Simon and Schuster is celebrating Animal Welfare Week with L.A. Kornetsky. L.A. joins us for a special guest post ...
I'm getting ready for a move, and part of that is decluttering. Getting rid of things – objects, old paperwork – that I don’t need to haul with me any more.
But in a folder of otherwise no-longer-needed papers, there’s a sheet I’m keeping. It’s from the ASPCA, and it documents my adoption of the kitten once known as Minna, who became my beloved Pandora, gone now a little over a year.
There’s no point to keeping the sheet of paper. All it does is say that I paid x amount for a 4 month old female tiger kitten, spayed. But throwing it out isn’t an option, either. Because this was the first connection I had to Pandora, the first contract we made with each other: I would give her food, shelter, care, and a lap when she wanted it. I would give her a home. And in return, she gave me such love and companionship, letting her go at the end was no less a pain than losing a human friend.
I don’t have documentation from Indy-J, who was found on the street as a weeks-old kitten, and lived a long and adventurous life before cancer took her in 2000. But Pandora’s adoption paper will go in the current file, along with the papers for our current residents, Boomerang (aka Boomer you idiot), and Castiel the Kitten of Thursday (aka DamnitCas).
Because you keep the important moments, the documents that say “this is how you changed my life.”
(and some of you may note that I invite disaster in the renaming of my cats. You would not be wrong. But where’s the fun of living with Sir Napsalot?)
L. A. Kornetsky is the author of two previous Gin & Tonic mysteries. She lives in New York City with two cats and a time-share dog, and also writes fantasy under the name Laura Anne Gilman. She welcomes visitors to lauraannegilman.net, Twitter @LAGilman and Facebook L. A. Kornetsky.
DOGHOUSE: A GIN AND TONIC MYSTERY
At her favorite Seattle bar, professional concierge Ginny Mallard can always count on a perfectly mixed gimlet and a friendly welcome for her shar-pei, Georgie, from resident cat, Penny. On this visit, Ginny gets an unexpected bonus. One of the regulars asks her and her sometime partner, bartender Teddy Tonica, to save an old friend who’s facing eviction. This is no simple landlord spat. Rumors abound of an underground dogfighting ring on the premises—a crime guaranteed to get Gin’s hackles up. Gin and Teddy want to believe the old man is innocent of all charges, thought a new piece of evidence suggests otherwise. Penny and Georgie keep their noses to the ground as they help their humans investigate the vicious animal rights case. But the truth is buried deep, and digging it up will unearth dangerous complications for owners and animals alike.
Simon & Schuster
I am currently reading (and enjoying) DOGHOUSE - definite appeal to pet lovers and cozy mystery fans!
I am giving away a book choice from my convention stash, including titles with animals, to one randomly selected commenter. To enter the giveaway,
1. Leave a comment about rescue animals - do you have any? We have several, including Lucky in the lei!
2. Comments are open through Saturday, October 11, 10 pm in Baltimore.
3. I'll post the winner on Sunday, October 12.
Mahalo,
Kim in Baltimore
Aloha Spirit in Charm City
