Totally Wicked, Dude

Totally wicked, Dude. Mai's sentiment on everything these days - but especially about her new bike gloves and pads!!
I had a totally wicked run in the forest yesterday on Wildwood. Sheryl and Leslie and I had plans to beat the team to the trailhead at 7:30 and get a bit of a good start since we had a 15 miler to do and didn't feel like being out there all day, but in the end the whole team started together and we had a good little group of happy laughing people running through the woods together, high fiving and enjoying the beautiful sunlight filter through the trees. Ali joined our sight seeing group (slow runners) at the start and so the four of us stuck together pretty much to the end. I ran the first 7 1/2 miles sharing life stories with Ali and hearing about Leslie's recent half iron down at Wildflower and then second 7 1/2 catching up with Sheryl. It was a great run!! I felt strong!

The kids and I spent the rest of the day mostly hanging out in the backyard taking in some sun. Steve took us out for burgers at the Ram for dinner. JUST the thing I had been craving since my run in the morning and after that the kids and I headed down to the park a block or so past our house so Mai could practice riding without training wheels. This is where the Dave saga gets even worse. Across the park I could hear Jack whizzing on his bike back to me and yelling that he found part of Dave. Oh God, no!

He lead us back to find our beloved cat's face. Yes, his poor face!...lying out at the park on the sidewalk, his whiskers still white and strong and beautiful. What was really weird was that there were open and emptied cans of cat food in the grass right by him, set up in a triangle. I almost wonder if someone whose house backs up to the park tried to poison the coyotes. Steve said this proves there is a pack and not just a solitary coyote up here, because they each would have taken "pieces" and gone off to eat their portion. Oh man, I'm so nauseated.

Anyways, I couldn't leave his face there! So we went home, got Steve and the metal lunchbox we're using for Dave's casket and we gathered his face and headed home. Today we'll write out loveletters and bury him in the front yard - it's past time, I HAVE to do this. I guess I just kept thinking maybe he was still alive and although I knew all that fur was his and his collar told me the truth, I thought just maybe the rest of what we found in the common area belonged to another cat. I know it's silly, but I've been checking for him out on the front porch every couple of hours since Thursday.

Today will be burial day. A friend told me to plant catnip over him and I think I'll do just that :o)