Day 5001: Whan That Aprill With His Shoures Soote

Friday was the 4998^th day that a unit comprised of a Chesh & a Nomad has existed. Friday was also the very first day that there has existed a Chesh & a Nomad without a Foxy.

Chesh adopted our furry girl as a young kitten, and did so only a few short weeks before she and I began our relationship. Therefore, we had all been together for a very long time -- virtually all of Foxy's life and also all of my adult life. I was just a kid, really -- just nineteen years old -- when we all came together. She outlived Kenna and Clonk and Totoro. She moved with us from Massachusetts to New York, from New York to Arizona, from Arizona to Chicago, and from Chicago to Oxford. A well travelled cat! Several lifetimes spent together. And now she is gone. For the first time since I was a teenager, I have no Fox. Truly, there are no words.

In the wake of our loss, cheshcat and I engaged in a traditional English April activity -- we made a pilgrimage to Canterbury. In truth, this trip had been planned since some time last year. Ever since I arrived in England two years ago, I have attempted to visit as much of it as possible -- after all, we have no idea how much longer we will stay here to enjoy the benefit of living so close to so much history! Although one can, of course, go to Canterbury at any time, I had wished to do so at the time of year when, according to Chaucer, the pilgrims of old set out to visit the shrine of St. Thomas. Astute readers may also observe that, if Friday was the 4998^th day of my relationship with cheshcat, then Sunday -- yesterday -- was our five thousand day anniversary. I noted the impending occasion back in 2006, and have not forgotten about it since. Hence the weekend for our trip had been chosen. However, with such a poignant[*] loss weighing so freshly upon us, our trip took on new meaning. I do not know how to describe it properly, but our journey did take on what I imagine to be the air of a pilgrimage.

cheshcat and I left The Boy alone -- for the first time in his life -- in an otherwise empty house on Friday morning. Then, for three days, we had no contact with any human being that we knew besides each other. The phones were off, the hotel's wireless internet connection ignored. We left the rest of the known world behind and had three days alone together to reconnect, to remember... and to have fun exploring some place new.

And, indeed, we did have fun exploring some place new. When on vacation, I do not like to sit still or "take it easy." I like to do or see new things! This vacation fit the bill. Canterbury is a cute little city, and three days of bustling about gave us a very good experience of it, I believe. A proper travelogue may follow but, in summary, we got to view remains of Roman Canterbury, scoff at a cheesy animatronic version of The Canterbury Tales, enjoy a concert from a string quartet, explore just about every inch of the Cathedral, sit for the impressive choral music of evensong at the Cathedral, wander through the Cathedral grounds & gardens, tromp through the ruins of St. Augustine's Abbey (founded in 597 C.E.!), admire the flowers blooming near the river in the Westgate Gardens, see the last remaining medieval city gate, enter the ruins of a Norman castle, saunter through the Dane John gardens, stroll along the tops of the medieval city walls, and crisscross the tiny city many times on foot until we knew it quite well. All this... and we still had time to enjoy some very yummy meals... as well as one game of Bohnanza[**].

So, yes, it was a very good weekend and a fitting way to both grieve for our lost girl and to celebrate the first five thousand days of our relationship. Although we have no Fox to join us as we embark on the second five thousand days, she will never be forgotten.

---

[*] Ironically, the earliest recorded use of the word "poignant" also comes from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. See the Oxford English Dictionary if you don't believe me...

[**] Where Chesh trounced me thoroughly -- seventeen to nine -- so no more needs to be said about that, hmmm?

Day 5001: Whan That Aprill With His Shoures Soote

Friday was the 4998^th day that a unit comprised of a Chesh & a Nomad has existed. Friday was also the very first day that there has existed a Chesh & a Nomad without a Foxy.

Chesh adopted our furry girl as a young kitten, and did so only a few short weeks before she and I began our relationship. Therefore, we had all been together for a very long time -- virtually all of Foxy's life and also all of my adult life. I was just a kid, really -- just nineteen years old -- when we all came together. She outlived Kenna and Clonk and Totoro. She moved with us from Massachusetts to New York, from New York to Arizona, from Arizona to Chicago, and from Chicago to Oxford. A well travelled cat! Several lifetimes spent together. And now she is gone. For the first time since I was a teenager, I have no Fox. Truly, there are no words.

In the wake of our loss, cheshcat and I engaged in a traditional English April activity -- we made a pilgrimage to Canterbury. In truth, this trip had been planned since some time last year. Ever since I arrived in England two years ago, I have attempted to visit as much of it as possible -- after all, we have no idea how much longer we will stay here to enjoy the benefit of living so close to so much history! Although one can, of course, go to Canterbury at any time, I had wished to do so at the time of year when, according to Chaucer, the pilgrims of old set out to visit the shrine of St. Thomas. Astute readers may also observe that, if Friday was the 4998^th day of my relationship with cheshcat, then Sunday -- yesterday -- was our five thousand day anniversary. I noted the impending occasion back in 2006, and have not forgotten about it since. Hence the weekend for our trip had been chosen. However, with such a poignant[*] loss weighing so freshly upon us, our trip took on new meaning. I do not know how to describe it properly, but our journey did take on what I imagine to be the air of a pilgrimage.

cheshcat and I left The Boy alone -- for the first time in his life -- in an otherwise empty house on Friday morning. Then, for three days, we had no contact with any human being that we knew besides each other. The phones were off, the hotel's wireless internet connection ignored. We left the rest of the known world behind and had three days alone together to reconnect, to remember... and to have fun exploring some place new.

And, indeed, we did have fun exploring some place new. When on vacation, I do not like to sit still or "take it easy." I like to do or see new things! This vacation fit the bill. Canterbury is a cute little city, and three days of bustling about gave us a very good experience of it, I believe. A proper travelogue may follow but, in summary, we got to view remains of Roman Canterbury, scoff at a cheesy animatronic version of The Canterbury Tales, enjoy a concert from a string quartet, explore just about every inch of the Cathedral, sit for the impressive choral music of evensong at the Cathedral, wander through the Cathedral grounds & gardens, tromp through the ruins of St. Augustine's Abbey (founded in 597 C.E.!), admire the flowers blooming near the river in the Westgate Gardens, see the last remaining medieval city gate, enter the ruins of a Norman castle, saunter through the Dane John gardens, stroll along the tops of the medieval city walls, and crisscross the tiny city many times on foot until we knew it quite well. All this... and we still had time to enjoy some very yummy meals... as well as one game of Bohnanza[**].

So, yes, it was a very good weekend and a fitting way to both grieve for our lost girl and to celebrate the first five thousand days of our relationship. Although we have no Fox to join us as we embark on the second five thousand days, she will never be forgotten.

---

[*] Ironically, the earliest recorded use of the word "poignant" also comes from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. See the Oxford English Dictionary if you don't believe me...

[**] Where Chesh trounced me thoroughly -- seventeen to nine -- so no more needs to be said about that, hmmm?