I bought this cat carrier in 1995. I got it for Lizzie, the cat I got my wife for her 21st birthday. It carried Lizzie to vet appointments. She started sharing it with another cat, Ringo, in 1996. Those two used it until they both went on to Cat Valhalla a few years back. We’d borrow a second one for moves, but this carrier was pretty much it otherwise.
Toward the end of Lizzie and Ringo’s lives they shared the carrier with George, who I inherited from my parents. In 2013 Allison got a kitty named Fran, who has used it for a couple of moves and who continues to use it when she has to go to the vet.
In 2015, after George went on to Valhalla himself, I got three kittens: Rosie, Lucy and Scully. They were small enough to fit in a cardboard box when I took them home, but each of them have used this carrier to go to the vet individually in the 11 months I’ve had them.
My wife is now my ex-wife. She has two cats at her house and they’re pretty big. The carrier she had became too small for her cats so she has borrowed this one a couple of times, including this past weekend. Meanwhile, my parents are considering getting a cat. If they need to borrow the carrier I’ll let them use it too, of course.
So far nine cats have ridden in this thing and a tenth may soon. It’s never needed repairs and shows little wear and tear. Soon after I got it I glued a carpet remnant inside of it so Lizzie would be more comfortable. It’s still in there. If you look hard enough, you can see at least a few hairs from every cat that has used it. It probably drives them bonkers, but I’m not gonna clean it out.
People mark time in a lot of ways, contrasting the ephemeral with the constant as a means of maintaining their gravity and equilibrium as they make their way through life. I don’t know anyone else who marks the time with a cat carrier, but I guess you live the life you have.
