It is a heart-wrenching decision. But tonight, with balloons aloft and pictures of Sneakers around the house, our youngest daughter, able to understand the gravity of what's happening, will toast our cat and celebrate our love for her.
Her older sister already has. Away at college, she wrote on her blog how she feels about Sneaky, and tomorrow's tough decision. "My mom, step-mom and father are all going to be there. Every part of my life combining under one roof to celebrate the life of this adorable cat, who we have all cared so much about and given so much love. It's so hard to imagine that I will never see her again, that she'll never come butt her head against my leg, or jump on my stomach. I'm having such a hard time with it – I feel so helpless because I'm not there to comfort Sneakers, Emily, my brother, my sister, my mom, my step-mom, and most of all my dad, who has put the most energy of anyone into her 14 years of life. I keep thinking of all of them at the vet's, and just crying because they're all there caring about one animal that we all helped raise, even when our family was in disarray."
So, Sneakers, as we celebrate your whacky but loveable personality tonight, I know that you leave behind three children who hold you dear, who remember you and what you have meant to their childhood, and who, as my beautiful daughter just wrote, may have learned something about how to express their love, beautifully. Farewell Sneakers.
With a heavy heart, we move on to tonight's 11 p.m. newscast.
They say politics make strange bed fellows, and tonight what a strange coupling in the campaign for universal Pre-K. New York Mayor de Blasio hosted today by New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan for a tour of a pre-k classroom at a Catholic school in the Bronx.
Both want universal Pre-K. But on other important issues they hardly see eye to eye, especially on the issue of abortion. But the more the merrier, when it comes to education, right? The best line of the day: A young boy offering his insight as the Mayor and the Cardinal leave the room: "I wish President Obama came." To which his teacher responds: "This is next to the President. That's the Mayor."
Meanwhile, the battle over education in New York City continues – and we'll have any new developments tonight at 11.
Also at 11, we're trying to learn more about that deadly fire in Jersey City that apparently killed a Bishop, his wife, and their two children. There was a delay of several minutes getting firefighters to the fire – after they were sent to the wrong address at first. Did that big delay cost lives? We're taking a closer look tonight.
We'll also have any breaking news of the night, plus Meteorologist Lee Goldberg with how long this frigid air will be around, and Laura Behnke (in for Rob Powers) with the night's sports. I hope you can join Sade Baderinwa and me, tonight at 11.
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