Goodbye sweetheart

Last week, our cat Cleo died. She was 14ish, which is old for an outdoor cat, but seemed far to young for our indoor-only pampered sweetheart. Unfortunately, lymphoma doesn't really care about that sort of thing.

She was our first baby. Both Benjamin and I had cats growing up and knew we wanted to get our own cat once we were settled in our own place. As soon as Benjamin's grad school tuition refund came in and we had a little money, we headed to the local shelter - and I do mean as soon as it came in. We went the very same day.

Cleo was the only cat we looked at - we had several in mind, but I warned Benjamin that we had better make our first choice carefully, because I didn't think I'd be able to put a cat back once we had it in the greeting room. She was in the Lonely Hearts club, which meant she'd been there for quite a while, probably because she was shy and nervous around new people. We didn't care. She stole our hearts right away with her big blue eyes, the softest fur I have ever felt on a cat - then or now - and the promise of love if we were patient. And we were willing to be patient.

She spent most of the first 4 or 5 months under our bed, only coming out to eat and go to the bathroom, but we waited, and eventually she came out more regularly to watch TV and play. She liked me OK, but she loved Benjamin. For a while, she would wake me up in the morning with a quiet little meow that just loud enough that I could hear it but Benjamin couldn't, so I could get her breakfast. Then, once I was out of bed, she would take my spot and cuddle up to Benjamin.
 

She moved from Austin to Bellevue to Austin to Brockport to Conway to Maumelle. She didn't like the changes much, but as long as there was a comfy pillow and a warm lap, she would come around eventually. She learned to like Oliver - as long as he behaved like a properly loyal servant, and tolerated Creamsicle. Once we got Miikka, she retreated to the bedroom for good, making it her domain far from the slavering beast. But she still sat on our laps, took over way more than 1/3 of the bed at night, and demanded petting with the regal bearing of the queen she was named for. We miss her. We will miss her.

Cleopatra in her element

Here, Cleo shows her displeasure at being asked to move from her throne, er, the bed. We left her alone, and the bed did not get made that day.

Did you know that silly cat pictures, often with captions, predate the internet by over 100 years? It's true. Victorian photographers did it.

Oh, yes, it is Monday

I had an OK weekend, not great, but I guess it could have been worse. But now it is followed by Monday. Getting up was hard, really hard, and the sky is gray. Daffodils are still blooming, but since I work inside, away from windows I can't see them. Ah well. Here is a cute, disgruntled looking cat to cheer us all up.

Winston and Watson

Watson and Winston taking a nap

My parents have 3 cats: Sadie (you last saw her here), Watson, and Winston.  Watson and Winston are brothers from the same litter. As you can see above, however, they are not quite the same size. Watson is a large cat - long and tall.  Winston is just plain fat (sorry Mom, but it is true!).  He weighs over 31 pounds.  Before you blame my mother, they eat the same food, and it is diet food. Yes, Winston eats a bit more of it, but the vet has said he has an extended colon (not sure how that makes him fat, but it surely doesn't help).

The space between the legs of this cabinet are 10 1/2 inches. Winston is wider.

Anyway, I just thought I would share a couple of fat cat pictures for your Monday. Better this kind of fat cat than the corporate kind, right?

Cuteness for the New Year

Here is Miikka in his favorite spot - the corner of the couch. It has been so cold lately that he is usually curled up in a little ball with his nose tucked under his tail or a paw...not that he minds the cold when he is out running around in the yard.

When I take up his spot on the couch, he just sits on me.

One of my mom's cats, Sadie, contemplates the pile of gifts under the Christmas tree. Several of them had her down as the giver, but alas, none as recipient.

Sadie likes to hang out and watch TV with a beer - not very ladylike there, Sadie!

Pet picture interlude

Today is a cold, rainy day here in Arkansas, so I am going to try to perk it up with some pictures of Miikka and the kitties. (I have had a suggestion that I change the blog to nothing but pictures of Miikka...I am not willing to go that far, but hopefully, Greg, this will satisfy you for a day or two.)

We have a kitty infestation on our bed these days. It is remarkable to us, considering that Cleo wouldn't let the other cats in the bedroom when they first joined the household.


Cleo peers out from her hiding place behind the pillows at Oliver, who is doing nothing wrong, as usual. Poor Oliver - everyone likes to try to beat him up.

One of the rare occasions that Miikka is not trying to chase Oliver up a wall.

Mishmash for Friday

A couple of cute pictures for Friday. Sometimes, Miikka stops wiggling long enough to cuddle with me. Aw.

This is supposed to be Miikka's bed, but right after my mother bought it for him, he chewed open the zipper and started in on the foam. Since I didn't want him eating foam, I took the bed away and put it out of reach on the cat tree. Eventually, Oliver discovered and claimed it. Even after I repaired the zipper and put it on the floor, he decided he wanted to sleep in it. So, it is back on the middle level of the cat tree, and Oliver snuggles down in it. Miikka doesn't mind - he prefers his little blue donut (which is really a cat bed). Huh.

Vote for Ginger!

It is too late for the presidential election, but I thought we could all use a laugh today. Vote for Ginger in your next state election!

A Funny for Friday

Oliver decided that he wanted to try on Benjamin's new hat. It is too small for him.

Wednesday Reference

I have been reading a lot of blogs lately, mostly food-related, and some of the best have regularly recurring themes. So, I am going to try something new - a regular (well, that's what I say now!) weekly post about an interesting, useful or otherwise noteworthy reference source. Since this is a blog, and therefore online, I will try to keep these to online sources, but I won't guarantee that they will always be so.

Today's inaugural reference site is the Australian War Memorial web page. "One of the finest military artefact, document, and media collections in the world" (their own description) related to various wars, the web site has pictures, virtual tours, genealogy information, and exhibitions.

This picture is from one of the online exhibits, "A is for Animals: An A to Z of Animals in War." According to the description, this kitty was a mascot for a light cruiser during WWI. Check out the exhibit for pictures of a German doggy gas mask, other mascots, and working animals.

Hee Hee Hee

more animals

A co-worker had this on her desktop, and I thought it was hilarious. There are several versions, with different captions, but this was the first I found. Think it's photoshopped? (Sorry it doesn't quite fit the frame, but I don't want to try to fix it).

Oliver's new toy

Oliver contemplates his kingdom

Oliver was a very lucky kitty this Christmas - he got a cat tree. Well, it is supposed to be for all three cats, but Creamsicle ignores it completely, even when it is liberally covered in catnip, and Cleo only gets on the lower platform occasionally. Oliver loves it. He sleeps on the top level all the time, and has recently discovered the tube on the bottom level. And it gives him easy access to the top of the bookcase, where he perches like a little furry gargoyle (the plant on the left of the bookcase is no longer there - it was just there for a few days). Who knew this kitty who used to be afraid of heights would enjoy playing gargoyle!

Oliver pretends to be a bag of flour.

On Saturday, as I was baking bread, I turned around to put the flour back in the cupboard and discovered Oliver. He is getting bold, now that he is no longer afraid of heights! Where will he turn up next?

Another day of cats

I used the camera a bunch last week, and I actually had time to get the pictures off the camera. As a Monday morning treat, I give you Oliver and Cleo. These two pictures really show the difference in their natures. Cleo is greedily gobbling down food that is not her own - I think I put it on the table for Oliver. She is the quickest eater of the three, and when we feed them, we have to chaperon them to keep her from forcing Creamsicle and Oliver away from the food. Never mind that Cleo is somewhat afraid of Creamsicle at all other times, never mind that both Oliver and CS have claws and she doesn't, she bullies them away and gobbles their food. Benjamin described her attack as a torpedo, streaking across the kitchen to get to the available food.

Oliver, on the other hand, is a thoughtful kitty. He loves to stare out the window, watching who knows what. When we had a balcony, he would go out at night and just watch bugs for hours. Here, he sits on the table and watches the parking lot. He doesn't really care a lot about food, and just loves having his tummy rubbed.

I am not intentionally stiffing CS; I just don't have any new pictures of her. She spends most of her time these days on the back of the couch. She loves being petted, but she also likes to bite the hand that pets her, so you have to pay attention and have fast reflexes.

Cat interlude

On a day that was cold just about everywhere in this country, and icy here, I figure that we could use a picture of kitties being nice to each other. Cleo likes to give Oliver a licking, cleaning his face and ears. She doesn't really like it the other way round though...Despite the look on his face, Oliver really does like being licked and loved on, until she starts biting.

I tried to get to work this morning, because work was on a 2 hour delay but not closed, but after getting a couple miles down the freeway I turned around. There was an accident or something ahead of me, and once I had waited 20 minutes without moving, I decided that I just don't care enough about work to spend another 1 or 2 to get there! So I baked banana bread for our office Christmas, excuse me, Holiday luncheon (yes, political blandness has struck our office), and ginger cookies for a get-together tomorrow. I also finished a book that has been lingering on my bedside table for far too long, and got all the Christmas cards ready to go out, assuming I can make it to work and the post office box tomorrow.

Herding cats

Here is another sign that we are settling in here in Arkansas - I have made an appointment to take all three of our furry children to the vet. At the same time. I am not sure this is a good idea, but since I don't want to have to go more than once, I am going to risk it. At least we have three separate carriers. Now, if we could just get ourselves to the dentist...

Speaking of herding cats, I could really use a nice sheep, err, cat dog to herd the cats for me in the mornings. Now that I am working full-time, I have to get up around 5:30 if I want to do tai chi or pilates before breakfast. The cats, of course, don't understand that this is supposed to be a quiet time, so they (especially Oliver) grumble and talk at me, wanting breakfast. While it is distracting to be constantly meowed at while trying to concentrate on doing snake creeps down or golden rooster stands on one leg, it is more troublesome when it wakes Benjamin up. He is not a particularly good morning person when awakened too early, and meowing cats is not his preferred alarm clock. I am not sure if the cats are getting the message, or if it was a fluke, but they were quiet !! this morning. They didn't even demand wet food, once I made sure they had enough dry food. A miracle! Too bad I was doing pilates and not tai chi, because I bet they are back to normal tomorrow.

I happy...

...because I found Creamsicle! She was hiding in a shed just next to our property, and was probably just too scared to come when we called her. I had walked out to check the mail, had a feeling I should look around the house etc, and there she was! Hurrah!

I'm sad...

Because Creamsicle is missing. She got out of the apartment somehow, sometime on Tuesday night and hasn't come home. We don't know how she got out, or where she would go. She has never appeared to like our new neighborhood enough to be out for more than 10 minutes at a time. Sigh. She is street-smart kitty, and I hope she will be OK. If only she would come home.

Sleeping cats

I am offering this picture of Cleo sleeping as a respite from the politics and downer news that are on offer everywhere (including my other post of the day). Everyone, on the count of three, say "Awww...)

Oliver loves his Pig

Oliver has a thing for this stuffed pig. Lately, he has been sitting on it, but he also likes to knead it, or what I used to call pussy-footing. If you have ever seen a truly content cat, you know what I am talking about - purring and using their paws to knead the toy, blanket, stomach, whatever they are sitting on at the time. Oliver likes to knead his pig, and when he does so, he also likes, no needs to have either an ear or the tail in his mouth. It is absolutely adorable, and just a little bit strange.
We aren't sure what attracts Oliver to this pig, because for the longest time he was seemingly scared of soft objects - he wouldn't get on the furniture, the bed, the softer of the two cat beds. Nothing. Now, he nests on the pig. Go figure. Anyway, he is currently curled up, fast asleep, on top of the pig. Aww...

Woodchuck redux

Winter is truly on its way out - the woodchucks are out in force. We have two (or maybe more by now) living under the front stoop. I have spotted several more on the canal berm in the back yard. They are thinner than in the fall, but that will probably swiftly be remedied. As I type, one is sitting on the steps up to the canal, sunning itself and munching away on something. I can see it, because it is warm enough to sit out on the porch again, for the first time since October. The cats are very pleased about this - I think they were suffering from cabin fever! Neither Cleo nor Oliver are allowed in the actual outdoors unchaperoned (Cleo doesn't have claws, Oliver is agoraphobic, and both are big sissies), but they sure do enjoy having the larger vista provided by all the windows. Creamsicle, who is allowed outside, seems pleased with her renewed ability to go exploring without freezing her tail off (must remember to get a collar for her soon). I don't know how long this lovely weather will last - it is supposed to be cold and rainy by the end of the week, or how long it will take to return again, but I sure like it!

In other news, my mom is visiting for a few days. I am taking a couple of days off from my new job so we can spend time together. She has seen her first woodchuck, and spoiled us with too much chocolate...