When I was a kid - about 12 or 13, I think - I had a pet beetle. It wasn't a "cool" beetle, like I later found out were popular pets in Japan (those being stag beetles and rhinoceros beetles). No, he was just an ordinary little black beetle. He was actually a stink bug, but he never "stunk" me. I found him in the yard and thought he was cool. I had named him Bub. Bub the Beetle. Random trivia: Bub's favorite snack was a peeled grape.
Bub and I had some adventures. The most memorable was when I took him to visit my grandparents. My Granddad thought he was really neat. Granddad and I ended up going on a camping trip and I took Bub with us. When we got to the campsite, I discovered Bub had escaped in the truck. Granddad and I searched the whole truck and we did find him. Whew!
I had Bub as a random little pet for 6 months and then he died. I was upset, I cried. He was "just" a random beetle, but he was my little buddy. I remember some other kids being confused why I was crying over "a bug".
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In late 2009, I rescued a salamander.
Longer story short, he was in a situation he wouldn't have survived and so I took him home. I knew nothing about having an amphibian - having only had VERY limited experience with anything cold blooded in my lifetime of caring for a wide variety of pets. A friend, who had a salamander as a pet, told me they were low maintenance and encouraged me to keep him. I had no idea how long salamanders lived and at the time, I thought he would be a fun little oddity for a few years.
It turned out I was overfeeding him at first and he ended up quite chubby. The same friend set me straight about that, ha. But it was during that time that he was given his name. Due to his dark green, and black, coloring and his rather... rotund state at the time, I named him Jabba. As in Jabba the Hut, from Star Wars.
Our journey together started in South Dakota, then later moved to North Dakota, and finally, Minnesota.
It ended on December 20th, 2025.
I often referred to him as "the world's oldest salamander" and joked that he was immortal. I think part of me almost thought he was. That strange little creature I thought would be in my life for only a few years stayed and stayed.
At my best guess, based on the 16 years we were together and the fact that he was already full grown when that time started (which apparently takes 2-4 years), I estimate he was a minimum of 18-20 years old. Perhaps even older. And still it somehow feels like it wasn't enough time.
Am I grieving a salamander?
Yes, yes I am.
He was a weird and wonderful little dude. He was loved and he will be missed.
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