KHW

Last night we lost a beloved member of our Rhinecliff family. Max was taking the evening breezes of Shatzell Avenue when he was hit by a driver leaving the train station.

While we all grieve for our loss and send our deepest sympathy to Stacey, we remember Max for his joie de vivre.

Everyone has their own story of meeting Max but Sean met him while working with Sue at Sie Designs. Office Max was the one often found lounging on the desks if his usual chair was otherwise occupied.

I first became acquainted with Max when the jingle of his collar and tag announced the arrival of an exceedingly handsome striped cat wandering down Grinnell. He kept me company as I gardened and then tried to follow me inside. He did not become adopted by us until Stacey was stranded in Boston during an ice storm and we couldn’t say no to the tap tap tapping at our door. So, there and then he started a friendship with our cats and consequently our friendship with Stacey.

Max continued his benevolent reign of Rhinecliff hitting all parties (more pettings), heading down to China Rose for drinks, keeping an eye on the architecture biz, and making himself at home with Freddy for Christmas evenings. Stacey graciously allowed Max the run of the neighborhood and didn’t seem to mind that we now counted him as our half cat. He spent Thanksgivings with us celebrating, afternoons working on computers with Sean and then evenings on our couch watching television with Koia and Frances, sometimes we would have sleepovers with Max usually heading home around 6 in the morning. Yes, Max was even on our holiday card last year as part of the family.

I think in the back of everyone’s mind was the concern for the many cars that speed through Rhinecliff, but Max was a man about town and we all knew to keep an eye out for him as he would saunter the streets. Rhinecliff is the place to live if you’re a cat – food at every doorstep, people to cater to your whims and needs, and lots of adoring fans. Unfortunately everyone doesn’t share the same sensibilities and care and so we count the number of beloved pets who have perished at the wheels of speeding vehicles.

Thank you Max for making our lives much happier, you are missed so very much!

I realize that there are so many Max stories that keep coming to mind, stories that aren’t special except to us: Max being territorial about “other cats” that dared to visit our property, Max wanting to come in but being frightened of the Queen Anne’s Lace, the way he announced himself by padding at our front and then back doors to make sure that we had heard him, Max taking a walk all around the neighborhood with us, and once all the way to the dock and back, when Gabe & Nancy heard that he would be visiting his grandparents for the summer and missing their wedding, Gabe’s first words were, “but I had khakis and a linen shirt all set for him to wear”. Max flirted with everyone and had the ability to make everyone feel like he had a special place in his heart for only him or her.

Please feel free to share any and all Max memories; doing so will keep him close.

Stacey is asking that anyone interested in making donations do so to Animalkind, Inc. or to the SPCA of Dutchess or Ulster. There will be a memorial service for Max and I will let you know when Stacey has a date for the gathering. In the meantime, click here or on Max’s pic to view a slideshow.

Since writing my last post, I have contemplated writing many times but other things have taken precedence; not sure what they were but I’m sure they were terribly important.

For instance, Nan & Gabe got married, went on a honeymoon, and are now settling in happily to married life. Honey, our ’66 Corvair is back home after receiving a gorgeous paint job. Jamie & Christy have welcomed Rusty Trawler – a ’76 BMW motorcycle – into their lives even as they plan their upcoming nuptials. And most recently we all are celebrating the birth of [mypicref=145]Paige Ellyn Sheppard[/mypicref].

Unfortunately, though we have been loving the joys of scootering around Rhinecliff (and even going as far as the Country Inn in Krumville), we have been somewhat disappointed in the performance of Stella. Since getting her in April, we have been stranded in the Rondout and Port Ewen on a Friday evening, and unable to get out of our driveway on several occasions. After many expletives and phone conversations, Sean had to spend a day in Connecticut at the dealership, Scooter Centrale, having her “fixed”, where they also performed & charged for an unauthorized 500 mile service on the scooter. This was made all the more irritating by the fact that the odometer has been faulty from day one and registering more miles than traveled by approximately 20%, it hadn’t actually reached 500 miles yet. Two weeks later… same problem. After another discussion on the phone and having a piece ordered (the reason for buying a new scooter was so that Sean did not have to work on it) we thought we were good to go. Stella was a trouper for another 2 weeks and then after some sputters and less than “stell(er)” performance, we called Scooter Centrale again and requested a pickup for servicing. We really missed having her for the past 2 weeks of lovely scooting weather, only to be told on her very expensive return that the problem was something they used to see a lot… and yet missed at her first 6 hour visit to Scooter Centrale.

Scooters rock, the gas mileage is phenom, we really encourage others to try out the 2 wheeling fun and we adore Stella but will be looking for a new place for servicing.

On a happier note, don’t forget about the Morton Memorial Library Book Sale (etc.) on October 28th and 29th.