The blog I never thought I'd be posting... at least not for a few years.

A week ago, tragedy struck. Sounds dramatic but actually it was quite sad. I was calling for my kitties which I routinely do when they are outside so I can make sure that they are safe. Smokey didn't answer. Knowing that he was usually safe, I wasn't terribly concerned when he didn't come when called. What alerted me to a problem however was when I heard neighbors mention the thai word for "cat" There are hardly any cats in the neighborhood outside of my two. I looked down from my balcony and saw a dog carrying a cat fitting Smokey's description. I ran downstairs in my pjs to locate the dog who wasn't in a hurry. His owner made him put the cat down and I ran to see if it was Smokey. Even though he didn't have his collar, I knew it was Smokey. I have no idea how he came to end up in harms way as he's usually so good at staying safe. But his facial expression told me that he was already gone when I arrived. I moved him to a spot across from my apt and went inside to cry. About 15-20 min later after I had changed, I looked out and Smokey was gone. I knew there was no way he had walked away. Unfortunately,  a week later I still don't know what happened to him. But the note I left for the neighbors didn't give me answers either. My coworker who has been in Thailand a while explained to me that perhaps the neighbor's who's dogs or dog was responsible probably buried him and then when I posted the note asking for his return, thought they did something wrong. There is a gang of dogs in the neighborhood. Their ring leader is a female who is somewhat afraid of me because I tend to act imposing in the face of her barking. I found Smokey's collar by the fence where most of those dogs live.
Ya Ya is learning to be an only kitty and she's got lots of complaints about it. I'm not sure if she knows what happened to her brother. He was a sweety that everyone who met him, loved. I have called him my teddy bear because of how gentle he was. He loved to play with his sister. I only hope that she can learn to adapt without him.
It's been difficult not having Smokey around. I didn't expect to lose him so suddenly. It's been very sad. The book I wrote in November had two cat stars and one was modeled after Smokey. So I haven't been able to edit for the past week for that reason.
I'm actually not going to get another cat. Ya Ya never got along with any other cat very well except her brother so I suspect it would be a war zone at home if I tried to bring her a friend. She growls at kittens.

The last picture I took of Smokey. It was his selfie.