Dad was 78 when he and mom got a Havanese Puppy. Getting a puppy at age 78 defines optimism. I think I did an eye roll and I certainly thought it wasn't their best move. I was flat wrong.
Kuper and my folks were inseparable. On the boat, road trips in the Tahoe, but mostly on the island. Kuper was named after 'Kuper' Island. An island that has since been renamed by the Canadian government, but I don't want to get too far off track.
When Dad passed, Kuper really earned his stripes. He was mom's constant companion. Over the years the routine set in and Kuper's sense of time was impeccable. Precisely at 11am he'd start making sounds requesting (perhaps demanding) a treat. 11am. Not 10:45 ie 11:15, but unerringly and eerily as close to 11am as possible for a living being who never owned a watch.
A little over a year ago he started an odd coughing and had a couple of scary episodes. Congestive heart failure. Meds could extend his life by several months and he outlived his initial prognosis.
So the writing has been on the wall for some time, but even with his slow decline he held up his part of the bargain. He was largely pretty happy and stuck to his routine, but in recent weeks it's been tougher. And on Saturday, things seemed pretty grim until Mrs Laurnen came to visit and he perked up. But it was only temporary.
Mom had called early on Saturday and Leigh and I made plans to head to the island. I texted Devin to call off the plans for that evening. Leigh, Beth, Devin and I had planned a 'Ballard Night' which are a lot of fun.
Later in the morning, after Mrs Laurnen's visit, mom called again. Kuper was better. So I again texted Devin and let him know that 'Ballard Night' was still a 'go'.
Then mom called again, right around 2pm. Kuper had taken a turn for the worse. She was going to call the vet and make the appointment for tomorrow.
After texting Devin a third time, we put the bikes on the back of Leigh's car and set off for Anacortes. There was an atypical small traffic jam just prior to the ferry landing where one of the more famous Anacortes residents used to live, but we made it just in time to ride the bikes directly on the ferry,
Earlier in the day, Leigh had gone for a 70 minute run. Now she was facing a 10 mile bike ride. Her legs were pretty much toast as we biked out to the house. Then it started to rain. Though tired, she was smiling and muscled through it.
We got to the house about 7 and Leigh immediately set to making a very nice dinner. She's amazing that way.
All the planning over the last several weeks came together. I had built a box a few months ago and carved Kuper's name in it. Mom had Louis dig a hole a few weeks ago in preparation for the inevitable.
The vet arrived and with great compassion Kuper passed peacefully. He was no longer in pain struggling for breath. He relaxed.
We buried him in a nice spot with a nice view.
In short order we were back on the ferry headed towards Anacortes. As we drove away from the ferry landing, we again encountered the small atypical traffic jam. Sometimes you recognize an event that simply happens once and you need to decide if you want to go or not. Leigh said let's go.
So we parked and walked in to the 'Burl Ives' estate sale.
In 1989 Burl Ives was 80 when he left California and moved to Anacortes. At the time he said the climate was too dry in California and he could get more for his money in Washington state. He passed in '95, but his wife Dorothy lived until last year. They lived in a 7 bedroom house perched above Guemes Channel.
Walking into the house was a little creepy. You could tour the whole house - master bed room and bathrooms and all. Make up and other toiletries were still there. Creepy. Mr. Ives died in that house. Creepy.
Even the art.
You decide.
The garden was nice. Mr Ives had mobility problems. Meaning without his scooter, he wasn't very mobile. So the garden had nice pathways so he could get around.
Even his clothes, all custom, were on sale.
We ended up buying a silver serving piece, a first edition book, and a champagne glass etched with a stylized 'B'. When you go to one of the Hollywood type sales, you need to be prepared to pay top dollar for these prized possessions. Just last night I threw a dinner party and filled the silver piece with peanuts. I was casually able to name drop and inform my guests that Burl Ives once used this very same serving dish. My guests were very impressed. One looked at it with reverence and said "Burl Ives' had his nuts in there too?".
In any case, I thought the princely sum of $5.00 was worth it. That was the total for all that we bought. It was half off day. And If you're under 35, you haven't a clue who Burl Ives was.
On the other hand, Kuper was well remembered in the cards to my mom.
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