Our wonderful old feline friend and companion, Huzzah Rastasoftafurrianpurrian, has left the Earth plane and gone on to the hunting grounds of the Summerlands. He was 18 years old, born on July 1, 1990. Huzzah died on Sunday, December 7, 2008, at home surrounded by his family. He was a playful, loving, caring cat, adored by everyone who met him. We'll miss him. We're glad he got to eat turkey for Thanksgiving and lie under the Christmas tree before he left, and that he won't have to endure another winter (his elderly joints didn't like the cold). Huzzah had a joyful effect on many people. He was a beautiful yellow tiger cat with very soft fur and a loud purr.
He got his name when he was just a tiny kitten. He was the runt of the litter, and since he couldn't get the first round of milk at mealtime, he decided to explore the house instead. He emerged from our friend's bedroom, came down the hall, and greeted the group of humans hanging out in the living room with an exuberant "mew!" Some of our friends had recently come back from a renaissance faire, and they said "he's saying Huzzah!" And so the name stuck.
Huzzah got his loud purr from his dad, who was named Tech for his penchant for climbing or sitting on the computer keyboard. His mom's name was Ramblin' Rose.
During the first part of his life, we lived in apartments near busy roads, so he was an indoor cat. He loved to play with balls of foil and rolled up juice tabs (the kind that you use to open frozen juice concentrate). He ran and leaped after them, and even fetched them back!
When he was 11, we moved to our current home in the country, back on a lane far from roads, with a big forest as well as open fields. We said it was his "retirement home," and he certainly loved having such a feline-oriented home. He loved to sleep under the lilacs in the front yard, and that's exactly where his final resting place is.
Farewell, Huzzah. We sure do love you.