The Love of a Cat Named Ortoloni ~ Chapter 8

I am sitting at my desk looking through photos. They are so few. I wish I had more to share. I do have memories, though. The first time I saw him, crouched behind the toilet and knew right then and there I could never give him up. The first time he (finally) ventured downstairs and befriended Mephisto (our Bearded Dragon). The time he darted out the front door and I thought we’d lost him for good. Finding out he had FUS and dealing with hardened stools and trying to get fluids into him. He was always so patient. Whatever he had to “endure”, I think he knew I was doing it to help him feel better.

I remember the velvety softness of his fur and the tail that curled up over his back. How he would cry, “Ma-am” whenever he went looking for me. His easygoing purrsonality when it came to the other cats in the household – and other cats, in general – and how startled I was when I heard him utter his first tomcat-like yowl. (“Did that come out of my sweet Loni-Loni?”) Sharing his pil-low with me. Me sharing my pillow with him at night. His sunny disposition.

The nicknames we gave him: Loni-Loni, Sweet Cheeks, Cheeky-Cheeks, and Cheddar Butt. (That last one comes from “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” by Wham! “Jitterbug” became “Cheddar Butt”, and that’s they way we sing it here at Chez Rock Vixen.) At Christmastime it was Loni Baby (instead of “Santa Baby”). Ortoloni was the first cat I ever sang to: “Hopelessly Devoted to You”, “Kokomo”, and “Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)”. He loved it all!

I asked Tim if there were any memories of Ortoloni that he wanted to share, and he reminded me of one time in particular. Tim was in the kitchen about to give Ortoloni a little piece of lunchmeat when I came downstairs and caught them. Not only did Ortoloni freeze, but he turned and walked away from the treat. LOL. This wasn’t the first time, either. Apparently, Loni never wanted me to see him taking goodies from Tim.

Once I got Ortoloni’s FUS under control with a proper diet, the problems that arose because of it dwindled down to once or twice a year. Those last four years Ortoloni was happy and healthy. It was good to see him full of piss and vinegar. My last and final memory was that morning. December 4, 2011. I heard Tim call out to me from downstairs: “Something’s wrong with Ortoloni.” He had just used the cat box and was doing his normal “I feel good” run-around when he just…collapsed. ♫♪ Ain’t no sunshine when he’s gone. ♫♪

Recently, I found the entry I’d made in my diary that morning:

Dec 4, 2011
R.I.P. sweet Ortoloni

This morning my Loni-Loni – the sweetest, gentlest soul ever to grace this earth – passed away.

I wanted him cremated so that’s what we did. The box that holds his ashes sits on a shelf in my bedroom, next to Diego, with this inscription:

Ortoloni.
I will love you forever.

The love of my life: Ortoloni (RIP)

Ortoloni ~ I will always love you

Ortoloni & Diego

On His Pil-low

It’s good to be King

He aint’ got no money
His tail is kinda funny
His fur is kinda soft and free
Oh, but love grows
Where my Sweet Loni goes
And nobody knows like me

He meows kinda crazy
And humans say he’s lazy
And his life’s a mystery
Oh, but love grows
Where my Sweet Loni goes
And nobody knows like me

There’s something about
His paw holding mine
It’s a feeling that’s fine
And I just gotta say, hey!
He’s really got a magical spell
And it’s working so well
That I can’t get away

I’m a lucky human
And I just got to tell him
That I love him endlessly
Because love grows
Where my Sweet Loni goes
And nobody knows like me

What greater gift than the love of a cat.
– Charles Dickens

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