Ribbie the Great

Ribbie came to live with us 17 years ago. She was a tiny grey cat who was so skinny we decided to name her Spareribs. That name didn't last long, however; as with all of our animals, her name was changed to Ribs, Riblina, Ribbie girl, Rib-Rib-Rib (Bob's version of Rick-Rick-Rick), and Twinkle Toes, a name she earned when she was at her heaviest weight. Whenever Ribbie made her way across our bed to her final sleeping location, she preferred to walk over--not around--the people sleeping on the bed. All of her considerable weight was concentrated in her itty bitty little feet. That hurt.

Ribbie was everyone's best friend, but when Logan was living at home, she hung around with him more than the rest of us. I remember watching Ribbie wait patiently by the front window for Logan to come home from school, following him around, sitting in his lap, being carried around on his shoulder....


Ribbie was a kind and mellow soul. She never got perturbed, trusted everyone, slept in the middle of the floor on her back, legs splayed--I mean, why would anyone ever want to hurt her? She was such a good sport.

This is one of my favorite photos of Ribbie, because in it her face muscles are working, and it shows her willingness to do anything that was asked of her. In return, all she wanted was to belong to a family who loved her.

Over the last year Ribbie learned to push the bathroom door open after I went in, and she'd wait for me patiently while I took a shower, purring. After she got sick and couldn't move around much, I'd sit with her and read, and she purred contentedly just to have someone there. I told her many times how much we all loved her and thanked her for making everyone in our family so happy.

Ribbie was an incredible cat. I miss her a lot. Rest in peace, Ribbie girl.