Newman photo/video album

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kevm14
Posts: 15200
Joined: Wed Oct 23, 2013 10:28 pm

Newman photo/video album

Post by kevm14 »

https://1drv.ms/f/s!An5lt1BKvFKdqOcd9jd7wVdA0viqWA

Born somewhere in the spring 2006 timeframe we think.

We got him Oct 21, 2007 just after getting married but before closing on our first house.

He died March 1, 2019.

This album contains 1,602 items (144 videos and 1,457 photos) across 4 phones, and 6 cameras. 10.5GB in all. There may be odds and ends from Jamie's phones, Ian's iPad and perhaps other misc locations. I have not added those.

The date codes on the first ones are screwed up. We got him on Oct 21, 2007 so dates before that are just incorrect. Keep that in mind. In some cases it appears to display a different date that may be believable, yet sort the file differently. There are many metadata date tags so the sort may pull from a different tag than the date displayed for some reason.

Somewhere around the time Owen was born the pictures started getting few and far between, especially as the projects also ramped up.

I would say my best memories of him were at our first house where he enjoyed going outside. Again, when we moved, he became an indoor cat for his safety and a year later we had Owen. There was a lot of stuff going on and you'll notice the photo density decreased substantially. I feel bad about that.

He had a distinct personality and marked stubbornness. I also found him to be an extremely handsome cat. Probably about the softest fur of any cat I've pet. He kept himself impeccably groomed (until he could no longer use his tongue), with no knots or clumps to speak of. He enjoyed being around people, and you'll notice that especially in the outdoor stuff from the first house. I do recall several times attempting to go for a walk around the neighborhood and he would come trotting along before we decided to bring him back to the house (because cars).

He was very territorial as cats usually are. And at the first house, he famously was seen chasing a medium sized dog off of our property. That's why I like cats. They have large cat personalities with clear ties to their wild cousins. And a cat with claws (Newman always had his claws) can take care of itself in the wild, unlike a domestic dog. No fenced yards or leashes required. You must earn a cat's respect. On a practical level, it also means you can be away for days and just leave some food and water out for a cat. A dog requires constant attention by the very nature of them, unless you have an actual wolf as a pet (but you don't). So a close relationship with a dog is really not a surprise at all, if you are its caretaker. Somewhat contrastingly, a relationship with a cat is a very special thing not to be taken for granted.

I keep running into people who offer that cats are "OK" perhaps, but "I'm a dog person." Sure, I've never had a dog. But it turns out that there are cat people everywhere, if you just ask them. They seem to be less vocal about it. I dunno, just something I noticed. I think I just prefer the quiet, subtle, gentle relationship between human and feline, instead of the aggressive, barking, jumping dog stuff.

I will add more stuff as I feel like it, like explaining what happened.
dochielomn
Posts: 216
Joined: Wed Oct 30, 2013 9:16 am

Re: Newman photo/video album

Post by dochielomn »

So sorry to read this. My condolences to you, Jamie, and your boys. Hopefully both Ian and Owen (probably more so Ian) can understand what happened and hopefully they're both not shook from this. Never really sure how to explain death to a child.

I would say from my own experience in growing up with a German Shepherd (either Oct or Nov or maybe Dec 1986 to Aug 2000), you do never forget a pet as they become more than just a pet, they're family. But I believe you had a cat your family adopted growing up, so you already know this.

I can still recall when you and Jamie first got Pookie, :). You guys were still living in Harbor Village (or was it East Bay Village).

As to the whole cat vs. dog thing, it's just different. I grew up with a German Shepherd for basically my entire childhood and now my wife and I have had a cat for just about 3 years (as of Wednesday this week). What's nice about a dog is that they will typically greet you at the door and will want to immediately play with you once you walk in and you don't always get that with a cat (although mine is usually pretty happy to see me when I come home from work). But there are some things like how cat will play with their claws fully out which for me, means that my hands or arms can get scratched up quite a bit (since my cat refuses to let me cut her nails and i have to take her someplace to trim them down) and i know she doesn't mean anything by it but can't say i ever had these issues with my dog (and believe me, we would play rough from time to time). And as for being territorial, dogs can get that way too and can act as a pseudo security system (i think if you asked most burglars, they rather come across a cat than a dog as a cat's meowing isn't usually as loud as a dog barking or encountering a larger dog that might lash out as a stranger entering their space). However, i do get that for a cat, it may take longer for a cat to accept a human as being part of their family and that it's more earned than a dog who is most of the time going to just be happy right off the bat. And you're definitely right about the maintenance aspect of a cat in terms of going away for a weekend and a cat can take care of itself (which is a big reason why my wife and I got a cat over a dog, just because of being away during the work day).

But not trying to make this a cat vs. dog conversation. There are lots of pro's for each and both become true members of a family that they're in. I know growing up with a dog, I love my cat now just as much as I did the dog. She's got quite a personality and fortunately with a new baby (human) in the house, our cat has been a non-issue (I actually think the cat is far more scared of the baby while the baby is constantly obsessed when she sees the cat). But the cat is truly family.

So, i'll conclude this with cherish all of your memories with Newman. I'm sure he'll never be forgotten. And in time, maybe you guys will decide to get another cat(s) or possibly a dog, :).
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