Time is Running Out..

.. for Snowball

Yesterday I went to my mom's house to pay a visit to the dying one.

I got Snowball when I was nine years old (and I didn't even know about the Simpsons at that age, so I don't know where I came up with the name), though the past few years he's mostly been referred to as "the grumpy ol' fella" - and who can blame him, really - living in a household with three squealing women.

He has been healthy throughout his fourteen-year-old life.

A couple of weeks ago he disappeared, and after a couple of days mom found him hidden away in a room in the house. Mom took him to the vet and it turned out that he had suffered from a hemorrhage in the brain. He is blind and not eating on his own, so mom feeds him. 

A little grumpy and frail

He is weak and skinny, but he is purring and seemingly not in too much of a pain. Mom doesn't have the heart to put him to sleep, and will probably put it off as long as it doesn't seem like he's suffering too much. 

I don't blame her. It's easy to say "just put the old cat to sleep, and take it out of it's misery already" - but I think it's both a cultural thing - believing that animals too have a desire to live, and who are you to decide whether or not it should live? - and of course a selfish point of view: how can you kill a family member who's still purring and responding and showing it's personality?

She will do anything for that cat and has taken him to the vet several times the past few weeks. 

Poor old fella

Edit: On Sunday February 12th mom came home from work and found Snowball all curled up and snug in my little sister's old bed, where he had finally found his peace.

A Macrell and One Grumpy ol' Cat

Snug (and smug?) as a bug
together with one mom, one BF and one big ol' grumpy cat
in a two-seat sofa

Today I returned to the godforsaken place where I grew up to pay my mom a visit.


But first,

a few photos from school today:

Cat

Chinese studies demands hard work

and strong focus
(if you were wondering)

Benedicte
starring as
Little Red Riding Hood

My new shoes!
They're just like wearing sneakers,
I swear

After school I dragged one (un)willing boyfriend to the train station to catch a train to nowhere.

Some kids performing
at the station

Vidar
as enthusiastic as he always is
when we're going to see
my mom

First thing when we arrived at my childhood home I grabbed my grumpy ol' cat, 13-year-old Snøball, for a snuggle.

Unfortunately he's not my biggest fan.

Maybe it's because I can't resist cradling him like a baby every time I see him.

Heavy petting
(.. hardy har har)

Momma making food

Then she sent me out to fetch some fresh wild mint from the garden:

While she was bonding with the..
dinner

Snøball (Snowball)

Look at my arms
They were the size of my mom's fingers

I was two months premature. Snooze!

I like to think of it as a favour to my mom, because if I'd been cooking any longer..

check the size of that head!


Ouch.

Anyway, do you need a reminder of the current ratio? (Both the size of newborn daughter vs. present one, and head vs. rest of the body-proportion)

You're welcome.

My mom lives by herself
How many tooth brushes does she need?

Mom has been decorating for Halloween..

.. and Christmas?


Who am I kidding.

In my momma's house all of the decoration is left out all year long.

It's so cold
Mom sits inside with her winter coat on

When it was time to go home my mom made sure to maintain the awesome impression she has on Vidar - by pulling a lay-down-in-protest stunt.

Poor thing.

Have you paid your momma a visit lately?