Sometime soon I will write post “The Departed”, remembering kitties who appeared in my “Cats of University Heights” series that no longer live in the neighborhood. Many are gone because their owners moved elsewhere. Others are missing or confirmed deceased; coyotes are major suspected, or confirmed, cause.
This fine feline is very much alive, or he was when I captured the Featured Image two days ago. Ash is alone now. In November 2017, his yard mate Booger was hit by a car on the SR-163 entrance ramp, which is down an embankment close to his former home. Ash’s other cat companion, Sebastian, vanished in late October 2022.
The magnificent longhair is about eight years old and vision-impaired, which is a polite way of saying mostly blind. If not sleeping, shorthair Sebastian would ask for pats. Ash always maintains distance, usually close to the house.
Thanks to Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra‘s 10x zoom lens, I can finally present a closeup, which is composed as captured. Vitals: f/4.9, ISO 126, 1/60 sec, 230mm (film equivalent); 12:34 p.m. PST.