Foreclosure victim: Princess Chunk, a fat cat

A couple of people forwarded me links to the story of "Princess Chunk," a 44-pound white cat who has been wandering the streets of New Jersey, a victim of foreclosure.  At first I thought it was some sort of news hoax, the kind of thing you would read in the Onion and forward to friends.

But it's true. WNBC-TV in New York reports the cat -- real name "Powder" --  "became a local media sensation this week and was dubbed "Princess Chunk" -- since it was found on Saturday wandering the southern New Jersey suburb of Voorhees.... In a week with headlines about presidential politics, suicide bombings in Iraq and big baseball trades, the cat has also captured the nation's attention."

New York magazine: "The nationwide mortgage crisis has a new face: Powder, a.k.a. Princess Chunk, the 44-pound orphaned cat from Camden County, New Jersey. The tubby tabby's elderly owner recently contacted animal-control officials — who, in turn, told WNBC — that she can no longer take care of him because she recently lost her home to the bank."

The cat, by the way, is a male.

Now, go ahead and let me have it for jumping the shark, ruining the blog and journalism as we knew it by posting something so over-the-top irrelevant and frivolous. Go ahead, you want to.

--Peter Viles
Photo credit: John Costello / Philadelphia Inquirer

Comments

[save your ammo]

Now, that's a BUBBLE CAT ready to BURST !
Bounce, kitty. Bounce.

[flip]

angry renter - clearly it's a very sensitive and divisive subject. If you look around, you see that, in most cases, divisive and sensitive subjects tend to generate angry and not so polite responses (look at any televised debate, whether it's cnn's crossfire, fox news, or any televised presidential debate. it's not nice. look at the house or senate debates on the floor. it's not pretty). I don't expect this blog to be any different than any other blog when it comes to tone, courtesy, honesty, etc.

So, I wouldn't take so personally what people say.

[Milla]

Mr. Viles, When I first found your blog …blah, blah, blah…some pretty cold people …blah, blah,…"let it burn" …blah… Peoples greed…blah… her name was milla or something...blah… Obamaton …blah… jump the shark...blah…

Hey Angryrenter – I hear Ted Kaczynski’s shack is available to rent.

Posted by: TakeFive | July 31, 2008 at 03:29 PM
*****
hey pete, when's that new censorship policy take effect? i didn't find a point anywhere in here, just another unproductive dig. i know you and fiver are buddies, but come on.

[her name was milla or something]

Milla wrote:

"hey pete, when's that new censorship policy take effect?"

But Milla, I provide that which you most desire.

----------------
PS - I want to test out this new handle 'cause I think it will look cool in the "posted by" line.

Only a test

TakeFive

[TakeFive]

One other thing:

"hey pete, when's that new censorship policy take effect? i didn't find a point anywhere in here..."

You might try looking somewhere other than in posts about 44 lb cats.

[It All Happens on the Margin]

BTW, the phrase "nuke the fridge" (in reference to the latest indy film) has become the latest phrase representing same.

I remember looking over at the wife during that scene, going, "that DID NOT just happen..."

(Milla, please be kind to my post - don't rat me out for not making a point - please der post gestapo?)

[MyLessThanPrimeBeef]

Angryrenter, when the topic came up, I was going to, like others here, tell Milla she overpaid, that she had made a terrible mistake.

But she was a stranger at that time, and I didn't know enough about her and care enough to ridicule her.

Thank God there were some posters here who did, who had the courage and cared enough to say, 'Hey, Milla, you are boarding the Hindenburg!'

[MyLessThanPrimeBeef]

By the way, does Obamaton sound worse than Clintonista?

Or about the same? What do you think?

[syscom3]

Why is this even considered news?

[Milla]

now you're finally playing nice, fiver. i'm not one to turn away readers, so thanks for the plug.

my point here was that there are 100 different ways to make the same point. we can keep the nasty out of it and stay constructive, which is, i believe, the point angryrenter was trying to make. i know i'm guilty, too. i once told beefy to mop my floors. i'm sorry for that, beef. let's have no beef and turn a new leaf, 'k? you, too, fiver.

[geomath]

I live in the Philly 'burbs, across the river from this gripping drama! And I so want to adopt this 44-pound bundle of love. Seriously.

The former owner is now telling the local media that she didn't abandon the cat, but that someone from the shelter picked it up after she called them. ?????????

I don't know whether she's telling the truth or not, but in the big picture, I have ZERO sympathy for people who abandon their pets because they got foreclosed on. Take the time to find a bloody rental that accepts your pets...It's not like you don't have time to look...You KNOW you are going to be foreclosed on MONTHS in advance.

Of course, the fact that they are this irresponsible with their pets is logical when you consider how irresponsible they were with their finances. These people are trailer trash.

[E]

Some time on the streets would do that cat some good.

It might lose a little weight.

[TakeFive]

"...does Obamaton sound worse than Clintonista?"

Why no mention of the McCainiacs?

[Michael Snyder]

Well Pete,
At least no one can claim this blog has gone to the dogs...

[aj]

Just watched "headline news" in the main stream media.
As of tonite on the East coast, the cat was a "victim" of the foreclosure and the owner. Not your reporting:
that the cat had been handed over to a neighbor.
Thank you LA Times and Peter Viles!
How the truth is distorted.
As an owner of a very special kitty, I feel that the news should be reported accurately. And from what I understand, the original owner is quite upset...

[Julia]

I think this article sheds a little light on the mentality of those who are in foreclosure. No one has to abandon an animal, the owner could have taken the cat to a shelter or worked with a rescue organization, but instead she just dumps the poor thing on the street to be someone else's problem.

[Crash and Burn]

But it was great while it lasted. Wasn't it cat?

Time to go on a diet.

But what’s that? Don't despair; I hear there is yet another FAT CAT relief supplementary being requested by Bernanke later today to bail out more of you FAT CATS.

The "FLUFF" is no longer metaphorical and is a flying.

[Ragnar]

That is an AMAZING cat. I had a friend in high school with a 40-lb cat named Luv-ems, but Powder/Princess Chunk easily out-hefties him. I feel bad for the owner, but cats do bolt for the door from time to time.

Maybe the cat was willing to walk while the owner was not, yet the cat is the one getting the love and the owner is getting dumped on. Sounds like a pretty good metaphor for walking from a home going into foreclosure versus sticking it out and paying the mortgage.

[PeonInChief]

geomath--

Most former owners are not moving to rentals, but moving in with family or friends, or going to a shelter. Those who do move to rental housing have a serious credit ding and often find that rental owners who will accept pets won't rent to them. Even tenants who are being evicted from foreclosed homes sometimes have difficulty finding housing that will accept pets, particularly if they live in states that allow nearly immediate eviction. (Even in California many tenants don't know that they have the right to a 60-days notice to quit after the foreclosure sale.)

[The original RZ]

I'm not aware of Milla's story, but I do agree with this statement that she made: "there are 100 different ways to make the same point. we can keep the nasty out of it and stay constructive." I used to read Michelle Singletary's (Washington Post) online chatsand no longer do because she has started to become hostile and rude to readers/posters who dare disagree with her. Just unprofessional, and there are better ways to get the point across.

[Ace]

BTW, no one says 'jumping the shark' anymore to describe things that are past their prime. Now people in the know say 'nuked the fridge' to bring back painful memories of the bomb scene in Indiana Jones 4.

Even the NY Times caught on. Check it out here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/28/business/
media/28fridge.html?ref=media

[tyshunn]

probably went bankrupt feeding her.

[Pauli]

It's not foreclosure that left Powder homeless, it's an irresponsible person who shouldn't have dependents of any kind. Renters do it all the time too -- move and dump the pet like excess furniture. I know because I was the next tenant when the animal came scratching at the door -- at 6 different places over the years. (And yes, I adopted all those furry little bundles of cuteness, and took them with me when I'd move.)

Back to lurking now...

[Kim Brandriff]

I can't believe that nobody is pointing out the obvious here. This is animal neglect and abuse by allowing this cat to get to this point. This previous owner obviously has a thing or two to learn about how to properly care for an animal.

[April]

I read that the cat was a female. They named it Captain Chunk, only to find out it was a female, changing name to Princess Chunk.. Is female I am thinking.