one hundred forty one

remember how i hate cats?
well i accidentally ran one over last weekend...
first of all, it was 4 in the morning (isn't that past its bedtime and therefore it shouldn't have been out?), i was driving with my brights on because i know there are always lots of deer up where i was driving through, and it instantaneously darted in front of my car (if cats are really as smart as cat lovers claim them to be, why in the world would it see a pair of speeding head lights and chose to cross its path just at that moment?). i felt so bad and wanted to rush it to the animal hospital but it was kind of dead. the good news (i'm being an optimist here) is that it didn't suffer because my dandy of a car kindly broke it's neck instead of letting it be mangled and bloody across the asphalt. i was totally in shock but then i got home and saw roxy and thought about if someone had hit her and suddenly found myself in hysterics. as much as i wish it were a ferrell stray, it's claws were clipped and it was clean and well fed and it breaks my heart to think that i killed someone's beloved pet. if it had a collar on i would have taken it home and offered the measly suggestion of buying them a new one, but it didn't. aren't cats supposed to have 9 lives or something? technically my front and rear wheels both hit it so that would use up two lives, but what about the other seven?! what a slacker! so i am counting my blessings that i didn't strike something more substantial (like a moose), and would like to send my deepest regrets into the universe for whatever family chose to get a cat, not put a collar on it, and allow it to run right in front of my car.