They've done it!!

The dad said we all ready know what my name is; we were just all denying it the whole time. He may have been right; it’ll take some time to get used to the name for the mom and the kids. But, I like it, and every time they would call me that when they were trying on names, even if they said it silently in their minds, I would give the approving eye blink… you know the one, a confirmation blink with both eyes as in “yes, you people have done well.”

So this weekend the mom just said to everyone, “I want to name this cat, and I want it done now.” That’s when the dad said you already know what his name is. You see the dad was the hardest one to win over when it was time to get a cat. The mom had waited something like 12 years to have a kitty of her very own, but circumstances always seemed to make it impossible, and the dad never really wanted ANY pet. Then the family moved into a very nice rental house that didn’t mind the idea of a cat. So the family begged after many years, and the Dad finally said yes, “but I want to name him Indra,” he had said.

Well by the time we got the kitten after waiting on the litter to be old enough—very long cold winter days—from his birth at Christmas, It was Feb 25, the kitten was exactly 8 weeks old and just got its final round of necessary shots etc, and the trip to Chicago was planned. When the mom checked the weather it called for some rain and unseasonably warm temperatures, like in the 40’s. “Great that’s not snow, that’s definitely rain,” thought the mom, and continued with that planned trip with out hesitation.

Well overnight in the hotel room, in Northern Illinois there was indeed a snow storm, but it was at night and all the roads to the breeder’s—named, “Happy” had been cleared by morning. Green Light! Then at the Happy’s house, my new mommy’s mom (the grandma) called on her cell, (she lives in New Mexico) and said “a big storm is heading your way, you are going to drive right in to it” “okay, mom, I’ll call you back when I am on the road,” said my new mommy. At that moment they were very busy meeting me for the very first time, falling in love with me, and holding me with great love and joy; there was no time to think about storms and other such inconvenient things.

Well somewhere along the way between Thursday Night and Saturday Afternoon that rain that the Mom had seen on the weather map had indeed turned into a very very spooky ice storm. Now anyone who’s ever been in an “ice storm” knows you sure as heck don’t want to get caught driving in it. Well the crazy Dad and Mom decided to not heed the grandmas warning, and to continue with their plans to drive on through, not knowing yet that it was actually going to be an I-C-E storm, they still thought they would just run into some snow—something they’ve managed before. Looking back, not the best idea. The moment we drove across the state line, we moved from the smooth roads and clear skies in Western Illinois, into Eastern Iowa, we did come upon a snow storm. And then we what we saw… dozens of cars and semis littering the meridians and ditches off the side of this major Interstate…many of them jack-knifed or just plain facing the wrong direction! It was like dooms day. The interstate, which usually is very well kept in wintery conditions, looked like the end of the world had come, like in that one movie. The mom had thought, well if the storm were really that bad, wouldn’t they have close I-80. Then… what’s that sound? The sound of broken glass. The car was driving over ice that sounded just like broken glass, creepy! Crawling at 15 mph on the interstate even that slow was scary. Eventually the police did close the Interstate, and detour everyone. Miles and miles and miles of “stranded” cars and semis had to crawl 10 – 15 mph on the back farm roads through microscopic towns with no gas stations, hotels, or grocery stores, for hours – not the best time to own a standard transmission car that’s for sure. Finally after hours, we drove what would have taken 1 hour in good weather, we ended up in Iowa City, a mid sized college town 60 mi north of home, Half the town had no power, and the people were tired and starving. After hours of searching through one hotel after another that were all full, many of them with no power, we finally found a room for the night. Seriously one of the most stressful times and worst weather conditions known to my family. What-a-Storm! Duh!

The next morning the weather was clear and so were roads, and it was almost as though that terrible night never happened. The ice melted and the skies were gorgeous. So it was off to Fairfield with us. What a night, what a storm. The Mom or Dad had never experienced anything quite like it, and they’ve seen quite a few nasty storms in the past.

Well what does this have to do with my name? Dad had already picked out Indra before he even met me. Who is Indra? In ancient Indian Culture, he is the god of weather and war, He is the storm God; also known as Shri Indra, the god of thunder; being similar in many ways to the Teutonic Thor (Old Norse Þorr; Old English Þunor; German Donner), or Greek Zeus/Roman Jupiter. My Daddy knew who I was the moment he saw a picture of me when I was 4 weeks old. I guess everyone just had to get used to the idea and try on every name in the book before settling. One version of the name Indra is Sachin, it just seemed to fit me and I am glad my Dad knew this. All the kids and people thought that Indra was too feminine sounding, even though… it’s definitely not a girly name if you know what it means.

So I have a name and apparently always did.

I can’t wait to grow up with my new family. I love them and I am glad that they know I am a warrior by nature, I thought that storm they drove through when they picked me up was a good enough clue, but it took them long enough to agree. I am happy, they don’t get mad at me for be such a warrior, and in fact they spend a lot of time training me. But my mommy will always try to take pictures of me when I am sleepy so she can keep on believing that I am a cute little fuzz ball. W-H-A-T-E-V-E-R, mom.

I would like to thank everyone for all there awesome ideas and support. My mom wants to compile all the names she’s collected and maybe post them somewhere on catster in one place for anyone who may want to have a little help with a name.

Thanks again to everyone

-Sachin

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