Cat Convos: Loki

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I’ve been putting off this post for quite awhile as it makes our loss far too real. Loki passed away peacefully at home surrounded by all of us who loved him dearly. Despite our unwillingness to let him go, Loki chose to saunter over to his next adventure.

Hiyu: Loki was the best playmate ever and the softest pillow in the world.

 

 

Kuri: Loki was born first, so literally, he was there for every moment of my life. I miss him terribly.

Me: The three of you had a lot of fun together.

Kuri: I keep forgetting he’s gone. He always answered when I called him, and I always answered when he called me. You always called it a game of Marco Polo, but it was really a game of Loki Kuri.

Loki and Kuri

Kuri: And sometimes it feels like he’s never left me, sort of like, he’s with me sharing my body and soul.

Me: Is that why you sometimes do things only your brother used to do?

Hiyu: Loki was the coolest cat ever. I miss him. He taught me how to play and how to really nap like a master napster. In return, I taught him the nuances of climbing and  balance.

Kuri: I miss him too, but as you say he will always be a part of all of us.

Me: In our memories and in our hearts.

~lisa

 

Kuri: Since I’m sure Loki is often still around, can he still join us for Cat Convos? I can tell you want he wants to say.

 

 

 

Cat Convos: Thank you!

Kuri: We’re back to cuddles and combining ourselves in Bengal puddles.

Loki: Thank you everyone for your well wishes. I’ve been hanging around, not doing much of anything, but I’m feeling much better right now. I’m taking it day by day.

Hiyu: Loki is even playing with us again.

Me: I’m happy to report that tests have come back showing that Loki has the most mild, unaggressive Lymphoma. We’re taking it day by day, but our goodbyes are not immediate.

Loki: The shock of only being given a few months has made me reevaluate my life.

Kuri: Me too, especially since I also had to have my tummy shaved for an ultrasound.

Hiyu: You two look really funny. Makes me glad I’m not a twin.

Me: Hiyu …

Hiyu: Self-interest is a hallmark of being a cat.

Loki: Hiyu cuddles with me too. He’s just a little on the opinionated side.

Kuri: We all are. Thought you’d be use to it now.

Loki: I’ve come to realize I don’t need to make many changes to achieve my dreams. I nap, I play, I cuddle, I purr ( maybe catch up on my reading) and I snuggle.

Hiyu: I like how you now guilt them into giving us tuna.

Kuri: and lots more snacks.

Hiyu: I’d give up all the extra tuna just to have you stay with us.

Kuri: Me too.

Loki: I know. I love you too.

Thank you Everyone

~lisa

 

Back Soon

We’ve been away on midlife crisis.

One of our regularly scheduled, every five years or so, midlife re-evaluation of where, what, how, why. It’s when we step back, reevaluate, and decide what is of the greatest importance at each new stage in life.

We are sad to announce that sweet, beautiful Loki has been diagnosed with lymphoma and we do not know how much longer he will be with us. It is not a change any of us want.

Most of the path forward remains the same: passionate about writing and creating stories, collecting and sharing world myth, loving my Bengals and immersing myself in the issues of diversity and inclusion.

There may be a little more on CERT (Citizen Emergency Response Team) and CERT (Cat Emergency Response Team).

Cat Convos will continue.

I may never know what is around the bend, but the Hill will continue its meanders through the space/time continuum.

I’m looking forward to sharing the adventure with you.

~lisa

 

 

 

 

Cat Convos: Introductions

Hiyu: Why do we have to introduce ourselves? Everyone already knows us.

Me: We have some new readers and long-term readers would also like to know a little bit about you.

Loki: I’ll go first. I want to get it over with.

Me: Okay, tell us your favorite things and one thing you really want to accomplish this year.

Loki: I like curling up in blankets and taking naps and I like stretching out in sunbeams and rainbow-beams and taking naps. I also like to hide in boxes.

Me: You really like sleeping, that’s quite true. What’s your goal for the year?

Loki: Doorknobs. I want to open doors on my own.

Me: Yes, I see you trying all the time.

Back Camera

Me: Thank you Loki

Kuri: I like to try everything my humans do. And napping. I like napping too.

Me: What’s your favorite things humans do?

Kuri: I like the way you scream when I jump in the bubbles baths and I like arts and crafts, especially with pipe cleaners.

Me: What’s your goal for the year?

Kuri: I want to read all your books and write a screenplay.

Me: A screenplay?

Kuri: Yeah, ever since I read Save the Cat by Blake Snyder, I’ve wanted to write just like you do.

Me: I don’t write screenplays.

Kuri: Maybe you should step out of your box and try.

Hiyu: My turn.

Hiyu: I like following people around just to see what they’re doing. I also like getting to the highest spots anywhere. I love running and jumping high.

Me: That’s quite true.

Hiyu: My goal is to keep the house safe. I do rounds every hour just to make sure.

Me: You do a great job.

Hiyu: I know.

Me: Favorite Books?

Kuri: Save the Cat and poetry books and game guides.

Loki: How to interpret dream books and hopefully someday I’ll find one about doorknobs. I’m still looking for my favorite.

Hiyu: High fantasy. I like books like Eve Forward’s Villains By Necessity. I like thrillers too and adventure stories.

Me: You guys are pretty cool cats.

Hiyu, Kuri and Loki: We know.

~lisa

 

L = Loki

Lucida was designed by Charles Bigelow and Kris Holmes in 1985. There are many variants including Lucida Console (the blue screen of death).

LOKI

“More ink has been spilled on Loki than on any other figure in Norse myth. This, in itself, is enough to show how little scholars agree, and how far we are from understanding him.” – Gabriel Turville-Petre

Cool note on Turville-Petre is his connection to J.R.R. Tolkien: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Turville-Petre

To know Loki, you must know the two Norse Eddas, the Prose Edda and the Poetic Edda.

The Prose Edda, also known as the Younger Edda, is attributed to Snorri Sturluson and is said to have been compiled around the year 1220.

The Poetic Edda, the Older Edda, is a collection of anonymous poetry from about the same time. These are the two sources that tell us most of what we know about the Norse gods.

Back to Loki.

Loki is the trickster god. In the Eddas, he works both for and against the gods. He is also a shape-shifter (salmon, fly, mare, etc).

Loki transforms to a “bad” or “evil” god when he helps kill his brother Baldr with mistletoe. A perfect re-telling of this legend can be found at http://whisperingbooks.com/Show_Page/?book=Classic_Myths_And_Legends&story=The_Mistletoe

Loki is described as pleasing and handsome in appearance and capricious in behavior. It is said he has cunning and tricks for every purpose. He has a few different wives and many famous children.

It is said that Loki’s symbol is a snake. http://www.ask.com/question/loki-symbol

My favorite story of Loki is when he and Thor visit Utgarda-Loki (Loki of the Outyards) in which Loki engages in what might be the first speed eating contest. Loki loses because he was pitted against the personification of fire.

Which in some ways makes it odd that Jacob Grimm thought Loki was the god of fire. Find out about Jacob Grimm at http://www.biography.com/people/jacob-grimm-21085187#awesm=~oB9hGvl3u5iCp4

Loki made his first pop culture appearance in Richard Wagner’s Ring of Nibelung. http://www.musicwithease.com/wagner-ring-nibelung.html

Loki also appears as a Marvel Comics super-villain who is in constant conflict with his brother Thor, God of Thunder.

Most people now know Loki from the Marvel Comics movies where Loki is played most profoundly and masterfully by Tom Hiddleston.
My favorite quote about Loki comes from the movie, The Avengers, in which the character Bruce Banner says, “that guy’s mind is a bag of cats, you can smell the crazy off him.”

Some excellent sites on Loki:
http://www.aworldofmyths.com/Norse_Gods/Loki.html
http://aom.heavengames.com/gameinfo/articles/norse-god-loki

Speaking of bags of cats, first and foremost in my mind, Loki will always be a cat, my cat, and he’s also a trickster.

-lisa