Brindis&Paolo

Michelangelo Antonioni and my fate
by Brindis

Alastair my only dog friend has made use of his authority and kept me alive. He rejected Silvia’s and the Vet calls to put me to sleep. And he is great: gives me my medicine –nor that I appreciate it, I must bite him unfortunately as he insists in giving me a yellow powder that has on me the effect of a certain A drug class which name starts with C – and feeds me, and moves me around when my legs are weak or tired. He also washes me and keeps and eye that I am comfortable and well taken care of.
Please don’t misunderstand me: Silvia and Marlene are also great, but Silvia has a very practical side on her, and she worries that I might get scare on my last day if I keep falling on the floor. Marlene calls me now my grandpa cat, and if that sounds sweet I am worried as it makes me think in my own unknown grandchildren.
But Alastair woof care is special: he thinks that as an intelligent being I deserve to be alive as long as possible as the world needs more of us together here and now.
And he doesn’t look very far to identify me with his (and mine) heroe: Mr Antonioni who is still around even if unable to talk or use the whole of his body since a stoke (the same than me) some years ago. This event did not stop him to make “Beyond the Clouds” a masterpiece of cinema. And I am still writing in the Feline Observer that is my legacy to the feline journalist world, even with Paolo’s interventions (Note of Ed: articles).
So I keep going, until I can. I will leave to the Catrix and the Supreme Cat when I am ready no before.
Until next time,

I'm afraid that my condition is not improving very much. Alastair insists on giving me (rather foul-tasting) medicines but even though I am a great believer in Science and Progress, I may be too old for them to make a difference. The main problem is that I can't control my legs properly, and even after plotting a route in my mind it is a tremendous effort to go in a straight line. The vet says that it is my central nervous system and there is little prospect of an improvement. I suppose that it will soon be time to "rest" as they say (as though cats were supposed to do anything else!) but at the moment I still want to wait a little bit longer. I can still recognise the important things - food, toilet and my servants - and don't want to give up as some cats do. The important thing is not to panic and to take everything calmly, although dealing with Marlene's tantrums is asking a little too much!

Waiting time
by Paolo

The child Marlene went away this weekend to see her friend Lydia in Sussex. So my masters Silvia and Alastair took Master Brindis to the vet. Master Brindis has not been well at all, he seems not to be able to identify the floor he is walking on and keeps going in circles and circles. He stills eats and goes to the loo alone, but it is me the one that keeps him clean and tidy.
The news are no good. The vet recommended to consider the idea of making him go to sleep. She thinks he wont survive for more than one or two weeks. Both my masters were devastated. The love Master Brindis dearly and cannot imagine their lifes without him. So both were hesitant about deciding something on the spot.
Master Brindis is back home, but he is only a shadow of his old self. Most of the time he sleeps and eats and goes to the loo. The humans have been very nice to him. They cuddle him, wash him and take care that he doesnt suffer or gets bothered. But I dont think they can do that forever.
When the human child came back from her holiday, she was told that Master Brindis might die. And what a tandrum. She was so upset. I always thought that she liked me more.
So we are all very sad. But I guess we need to come to terms with the fact that Master Brindis had a very long and good life. And that we all have good memories of him and his intelligence.
Even me can see that the reason the Masters are so sad is that one of them is dying and they cannot do anything about it.
In the meantime the word dog has been mentioned again in the house. I dread the future.
Until next time,

This article was published today in the BBC website
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/3817305.stm

Tale of a not-so-lucky black cat

Inspectors broke the concrete floor to rescue the cat
A cat has been rescued from a building site in Newquay where it was trapped under the concrete floor of a partially constructed building.
The RSPCA was called on Wednesday when visiting Health and Safety inspectors heard the cat mewing.
It is not clear how long the cat had been trapped, but the animal charity says he is quite thin and dehydrated.
Charles Gilby, from the Health and Safety Executive, said the concrete floor was laid two months ago.
He's probably used up more than one of his nine lives
Inspectors from the executive have been carrying out construction site visits across the county in a bid to reduce the number of fatal and serious injuries in the industry.
It was on one of these routine visits that two inspectors heard the cat.
Mr Gilby said at first they could not place where the noise was coming from.
He said: "This floor had been down for two months, but they managed to break open the floor and a black cat came out.
"It was certainly the worse for wear, but not actually harmed."
Animal collection officer Felicity Cross believed the cat, which is about 10-years-old, had tried to get out.
She said: "His claws are really scuffed and broken, which suggests he's been scrabbling around trying to find a way out.
"Generally, he's very subdued. But I've been down to the site in Pentire Avenue and, if he's been there for a while, he's probably used up more than one of his nine lives."
Ms Cross said although the cat was probably local, it was possible it came to the site in one of the building construction vans.

I am pleased to report that I have been given a clean bill of health by the vet and am told I can be expected to live at least another three years, with the condition that I take revolting pink and green tablets for the rest of my life. My legs and paws have suddenly become wobbly, but I'm not so concerned as I have trained my three humans very well and they will carry me around if it comes to it. What bothers me more is that I have become very forgetful, and I sometimes sink into a trance-like state where I am unaware of where I am, unless Marlene steps on my tail of course. It takes the most intense mental effort to snap out of it, and I find that only eating really brings me back to Earth (with a bump, if Alastair has hidden my pills in the food).

I do wish Paolo were a little more intelligent, as I no longer have the energy to explain and demonstrate things, and he doesn't seem to remember anything from one day to another - although in his case the cause of is not old age but inbreeding. His grandfather was also his uncle or something. Never mind, he more than makes up for it with his kindly nature and he does look after me. The way he licks me clean, for example, or rather did when I could still jump up to the chair. He hasn't realised that he has to jump down to lick me now. I tried to explain that me jumping up, in relative terms, was the same as him jumping down, but he didn't seem to understand the meaning of relative, or at least seemed to think I was talking about the uncle who was also his grandfather or whatever it was. It doesn't matter as Alastair has decided to bathe and shampoo me three times a week, which I actually enjoy more than being caressed by Paolo's tongue, except when he gets soap in my eyes. Silvia has been very sweet to me and is ordering some old Russian films for us to listen to at the weekend. Marlene has been very concerned about me too (apart from getting two books from the library, "Return of the Killer Cat" and "The Third Cat", to welcome me home). She still doesn't look where she's going, though, and often stands on my paws. I tried to explain that, relatively speaking, it was like a tiger standing on her, but like Paolo she doesn't understand relativity. At least I still do, so I can't be that bad.

Brindis

News from the Vet
by Paolo

Dear readers,

Master Brindis is holding his way. Dr Dochter has said that the dripping and treatment are going well on him. He has to stay another night away - it is going to be a long night for me as I miss him dearly - but by tomorrow the blood test results will be also at the doctor's practice so we will know what his chances are.

I am praying and steering from the windows waiting for him to come back. Alastair is in pieces since the news. And Silvia is so upset, even Marlene seems to be very sad. They all love him so dearly.

And me, besides the sometimes odd treatment by the Master, I owe him so much, his encouragement to be a better cat, everyday, is so special, that I dont think I will never, ever meet somebody like him

Pray to the Supreme Cat

Until next,

Master Brindis
by Paolo

We have not written in the last few weeks. I was busy enjoying the summer, and the sun, that I didnt realize how sick was Master Brindis until today. The humans have taken him away, and will stay overnight at our vet's place.

We dont know what will happen to him. But Silvia has assured me that he is not in pain.

I am sad and lonely. I hope he comes back.

I will post any news....