Of the many things I remember about Guinness, the first and foremost was his friendliness. I have never known a cat that was as friendly as Guinness. I loved how he would greet us as we walked in the door. We always called him the Official Greeter. And often, he would greet us by "talking" to us in his very lyrical voice. I loved the way he "talked".

Guinness was a pretty cat. His orange fur and white chest and paws were so soft and cuddly. He had a real sweet nose that added to his cuteness. And he had a flat spot right where his "third eye" would be. I loved to pet that spot. I also loved to massage his shoulders and under his chin.

Speaking of massages, Guinness gave me great massages. I loved how he would walk on my back and sit on my low back. It felt so good when he would do that. And sometimes he would sit on my leg, even when I was laying down.

Guinness was always an alert cat. He seemed to know what was going on around him. Whenever we had any repair people come into the house, Guinness loved to watch them work. I often thought he was watching so he could learn how to do whatever they were doing. I am sure Guinness knew how to lay carpet, lay floor tiles, paint, fix broken toilets, and anything else we had done around the house. Guinness wasn't getting in the workers' way, but he was interested in how things were done.

Guinness was President of the Happy Gobblers Thursday Club. When Tom would fix his lunch of turkey sandwiches, Guinness always was there, begging for pieces of turkey. We always told him he could have leftovers on Thursday ... after Tom had used whatever he needed to make his own sandwiches. Sometimes we gave in and gave him Turkey treats on days other than Thursday. Guinness liked people food.

Another food that Guinness particularly loved was potato chips! He would steal them out of our hands. And if he could, he would steal them out of our mouths!

Guinness enjoyed going outside, but he had to be carefully watched. If he were out back and had the opportunity, he would "escape" through slats in the fence. If the front door was left open too long and he was near by, he would run out the front door. Usually when he was outside and "free", he would run and have me running after him, until finally he would run right back into the yard or into the house. Guinness liked the outdoors.

At home, Guinness had an imaginary friend who we used to call "Harpo". That seemed to begin after Caitie died. He would run around the house as if he were playing with someone who we couldn't see.

This is Harpo, Guinness's cyber-kitty

Besides being a great friend to me and Tom, Guinness was a great friend to Caitie and then Suzie. He and Caitie played and slept together. He really liked her. We were all sad when Caitie died.

When Suzie joined our family in June of 1991, she came with her brother Clancy. Guinness was curious about both of them and was friendly to both of them. In October, when Clancy died, Guinness totally adopted Suzie as his own. Although they were 8 years apart, Guinness would cuddle Suzie and sleep with her. They often would groom each other. So many times Guinness and Suzie would snuggle together and you couldn't tell where one cat stopped and the other one began. We have so many wonderful pictures of the two of them. Guinness definitely took care of Suzie.

Even at 16, Guinness enjoyed playing. He liked catnip. He enjoyed chasing strings and cat-dancer type toys. He liked playing ball with us. And we enjoyed playing with him.

Guinness was a jumping cat when he was younger. We used to say he was a gymnast. Sometimes we would call him "Bounces Off Walls". He could jump very high and almost reach the peep hole at the front door.

Guinness had lots of pet names. I would often call him Gee-gee or Geeg. And sometimes we would call him Ganesh ... even before we knew who Ganesh was! And I would call him Angel face. He was my sweet angel cat.

Guinness was definitely loved by us, by Suzie, and by many friends. I know we gave him a good life and that makes me happy. Our lives are all much richer for having known him. He taught me about unconditional love and I know I was blessed by having him in my life. He will be a part of us forever.

Guinness passed away on March 19, 2000. He was 16 years and 8 months old. Guinness was loved by so many people. He will be missed by everyone. Guinness died of kidney failure.

If you would like to make a donation in Guinness's memory, please consider donating to one of these charities:

Cornell Feline Health Center Information Page
Animal Rescue, Inc
Alley Animals

Here is a poem that Guinness helped me write.

I Work, TOO!

My job's important.

I nap for a while.

I watch what's happening
in the neighborhood.
The black car leaving at 9:00
with the lady driving.
The man in the small 
red, white and blue truck
stopping at each corner
putting papers in the metal boxes
then driving away.
The small, noisy people 
who carry books and bags
and run across the grass.
(Gee, I wish you'd let me run like that!)

I nap a little more.

I greet you at the door
and make you smile.
I tell you what happened here today,
but you don't understand me.
Still, you are glad to see me.

I eat--I nap.

I sit beside you.
That makes you calm
and chases away your daily stress.
I meditate.

And just when you are ready
for the evening's quiet,
I run in circles
through the living room, kitchen,
dining room and hallway
making my special nighttime sounds.
You call it "the crazies"
but it's all part of my job.

Then I settle in for the night
close beside you
and purr.


Kira
November 1988