the life he lived

I look forward to the end-of-year Lives They Lived issue of The Times Magazine. I save my copies and refer to them occasionally (that sounds way too Andy Rooney). The issue doesn’t try to be a definitive document of the lives and deaths of the most important or influential. Instead, it’s largely devoted to an idiosyncratic bunch who are often following their own passions and curiosities. There are typically some big names, but there are also many minor characters.

This year, in the spirit of lives well lived, I offer a remembrance and special obituary - for our Bob, who died on October 2 at the age of 15. His was a fascinating personality: at once dark, sweet, neurotic, apathetic, playful, diabolical. The vet would invariably ask about Bob's behavior at home, given his surprise Ninjutsu moves while undergoing examination or light-sedation medical procedure at the clinic; Bob was typically greeted at the vet's office by his "special team." But on his own turf, at home, he was a total love...mostly...except for the period (~ '94-'98) when Bob had a rivalry with my husband that left one of them scratched and bloodied from knees down after many a middle-of-the-night scuffle.

During the last few years of his life, Bobby was on a strict medication regimen (not unlike others of us!) and required daily care. We followed the prescribed course with a good bit of discipline. But we believe that it was our daughter's giftedness with animals and profound love for her darling (and quite fabulous) chat noir that kept him going - and likely extended his happy life by months, and maybe years. She doted on him. And he adored her right back.


Bob. We miss you something awful.







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