Hobey, 1995-2014
Submitted by Sarah D. Bunting on March 28, 2014 – 3:04 PM213 Comments
Professor Sunbeam, June 2013
One time, years ago, I started making a list of all the nicknames I had for the Hobe: Orangino. Hobey Wan. Clicks. Herr Mittenspiel. Grampy. Creamsicle. Tolstoy.
I stopped after, like, 37, because it was still only a fraction of the list, because he would keep licking a plastic bag like a big weirdo no matter what I called him, because they all meant the same thing, the thing all nicknames mean, that he was known, that he was loved.
And he is, more than all his names can say.
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Tags: friends orange cats
I’m so very sorry for your loss.
So very, very sorry.
Aww, Hobey. I’m nowhere near a cat person (and allergic to boot), but I loved reading about yours. So sorry for your loss.
Oh no! I’ll miss the Hobes even though I’ve never met him.
I’m so sorry, Sars. Hobey always sounded like he had such a wonderful life with you, and you with him. Lot of love in a little (big) cat. Our hearts are with you.
I’m so sorry for your loss. So hard to say goodbye to our fur babies. You gave Hobey a good life. :)
Oh Sars, I am so sorry to hear of your loss. Your stories about Hobey have always shone through with a special light that told us all how well he was loved and how much he brought to your life.
I’m so sorry for the loss of your furry friend. Way back in the early 2000s, a co-worker introduced me to Tomato Nation, and one of the first essays I read was regarding the antics of your cats (Hobey & Little Joe.) It had me laughing so hard I was crying. I was hooked from then on.
Oh no. So sad for you, Sars. I think we’ll all miss the Big Orange Guy :(
Sweet dreams, Hobey.
The end of a TN era, it seems :( I am so very sorry Sars. As a cat-addict myself I know what a hole they leave when it’s their time to go. I’m sitting ere teary-eyed over I cat I never met (but feel I knew thanks to you) and I know it’s so much harder for you.
Your love for him though came through loud and clear in your stories about him, even the slightly irritated ones :) Hobey knew he was loved, for sure.
Hobey was loved by many and will be missed by many, but none more than you. My thoughts are with you and I’m sending a virtual big hug. I’m so sorry for your loss.
Just saw the announcement, Sars. I’m so very sorry for your loss. You always made it clear how greatly loved he was.
I am very sorry for your loss. I know what an unproportionally big emptiness a small furball leaves, when not around anymore. I too have read your cat stories with much pleasure over the years and loved Hobeys specialness. The memories of him will stay with you and with the Tomato Nation for ever.
Oh, Sars – my deepest condolences. My kitty Pete just turned 18 and the life he’s lived with our family, the tales we can tell, mean so much. He’s shaped our family as much as any other member, human or not, as I know Hobey and Little Joe have done for you. Treasure your memories. Much love – J
Aw, Hobe. The first thing I ever, ever read here was Hobey’s diary. My sympathies.
So sorry, Sars. I’ve long enjoyed reading Hobey’s adventures here on TN. I lost my pretty little girl Casey just over a month ago, and I still hate the sound of coming home to an empty apartment, so I can appreciate what you’re going through. From a selfish standpoint, Hobey was the source of a lot of laughs I got from your writing, and I’ll miss that, but much more importantly, he was your constant companion for almost 20(!) years, so I can only imagine what you’re going through. Still, I’m glad that you had so much time with him. He’s forever a part of you, and that’s something to smile about.
I’m so sorry for your loss. Like many here, I’ve always loved and related to your cat tales. The kitties, they somehow manage to sink their little claws deeply into our hearts…just like they do with the furniture. Hope you’re doing as well as possible.
Well, that just sucks. I’m so sorry, Sarah. He was a well loved cat.
O Sars, I’m so very sorry. I know you’ll miss him every day and hope that you know he loved you very much. Everyone here will miss him too.
I’m so sorry to hear about Hobey. Furry friends are the best, and losing them is the worst.
Oddly enough, his namesake also passed away over the weekend.
Oh, Hobey! (Which my autocorrect wanted to change to “honey,” which I bet could be a name for him, too.) I am so sorry. What a beloved kitty.
I am seriously crying. Rest in Peace, Hobey Cat…
Sars, so sorry for your loss. You wrote it a million years ago, but I often still think of this: “I am ORANGE Louis Braille!”
I’m so sorry for your loss. Your writing about the cats has brought me a lot of happiness in a lot of sad, up-too-late-on-the-Internet moments, and I said essentially the same thing on the post about Little Joe and you don’t know me from Adam, but it’s true. You and Mabel are in my thoughts.
I’m sitting here bawling as I loved all your Hobe stories. I’m so sorry for you loss Sarah! Hugs!
Hobey and TWOP die in the same week. I guess it makes sense. They were both pretty well intertwined in my head.
I am so very sorry for your loss.
I am so sorry, Sars.
Sarah, I’m so very sorry for your loss. I’m not sure if you saw this or not, but Hobie Alter, creator of the Hobie Cat, died on Saturday. I found that both eerie and somehow weirdly comforting at the same time. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/01/sports/hobie-alter-surfboard-and-sailboat-innovator-dies-at-80.html?_r=0
The end of an era. I’m sorry, Sars.
This has to mean something, but I’m not sure what:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/01/sports/hobie-alter-surfboard-and-sailboat-innovator-dies-at-80.html?rref=obituaries&module=ArrowsNav&contentCollection=Television&action=click®ion=FixedLeft&pgtype=article
“Hobie Alter, Innovator of Sailing and Surfing, Dies at 80
By DENNIS HEVESIMARCH 31, 2014
Hobie Alter, who was known as the Henry Ford of the surfboard industry for his manufacturing innovations and who used his idle time to create the Hobie Cat, the lightweight, double-hulled sailboat that achieved worldwide popularity, died on Saturday at his home in Palm Desert, Calif. He was 80.”
I’m so sorry! Sweet little Hobey. Thank you for sharing him with your readers over the years <3
So sorry for your loss, Sars. Always loved the stories of Little Joe and The Hobe. Goodnight, sweet boy.
You made Hobey and Little Joe feel like our pets as much as they were yours. I’m saddened and heartbroken by your loss. May Hobe share (well as much as those two shared anything, heh.) some canned tuna with little joe in the great cat scratching post in the sky. *sniff*
I’m so sorry. I always loved reading about Hobey (and Joe, and now Mabel too), and in fact just about a week ago I had a hankering to read the tale of the cats on the deck and laugh my face right off. Hobey brought me a lot of joy and hilarity, as did Joe, and I’ll always remember them, the adorable weirdos.
Having a pet that gives you constant love is one of the best gifts that life gives you. Having to say goodbye to that pet is one of life’s hardest challenges.
Know that Hobey had a great life, a great Mom, and a great big fan (Little Joe, obviously.) We are so very sorry for your loss, Sarah. Bless you for being so good to your beloved kitty.
Stanny and J
I’m so very sorry for your loss. Stories of Hobey (and Little Joe) have always been one of my favorite parts of TN, but since I was lucky enough to be cat-mom to one who could have been Hobey’s twin (and went by “Hubby”) I was always especially fond of your Hobey-stories. May he rest in peace.
Again, very sorry for your loss Sars. On the off chance Hobey was named for the boat,(the Hobie cat) the man who the boat was named for passed recently too.
Interesting guy.
http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/20140401__Innovators_designs_brought_surfing_sailing_to_masses_.html?id=253337321
Take good care of yourself.
So sorry for your loss, Sars. He was known and he was loved and he will be missed.
I’m so sorry, Sars. Thinking of you!
I hope Mr. Alter forgives me for spelling his feline, uh, alter ego’s name wrong. I really did think it was “Hobey,” probably from four years of looking at Hobey Baker Rink at the alma mater.
Thanks so much, everyone. Your thoughts and understanding have really made this easier.
I’m so sorry, Sars.
I am sorrier than I can possibly say. He will be missed-but his memory will last a long, long, time.
So sorry to hear, Sars. RIP Hobey-Wan. I hope you’re frolicking and/or sleeping curled up in a ball in the sun with Little Joe.
This is so sad. I add my voice to the many who have enjoyed reading about Hobey over the years. I still laugh when I think about the disbelief and outrage when the Roomba added insult to injury and dared to go after THE FOOD. Thanks for sharing him with all of us.
I’m so, so sorry, Sars.
I just now saw this; what a shock! Ooohhhhh Sars, I am so sorry about Hobey! He was such a personality, and I know you must miss him—and Little Joe—tremendously. Selfishly, we will all miss reading about his exploits, but he did lead a good, long life. And yes, he will live on in Tomato Nation.
So very sorry to hear this. I love your cat essays and loved Hobey and Little Joe. I hope you’re coping. RIP Hobey, you big orange hunk of love.
Oh, Sarah, I’m so sorry! :(
So very sorry. The only truly bad thing about having fur babies is they won’t make it to the end with you. You just get them for short bursts of happiness.