2 Coverstone Corner: ODE TO OUR CAT, BLACKJACK

On Monday, our family cat of 17 years died. He hadn't been feeling well and he passed away in his sleep. We are positive that he used all nine of his lives. He is the last of the Coverstone's menagerie of pets. He outlasted numerous fish. One fish was led to an early death because Blackjack knocked over the fish bowl and . . . well, you can guess the rest. He outlived the 4 generations of gerbils; Blackjack would have loved one of those tasty, yet furry little fellows. He outlived Crystal's chicken, June; which was pretty amazing since she lasted 8 years. He outlived good ol' Bernard, the crazy dashhound that loved tormenting Blackjack to no end. Bernard taught Blackjack patience; but occasionally Blackjack's patience would end with a big YELP from Bernard. Let us not forget 4 years ago, when I catnapped the old neighborhood's cat, when Blackjack went missing from Kelly's house. He looked so much like Blackjack, right down to the missing front tooth. Good thing the real Blackjack showed up back at Kelly's house. The German Shepherds, across the street, are actually scared of Blackjack. They came over one day and Blackjack was outside, he began to approach them, they stopped, then turned and went back home.. Blackjack was many things to each of our family members. Here he is as our new kitten, 17 years ago. We got him from the animal humane center, where the kids picked him out. We named him Blackjack and it seemed to fit him.