Rowdy

This January, the cabin lost one of its most-familiar furry friends. Rowdy, whose picture graced the newsletter button and various posts, passed away shortly after the New Year from chronic feline asthma. Despite treatment, both age and underlying conditions made any recovery difficult.

An artist with a keen eye for paint and paper mache, Rowdy became an enthusiastic outdoorsman later in life. He preferred curling up in the garden and sunning himself, as well as hunting grasshoppers and moths. An avid critic of gardening, he freely participated in watching others weed flower beds and sow seeds. Despite less-than-perfect health, this spry Siamese mix still managed moments of kittenish play, bounding through the house and chasing his beloved ping-pong ball and feather toy ... not to mention his favorite cabin kitty and mother-figure Sabrina.

He will be much missed by family, his house companions George and Ginger, and his arch-enemy from the outdoors, Poppy the Cat -- with whom he spent many an hour on the lookout for unknown cats sneaking in by the back garden fence. Alas, his last goal of catching his own bird remained to the last.

Farewell, old friend.