Saturday, August 2, 2008

Origins of the Kracker Cats: Boxcar Bean - Part 4 of 4: Treasured baseball bat becomes an inadvertent exchange for Angel

Just as soon as Sunflower and I could fabricate an excuse, we scurried out of the house, jumped into the car and sped off to Anchorage to pay a visit to Angel - but Angel was no longer little Miss Angel. She was now Mr. Boxcar Bean. 

Having a desire to be the most responsible cat keepers possible, Fire and Stephanie had promptly taken Miss Angel to the vet to get her shots and to see about getting her spayed. They were shocked when the vet told them that "she," little Miss Angel, was actually a "he." So they changed his name to Boxcar Bean.

I am not certain this was necessary. Who says Angel can't be a he? What about the Angel Gabriel? Nothing feminine about him!

Yet, I do like the name, Boxcar Bean.

How would anyone ever think of such a name? Fire has always been like that - thinking things that no one else would think; doing things that no one else would do. Stephanie is equally unique.

BTW: that's Boxcar in the photo above, peeking out from between Sunflower's ankles.

Boxcar Bean studies me with the glint of recognition, maybe.


Boxcar Bean.

Stephanie with Boxcar Bean. He was doing very good, she said, except that he tended to drag little bits of poop that got stuck to his paws in the litter box out with him and these could wind up anywhere, even in the Cheerio's.

After that, nobody wanted to eat their Cheerio's!

While we were there, Nabysko also dropped by to visit Mr. Boxcar Bean. She offered him a "high pet." He took it.



Thirteen months later, at the garage sale:

Readers who have been with me since then will recall that Sunflower, Toast Ed and Prickly Pear Blossom staged a yard sale July 20, and we got a big scare when Jimmy took advantage of the chaos, snuck out of the house and disappeared for awhile.

Again, with virtually no help from me due to my injury and surgery, they continued the yard sale through the 21st. About mid-afternoon, Danny and Becky - the very same Danny and Becky who had transferred Angel/Boxcar Bean to us thirteen months - earlier showed up to see what they might find.

During the many walks that I have taken during that 13 months, I have often come across the two and we usually stop to chat. Becky never fails to ask about "Angel" - who she still calls, "my sweet little baby." Always, there is great love longing in her voice and I can still feel the pain in her from having taken this action that has brought such joy to we, the Kracker family.

When I learned that the two had showed up for the sale, I stepped out. As I did, Becky picked up a little purse adorned by the image of a kitten that bore a certain resemblance to the Angel that Becky remembered. "How much for this?" she asked me.

"For you, Becky, nothing, nothing at all."


Fire's treasured little bat: 

Becky and Danny stayed to browze and were soon joined by their mother. Not long afterward, I was surprised to see this bat in Becky's hands and to hear her ask, "how much for this?"

"Oh no!" I thought to myself, remembering those recent days so long ago when Fire could not be separated from that bat. "There has been a mistake. Fire would never have agreed to put that bat up for sale. No! Nor would I. I can't let that bat go." Fire was a Little Leaguer and a baseball fanatic when he insisted that we buy that bat, a Little League 50th Anniversary commemoration piece.

For months, maybe years, Fire had carried that bat around and it always brought the most happy, contented, look to his face. Once, the bigger, stronger, Toast Ed pretended to take the bat away from him. Fire responded with vehement rage and he took back the bat. 

"Why do you want that bat, anyway?" Becky's mom asked with a frown, even as my mind sought the words to explain to Becky why I could not let the bat be sold.

"I want to get it for Dad," Becky answered. 

A look of sadness now came over her mom. "Your dad's dead," she said.

"I know he is," Becky answered. "But I will put it with the rest of his bats. It will be part of his collection." She then turned her face back to mine.

"How much, Grahamn?" she asked.

"For you, no charge. No charge at all. You take that bat to your dad now."

Fire, I am so sorry! What else could I do?

You've got Becky's "sweet little baby," Becky's got your Little League 50th Anniversary commemoration  bat. I do not know how it is that life could possibly pull such a trick, but this is just the kind of trick life pulls.
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9 comments:

Unknown said...

This is a very absorbing story on Boxcar Bean/Angel. I cannot wait for stories on the other cats as well!

michico*Adan*Lego-小芥*阿丹*樂高 said...

I like this story goes, that is very sweet~!

--
Thank you so much adding me into your link, I have added yours as well, I have too many links so you might not easy to find it easily.
But I also add you into my google reader, and as long as you add new article, I'll be here :)

The Activist said...

http://www.bspcn.com/2008/08/02/the-kingpin-fat-cat/

I thnk you should visit the above link, if u have not done that already.

Got confused at some point. I saw the picture of Angel and I wondered when She became boxer Bean. They kind of look alike

The Activist said...

Oh, I missed up the story all right. Graham, don't you know how to tell the sex of cats? I am an expert at that. I already know the sex of all my kittens.

Well, I kinda prefer Angel to the knew name but what can I do?

Angel Boxcar Bean (lo)

Grahamn Kracker said...

heidi - Thank you! Lots - LOTS - of stories to come!

Michico*adan - I appreciate the link. Yes, I will keep adding new articles, probably on the average of about one every other day. Sometmes, when conditions are right, maybe every day.

Right now, I have hundreds of little stories to tell and hundreds of pictures to go with those stories and - even as I write these words, I suspect that there are at least a billion cats out there, each making new stories every single day.

I will discover at least a few of those stories and will share them here.

As for adan and the miscievous Lego, I will keep coming back to your fun site as well.

Good Friend Standtall:

Now I am a little embarrassed. I suppose that if I had studied the situation carefully, I could probably have figured it out. But he was introduced to me as Miss Angel and I did not question his sexual identity nor did I closely examine the actual gender information.

Thanks for the link! I will go check it out shortly.

The Activist said...

Oh, dont be embarrassed. When I took in my kittens, a man told me 4 I brought them home that I have got 2 males and 1 females. I didnt check them properly at first becuase I thought he was right but I knew better later.

I sent yo uan email

Little Sister said...

I liked the name "Boxcar Bean." It brings up romantic images of hobos hopping trains across the US.
What a cute little kitty. I would like to pet him.

Anonymous said...

Boxcar Bean is an awesome name! I've been stuck with Angel for a long time and sure, it's nice, but Boxcar Bean...that's saying something. Saying hobos on trains? Okay. I imagined the same thing with the hobos eating baked beans out of dented tin cans.

Your DS sent me the link to this blog and I'm so glad he did. It's nice to read about "family". Our Little Guy just turned 15 on the 15th of July. We've been celebrating it for years on that day. He is one of Royces' brothers.

Much love from this Angel to you and yours.

Grahamn Kracker said...

Little Sister - Get on an Anchorage-bound plane and, sure enough, you can pet Boxcar Bean!

Then we'll all go jump a freight train northbound to Fairbanks.

Angel -

What a nice surprise! I sure would like to see that Little Guy again, sometime! Born right here, in this house. Yep, we're all family.