Chip Trumps Russell
With an Assist from Ayanna
If you’ve been navigating cat world for a long time, please indulge my rookie reflections. If you’ve been navigating human world for a long time, learn from cats and Ayanna Pressley, and not from Russell Vought.
Chip the Cat
In early July 2025 Chip the Cat came to live with us. His previous and only other human had died just shy of 92 years old. Chip was 17 when he arrived. He looked like this during his first week here:
Because he was an outdoor-indoor cat from a suburban neighborhood, we accompanied him in his explorations in his first days with us and made sure—or tried to—that he didn’t disappear into the woods. We were happy to learn that he self-imposed some limitations and was most comfortable on or under the deck, and within a few yards of the house. His sight, sound, and scent detectors undoubtedly picked up evidence of some of the other beings with whom he would be sharing the neighborhood.
Chip weighs in at just under 10 pounds. He’s now 18 years old, and his practice, beyond eating and sleeping, is to circle, stop, stare, invite petting, take a step or two immediately after first contact, wait for second contact, take a step or two, wait, etc. I have caught him doing shadow work on occasion. Usually when he’s trying to decide what to read.
Over the course of his 13 months with us, I’ve noticed his slight limp, the occasional instability of his hind legs, especially the left, and the slowing of his forays up and down stairs. With the experience of my own 72-year-old original equipment, and my 23-year-old hips, I admire and can relate to his persistent catness as his body changes. He is easy to cheer for.
Not a fan of being picked up, he will tolerate it for 20-30 seconds or so. He’s a picky eater (duh). Despite his slowing down, he has captured one chipmunk, which we convinced him to release, and killed a bird, which we found after the fact on the mat on the deck.
Chip, and the rest of the other-than-human beings we’re blessed to have visit us, are good for my heart and soul.
Humans
Most of what appears on this site navigates how we humans, especially from the United States, have treated each other historically and treat each other currently. I won’t rehash any of that here. It suffices to say that the least healthy among us treat each other in ways that the most healthy among us would never treat our other-than-human beings (be they pets, or “in the wild”).
I’ll leave you with this brief July interaction between Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, whom Donald Trump referred to as one of the “Progressive Democratic Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world…” (Pressley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio) and Russell Vought, who expressed a desire to “traumatize” federal workers and has succeeded in doing so. With eloquence and passion, Pressley deals with Vought the way Vought and his minions, with apparent callousness, carelessness, and cruelty, have dealt with federal workers and American citizens at large.
Our musical sign-off will be “The Gathering of Spirits” by Carrie Newcomer. Enjoy.