8 June 16

Today's cat tie honors "Baby," also known as W. C. Fields, who lived with us for almost 17 years. Her name originated from her looking like a WildCat and her straying into our lives in 1999 from the field adjacent to our new house. It gained meaning as WaterCat when she loved playing in a "bubbler" watering bowl, and also as WheelchairCat when she hopped into the lap of a dear friend in his wheelchair. Her cute look was devastatingly adorable. Recently she developed cancerous growths in her mouth, and in the last few days it became very difficult for her to swallow or drink. She was always Beth's close companion, for knitting or computing or napping or just plain sitting together. She has now joined her sisters Annie and Meg, and her very big brothers Shadow and Sir Burgess, in the land where pets play forever.