No Good Deed Goes Un-Punished - Saving a Cat Really Bites!

This past week was a rough week overall for me, the Anti-Johnny. This post is a rare step away from the dealings and mis-dealings of Johnny Northside & Company in North Minneapolis.
About 1000 miles south of the corruption in NoMi, I decided to tell the story of the utter, emotional and physical roller coaster week I just endured.

Most people who have followed this blog or knows me personally know that one of my life-long interests has been my owning dogs. They are so much more reliable and trustworthy (and loyal) than any one person I have ever met. So, when something happens with one of my dogs, everything in my day to day life gets put on hold until the issue is tended to.
This past Tuesday, December 21, 2010, I decided it was time to take my golden retriever, Sam (he and his late brother Alex are referred to as the "Bumbling Brothers"), to the vet after he had gone several days without being able to keep anything he ate down.

I am telling people what happened with Sam this past week to lead into the main story.
The vet diagnosed Sam as being in kidney failure and needed to be left there if I chose to have them treat him versus putting him to sleep (which was suggested due to the advanced stage of the illness).
The vet sent me home after telling me to prepare for putting him to sleep when I come back the next day because, Sam's blood test revealed lethal levels of toxins in his blood stream and that he was stunned Sam was alive with such high levels of toxins present.

That was hard for me to face and I still have a hard time dealing with the loss of Sam's brother who passed away this past summer. I have had three dogs now for years and within a 6 month period, I was faced with having only one still with me.
I got a bit of a Christmas present this morning when I got a call from the vet who has been treating Sam all week (after I asked him to) and he told me that the blood test results he took this morning shows there has been little improvement but, he has continued to eat and he suggested I bring Sam home as he will be more comfortable with me and my other dog for the short amount of time he has left. As long as he is not in pain and is not suffering, I refuse to put him to sleep when I can spend that time with him and make his last days as nice as possible.

Before I got to today, I went to the vet's office on Thursday (23rd) to visit Sam and when I got out of my car, I saw three older people trying to get a kitten to come out from under a car. I offered to help and when I got down on the ground to reach for it.... The Cat took off!
The owner of the cat (looked to be in her mid-70's) watched frantic as it ran towards a 45 degree, concrete drainage wall that led to the creek about 15 feet down from where we were in the parking lot.

I was the only one there who was in shape enough to take off after the cat. It ran down the wall and jumped to the other side of the creek where it narrowed. This was about 9:30 in the morning and it had been in the lower 30's the night before and had not warmed up much at all. The creek water was freezing cold and I just hoped that the cat wouldn't fall in as it was running right at the edge of the water.

About 150 yards from where we started from, I saw some huge rocks ahead of us that the cat wouldn't be able to get past. Either I would catch it or it would have to jump over the water about 6-7 feet to the other side. As I got closer to it, the cat jumped toward the other side. It landed in the middle of the creek where the current swept it further away and pushed the cat under several fallen branches near the shore but, it was clearly trapped.

With the cat being about the size of an adult squirrel, I knew it would not take long for the cold water to render the cat unable to move and would die soon after. I jumped over the water but, landed about a foot from the shore (yes it was COLD) and reached for the kitten's tail. I pulled it out from under the branches and picked it up by the rough of its neck and out of the water.
The other people were walking along the top of the wall to get to where I was and I yelled for them to get the cat carrier and to throw it down to me. The wall had leaves all over it and with one hand holding the cat, there was no way I could climb up that wall.

A few seconds later the cat started to wriggle around trying to get away and it made me use my free hand to adjust the cat when.... The little kitten, with razor sharp claws and equally sharp baby fangs, BIT ME!
I jerked the cat and it let go but, it was only to get a better grip and I could only stand there (screaming from the pain as well) as I watched its fangs dig into my middle finger down to the bone!
To make the pain even worse... It didn't let go for more than 10 seconds. That pain was intense!
I wanted to slap the cat against the rocks I was standing on but, with the owner looking on in panic, I decided to not let go of the cat.

A minute later the carrier was tossed down to me, I got the cat in it and pushed it up the wall and carried it inside the vet's office. When I set the carrier down, several employee's came to me and took me to a sink to clean the bites and stop the bleeding. About 10 minutes after they had it cleaned and poured iodine on it (THAT hurt like hell also), I pulled out my phone and took a picture of my hand.

The old woman was overly thankful for me saving the cat and even told me that it was a very sweet, loving cat. Of course, I held up my hand to protest her opinion. The vet told me that cat bites can become infected easily and told me to go to a doctor as soon as I left. The owner offered me some money for the medical costs but, I refused it since, she never asked me to chase after her cat and it was my choice to go after it.
She thanked me and left. When I was leaving myself, the receptionist gave me a $100 bill and told me that the old woman had left it with her to give to me so, I would have to take it.

So far the bites have not become infected and the pain has mostly gone away but.... Being that I am a dog person and never cared for cats before... I don't think I will be so quick to take off chasing another cat that gets loose anytime soon.

I did wonder after all of this happened if Johnny Northside would ever even think of doing something like I did? My vote is that John would rather blog about a courageous cat that was lost after "getting away" from him and blah blah blah lol.
I made a fun-to-follow map (thank you Google earth) that shows the area the cat chase happened in.

Is Email Private? Not To Johnny Northside

The following was posted by Johnny Northside AKA John Hoff AKA John Hoffman, the dumpster diving legend on his blog, Johnnynorthside.com in the comments:
http://adventuresofjohnnynorthside.blogspot.com/2008/11/hnc-housing-director-jeff-skrenes-is.html

"Johnny Northside said...
On another note: Yet ANOTHER comment rejected from Jim Watkins, the "Anti-Johnny," who also states he didn't say Jeff looked like an "out-of-work porn star," but "an out-of-work porn store JANITOR" in an email he thought was "private."
Whatever, evil Anti-Johnny."

What is your take on it? John Hoff thinks it is his First Amendment right to say what he wants as free speech. Johnny Northside has had all kinds of fun by taking words written by others and plastering them all over the Internet, hoping it will have a negative impact on that person and "what are they going to do about it?" he would say.

I read the blog post and saw that Johnny had posted a comment that I had written in an email to him, not to the public and therefore, I assumed it was private. I wrote a reply to be posted in the comments and here is a copy of what I wrote:
_____________________
"This is yet another example of how you have mis-quoted me. My words were taken from what I considered to be a private email from me to you but... I am not the only one who has learned that nothing they say to you is private.
Anyway....My comment about Jeff was in reference to the story USA Today published in May about North Minneapolis. A picture of Jeff was printed in that article and I commented to you (in the email) that he (Jeff) "looks like an out of work porn store janitor."
I didn't say he looked like an out of work porn star.
Might as well approve the comment for your blog, John.
Since you made my comment (mis-quoted at that) public, I felt the least you could do is get the quote correct.
-Jim
PS... I ordered your books. I can't wait to read them!
_____________________

Johnny didn't approve my comments (surprise) but, he couldn't pass up a chance to toot his own... whatever it is. At least he is admitting he dumps comments submitted.
_____________________

"Johnny Northside said...
On another note: Yet ANOTHER comment rejected from Jim Watkins, the "Anti-Johnny," who also states he didn't say Jeff looked like an "out-of-work porn star," but "an out-of-work porn store JANITOR" in an email he thought was "private."
Whatever, evil Anti-Johnny."
______________________

So... How about we take a look at what the Northside Crusader says to people in his own emails? He isn't quite so warm & fuzzy when he's not glorifying himself on his blog or others.
Shortly after I started the Mis-Adventures of Johnny Northside blog, I got an email from John Hoff. Apparently, my blog was not doing him any favors and he politely asked me to discontinue posting on it. Well thats not exactly how he said it. The bold text shows how passionate he is about bullying people to back down. You have to wonder what it is he is trying so hard to protect for him to go to this extreme. Maybe John thought this email was "private" too?
______________________

From John Hoff hoffx106@umn.edu September 1, 2008:
Jim, I am indeed THAT busy. I type fast. And I'm not up for a long phone call. You have a tremendous opportunity to BACK THE HELL OFF, JIM so I won't be forced to "First Amendment retaliate" with a posting about "who is Jim Watkins" which will have you wearing un-removable egg on your face for the rest of your life or as long as our civilization has the internet, whichever is longer.
I did it to you once BY ACCIDENT on the Bigger Pockets blog, so imagine what could happen ON PURPOSE?
The expert opinion in my possession about your unpublished woe-is-me article, and your unpublished article itself gives me all the metaphorical ammunition I need to put a hole in your real-estate teaching ship. I really prefer not to do that, however, simply because it is ugly and personal and therefore unpleasant. But maybe I need to think of the good of the students. Maybe it's my duty to expose you as a fraud, especially when you are out there saying I'm the fraud.
I think you can see how the course of action I have in mind becomes tempting. And I'm not the one who started the unfriendly tone, either, you did that when you blew your stack over some stupid non-remark I hardly even made about your (alleged) girlfriend.
We didn't start out as friends, Jim, so why should you expect me to walk on eggshells about whether you have a real or imaginary girlfriend?

Two can play the pissed off and retaliating in the blog-o-sphere game, Jim, and I'm the pig who revels in muddy controversy while you're the just-barely holding-his-shit-together real estate teacher who lives in a glass house. If you even own a house at this point. If you don't live with your GRANDMOTHER. You really can't afford to have me pissed off, Jim, but I prefer not to battle somebody I have personally liked at some point. It feels too much like my former marriage. But I won't defend myself with one hand tied behind my back forever.
You press the DELETE button and I put down the mud pie and we both go our merry way: me to helping the North Side and you to trying to rebuild your real estate teaching career after one of your ventures went seriously south. And when you're up here, if you like, we can do lunch. Or not. Doesn't matter to me either way.
John

How Long Until Northside Residents Hate Him?

I found Johnny Northside's (apparent) last article he wrote in May for the Minnesota Daily.
Well 'ol Johnny Boy went on in his typical self-promoting ways about how the U of M should send the "Party Patrol" to the northside to help out, etc.

I laughed my ASS off when I read the lone comment that followed the article. I have taken the honor of copying it to post for all to see here.

"Carpboy823 from U of M writes:
Thank God that John Hoff is looking out for the betterment of the community and not just himself. You're right, we should take away the police sources that the U of M doesn't need as its students are attacked on the streets and raped in the dorms and give them to North Minneapolis, where you "just so happen" to live. And oh! Let's move there too so your home value can rise and you can be the savior of urban America. Thanks for your three years at the U, Mr. Hoff - now go away and never look back. Good luck as a desperate, self-serving blogger, but leave us alone and spare us your shameless self-advertisement in your columns. Maybe you'll finally be knocked off the high horse that you think you sit on, looking over this weak University. Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey, goodbye! "

I don't think anyone could have said it better! However, I sure as hell want to try! C'mon people, submit your opinions!