My Chronic Pain Buddies

I wouldn't be able to do any of this (life) without the help of my different buddies I've had throughout my life. I have always found comfort with animals, and have been very lucky to have grown up with pets and continued to have the joy of pets throughout my life.

Before introducing my current crew of buddies, I want to introduce the ones who were with me through most of my life but unfortunately are not here anymore. They began my love of animals, were with me in the days when I thought my pain was normal, snuggled with me through thunderstorms and migraines, and showed me the incredible and incomparable love that pets can show.

My first baby, my sweet Hermione. Hermione was with us for 23(?) years - she was born in the storm drain outside of our house. She was part of the Harry Potter litter where my older sister, Charlotte, who had just discovered her love of the new series, was given the honor of naming the kittens. Hermione was always a wild cat at heart and absolutely ruled our house as new pets were added. Hermie was always in charge. As she got older, she became more and more snuggly (or at least tolerant of us snuggling her) and I will always be thankful to have grown up with such a beautiful and independent lady.

Up next was Twist, our first "family" dog - in reality, Twist was Charlotte's baby. Twisty was a sweet and gentle baby who was simply happy to be there, wherever "there" was. She was not a fan of 4th of July fireworks or thunderstorms but loved pretty much everything else that existed. As far as first dogs go, I think we couldn't have been luckier. She set the standard and a high bar for dogs in our homes.

While he isn't next chronologically, unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to our sweet boy Moose in 2024. Moose was an angel sent to my family at a time when all of us needed him. He was not the adult, small, female dog we intended to rescue, but he was the exact dog we needed. With his giant dinner plate paws and floppy ears, Moose had to come home with us the second we met him in 2014. The definition of a gentle giant, Moose showed us all what unconditional love was. I miss him every day. I am lucky to have had my sweet Moose and to have known that for those almost 10 years, I had my safe spot when I got home - curled up on him. He was my biggest (literally) chronic pain buddy, he made me laugh even on my worst nights, and I strive to live a life he would wag his tail at.

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My babies...

...Yes one of my babies is a lizard.

Echo, Stanley, and Oberon, my sweet baby angels. Echo, my chunky girl, joined me first. Echo got to meet Twist, Moose, and Hermione and loved them all (especially Moose). She smells like honey and tolerates my need to squish her all the time. She continues to grow more and more cuddly and for that, I am always thankful. Next is Stanley, my grey demon... I didn't know it was possible to put so much personality into such a small creature. Stanley lives to annoy his sister Echo, to push things off of counters, to yell, to randomly decide he needs attention, and to make people laugh. Stanley is a source of constant entertainment and has quite a fanbase. Baby Oberon...the one who isn't a cat...is my special odd little guy. He feels like walking velvet, he likes to be held, he causes no problems, and he licks his eyeballs. I love him.

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While they are not technically "my" buddies, no one has told Ivan & Bean that. My sister got Bean when she was in college, and goofy Ivan joined the mix with my sister's husband Ben.

They are the silliest little balls of chaos and they keep me on my toes. I will happily watch them any time and am always thankful when I have two extra little guys to snuggle.

My other babies that aren't actually mine are my boyfriend Tom's family pets: Max and Squirt. Max is the sweetest of boys who is always happy when I'm in Canada because that means he is allowed on the bed. Squirt is not the biggest fan of Max or really anyone/anything that takes Tom's attention away from her. The day Squirt decided that I was a sufficient backup human when Tom was busy was a big deal for me. Having her little pink nose pop-up on FaceTime will always make me smile.

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I just like animals is the point.