Last Sunday morning (February 6, 2000) we lost Guthrie. His little heart just stopped beating

It was all so sudden with Guthrie that I still cannot believe that he is gone forever. Last Wednesday night I noticed that his heart was beating very fast and he had difficulties with breathing. I took him to the Emergency Hospital on Cleveland Avenue. From the x-rays doctor concluded that his heart valve was not working properly, which caused the accumulation of liquids in his lungs. But he still believed that by aggressive medication he could at least eliminate the liquids from his lungs. So, I left Guthrie in the hospital. They called me every day and it looked as Guthrie was recovering. I was supposed to pick him up on Sunday. But at 6 AM doctor called us with the sad news that Guthrie had a cardiac arrest and that he was no longer alive.

So, I am left alone. Perhaps time will heal to some extent the loss of Guthrie and I may be able to think about him without tears coming to my eyes, but the sadness will stay with me forever.

Ranko

Subject: Guthrie
Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:38:10 +0100
From: "Ivan Bojanic" (ibojanic@earthlink.net),
To: "Ranko Bojanic" (bojanic@math.ohio-state.edu),
"Mira Larick" (Mlarick@fa.adm.ohio-state.edu)

----- Original Message -----
From: Ivan Bojanic
To: scott lokey ; STEFAN FRAZIER ; Jelena Novikov ; kristan tucker ; alan tucker ; sundberg@geog.ubc.ca ; Linda Richey ; Mirjana Radic ; matthew chico palmer ; Carrie Norton ; Anna and Brad McPhail ; Maria.Ryan@allenovery.com ; Mary Maltbie ; outtapez@yahoo.com ; KSL123@aol.com ; Jennifer_Tomaino@ACML.COM ; Otto Imkin ; Bill Holmes ; Joe Harvell ; chris hart ; Brian Guthrie ; jenny fryzel ; Elizabeth Downhower ; Chris Deneen ; Miles Cortez ; holmes100@hotmail.com ; Wile E. ; achidsey@aol.com ; James Pyburn ; Jon Howland

Sent: Friday, February 11, 2000 6:35 PM

for some people who found themselves in a certain place and at a certain time, and maybe for those who didn't, it seemed like you could usually count on a couple of constants: good friends; dumb jobs; ubiquitous confusion; malt liquor in a brown bag on the front stoop; microwaved gas station food after last call; the elaborate monthly scramble to synchronize rent and phone bill payments so as to keep from getting evicted/disconnected without simultaneously bouncing checks. for some, there were also the quiet meanderings of a small and hairy black dog with one white paw and dr. seuss-like floorbuffer feet.

the latter, you might remember, was guthrie, the little spaniel-dachsund who spent the bulk of his days living in san antonio and austin, chasing slobbery balls and plastic pigs, patiently begging for meat or meat-flavored products and, with epic stoicism, humoring the freaks, bad haircuts and chaos which were a constant part of his life. when i left the states for the balkans 4 years ago, guthrie retired to a life of routine comfort, ball and non-stop meat with my family in ohio, a well-deserved life which agreed with him greatly. and now, it is with unbelievable sadness that i write to you tonight with the news that guthrie passed away this past weekend.

guthrie, known universally as "the guth", "mr. guthrie", "old guth" or simply "the man", had perhaps the largest collection of plastic pig toys in the canine kingdom and an equally expansive catalogue of endearingly precise, yet internally logical, philosophies and neuroses. he would walk to the edge of the yard and no further, and was the only dog i know who was attacked by birds. there was his strange obsession with a grotesque vinyl dog toy shaped as the head of george bush, which he chewed and swallowed, lobotomy-style , from the top of the head down. we not only had to hide it from him to keep him from choking on bush-cranium, but also were obliged to refrain from using the name "george bush" in any context lest it unleash a wave of guthrie-angst: in political discussions, we always had to refer cryptically to "the ex-president". there were the ardently solicited tail-scratchings that evolved over time, curiously and much to guthrie's delight , into a form of vaguely sado-masochistic ritual spankings. few who have experienced a 40-minute comprehensive kneecap or between-the-toe licking from guthrie can forget either the fervor with which it was administered or the dexterity of the tongue that performed the deed.

in my most intoxicated and confused moments, guthrie's assertions invoked a strangely convincing and reassuring order of pig - ball - meat - car - scratch. his friends' worries were his own: telephoning in a frenzy for hours trying to hunt down the notes to a law school class for the next day's final, i' d look down to see guthrie's tongue flicking nervously, the man looking up worriedly in anticipation of another ugly all-nighter.

i have a tall stack of pictures of guth with me here, but what i notice tonight is this: as i look through a shoebox full of pictures from a long time ago, I notice, again and again, in corners of frames an out-of-focus nose or a tail or a hairy black paw. no matter what was going on, guthrie was always around.

so long, old buddy. i'll miss you.

ivan

• Evergreen
• You are my sunshine
• Amazing Grace

March 15,2000

Nina, who knew Guthrie well and liked him very much, sent a contribution in me mory of Guthrie to the Capital Area Humane Society (3015 Scioto-Darby Executive Ct., Hilliard, Ohio 43026)

Thanks, Nina! Words cannot describe how much I appreciate this gift

February 6, 2001

On this day, a year ago, I lost my Guthrie, a black cocker spaniel/dachshund mix, with white paws.

I thought then that time will heal to some extent the loss of Guthrie but this did not turn out to be quite true. I still long to see his beautiful light brown eyes and whenever I see a dog, or even the picture of a dog, with such eyes, I cannot help but cry. This happens also whenever I see a small black dog with white paws or whenever I find myself alone for the first time in a place where we were together before.

I think now less of his last days and more of happy events from his brief life. One such incredible event occurred one summer, about four or five years ago.

We were walking near Mirror Lake on the OSU campus when a group of noisy kids came from somewhere. Guthrie became scared and before I could do anything, he disappeared in the bushes. I searched for him until almost midnight without success and then went home. I continued the search early next morning, again without success. Then I went to the office of the university newspaper to place an add ( A small, black dog with white paws, called Guthrie, lost yesterday near Mirror Lake....) Not knowing what more I could do, I went slowly to my office which was on the third floor of the Mathematics building. When I was close to the office, my Guthrie suddenly jumped at me from around the corner. Happy kisses rained upon my face and I could not stop caressing my Guthrie. I can say now that this was the happiest moment of my life. At that time I did not know about The Rainbow Bridge Story. Now whenever I read it I think of this marvelous encounter and tears fill my eyes.

I will never know where Guthrie spent that night. In the morning, he came to the right building, and waited for a student to open the door. Then he came to the third floor of the Mathematics building and waited for me in front of my office.

We have both learned a lot from this event. I have learned to love and respect that little dog who was able to find me after being lost. Guthrie has learned never to loose me from his sight. He always liked to walk a few steps ahead of me, but now he would turn his head every few seconds to see if I am following.

Guthrie, I miss you a lot. I am sure you will find me again at the Rainbow Bridge .

My new dog Austin has helped me survive this year and I love him very much. But, he has yet to learn to turn his head to see if I am behind him when we walk in the park.

Thank you for reading this.

Ranko