Tonight ended on a decidedly sour note.
I was driving back from a party about an hour from here. I'd had nothing to drink except water or kool aid (i.e., no alcohol). I was kind of tired but basically straight enough to drive. An unexpected blast from the Damned's first CD assured that! No caffeine needed when you've got "I Feel Alright" or “Neat Neat Neat” blaring in your ears!
I was about ¾ of a mile from home, taking a route which took me behind a local supermarket. There in the middle of the road was what looked to me like an empty plastic grocery bag being pushed along by a breeze.
It sure didn't sound like one when I ran over it. I never knew what “sickening crunch” meant until that moment.
I doubled back to see what I'd hit. I hoped against hope that it was a varmint, a possum or a skunk.
It was a young cat.
Now, an old girlfriend and I had lost a couple of beloved kitties to the road. I thought of looking for homes with lights on to see if I could locate the owner, but that I considered much too risky it being after midnight in a somewhat dodgy neighborhood. So I did the only other thing I could think of to do. I called the police (not 911, their non-emergency number). I had to wait almost 45 minutes for the cop to show up. He was decent though. After checking my license, reg and insurance card he told me what I'd most likely hit was a stray as there were a lot in town lately. I thought it might be rabid because of the way it moved, or rather didn't seem too eager to get out of my way (how else could I mistake it for an inanimate shopping bag?). He seemed to agree. Maybe he was just trying to reassure me. I certainly hope it wasn't someone's pet. I've known the anger and grief at losing a beloved kitty to the road and no way wanted to inflict that on someone else.
Should I have not driven home that evening? Was it just a combination of a dark night, a badly-lit street and maybe being more tired than I realized? Or do things like this just happen sometimes despite our best efforts to avoid them?
Poor kitty. At least I hope it didn't suffer too much.
I was driving back from a party about an hour from here. I'd had nothing to drink except water or kool aid (i.e., no alcohol). I was kind of tired but basically straight enough to drive. An unexpected blast from the Damned's first CD assured that! No caffeine needed when you've got "I Feel Alright" or “Neat Neat Neat” blaring in your ears!
I was about ¾ of a mile from home, taking a route which took me behind a local supermarket. There in the middle of the road was what looked to me like an empty plastic grocery bag being pushed along by a breeze.
It sure didn't sound like one when I ran over it. I never knew what “sickening crunch” meant until that moment.
I doubled back to see what I'd hit. I hoped against hope that it was a varmint, a possum or a skunk.
It was a young cat.
Now, an old girlfriend and I had lost a couple of beloved kitties to the road. I thought of looking for homes with lights on to see if I could locate the owner, but that I considered much too risky it being after midnight in a somewhat dodgy neighborhood. So I did the only other thing I could think of to do. I called the police (not 911, their non-emergency number). I had to wait almost 45 minutes for the cop to show up. He was decent though. After checking my license, reg and insurance card he told me what I'd most likely hit was a stray as there were a lot in town lately. I thought it might be rabid because of the way it moved, or rather didn't seem too eager to get out of my way (how else could I mistake it for an inanimate shopping bag?). He seemed to agree. Maybe he was just trying to reassure me. I certainly hope it wasn't someone's pet. I've known the anger and grief at losing a beloved kitty to the road and no way wanted to inflict that on someone else.
Should I have not driven home that evening? Was it just a combination of a dark night, a badly-lit street and maybe being more tired than I realized? Or do things like this just happen sometimes despite our best efforts to avoid them?
Poor kitty. At least I hope it didn't suffer too much.
