party with Kevin, Yvonne, Dad, and Karen at a piano bar (where Abbey stole the show in a breakout egg shaker performance)... 3 mile walk through Raccoon River Valley Park with Hendersons, Abbases (including Grandma Shirley), Ed & Su and my junior high school friend Mandy... brunch at Hy-Vee with the fam, Adam, Linda, Julia, Yvonne, and her mom... a tour of the city including Sec Taylor stadium and South of Grand... a stop by Karen's parents' house... a nap... a round of card games... and a grilled quesadilla dinner whipped up by a proud papa. Needless to say, he was a hit with everyone and a great sport about the whirlwind Des Moines experience.

He just left today for a 10-week stint in Uganda with a day layover in Dubai. He's on his way to student teach in Kasese, a town of about 50,000 people on the border of the DRC just south of Queen Victoria National Park. He is a great writer (funny, compassionate, insightful... all great qualities, yes?) and I recommend you follow along with his adventures at his blog:

http://peaceloveandpancakes.blogspot.com/

I actually have a plane ticket there myself to visit him after my summer class in London finishes. The more I think about it, the crazier it seems to go, but I will jump at any excuse for international travel. I also wanted to see for myself the people and places that will no doubt be a big part of his life. And I already miss him even though his flight left about 12 minutes ago.