Seasonal Selfie and Tidings

I know, I know.   I have been an absent blogger.      You all KNOW who is responsible.

This selfie is to send my wishes for a very happy Holiday Season to you all - Happy Hannukah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Winter Solstice!   And of course lots of loves to you all!

Happy Thanksgiving!

To all our USA friends, I and my family want to wish you and your families a very very Happy Thanksgiving.      I hope you get some turkey, even if it comes from a can like mine (I don't do people food except for small bits of cheese and licks of yogurt or ice cream).  

Oh, and I definitely hope you also get a nap, a really nice, long nap!   I think I may even have to skip the turkey.

Sunday Selfie Return

Kitties, I know I have been MIA for a long time.   Nothing really bad going on, just my humans were away for 2 1/2 weeks and after they got back, Mom kept delaying and delaying about helping me post, until it got to the point she almost couldn't do it!    So this is an attempt to break through that awful procrastination!!

Later this week or next I will tell you the awful story about my trip to the vet for "Special Grooming"  but I am still in too much shock to share that with you today (not really, that was just for dramatic effect).

Here's a selfie just to prove I am still around.   I am joining the Kitties Blue at The Cat on My Head today for Sunday Selfies.

Sunday Selfie

I don't know about where YOU live, kitties, but round here, it is still Summer, even though it is officially Fall. Glorious days, blue skies, no wind.    I have had some nice sorties out onto the deck (the staining is all done and dry and it is pretty nice).       I got this selfie of myself on Friday using the timer - the camera was quite far away so I had to crop it a lot, thus it is a bit blurry.  Sorry about that.

I am joining up with the Kitties Blue at The Cat on My Head for today's Sunday Selfies.    

Talk Like Pirate Day

Ah, me hearties and mateys and wenches, 'tis Meow and Woof and Tweet Like  Pirate Day!   As usual my affiliate typist has done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING new for me for today.     If it were not for this lovely badge from Ann of Zoolatry, I would not be poking my head up at all.

Now we were a browsin' through me Simba Blog folder, lookin' fur all things pirate.      And we found THIS badge:

Now ye must notice that 2011 was the FIFTH Meow Like a Pirate Day.   That'll be meanin' that today is the NINTH one!    Pets rule the lands and the seas!!

Doin' some more browsin' through me blog, I found that my typist was more creative back in 2010.   This is what I posted then:



Ahoy there, Mateys! Captain Simbad here. Aboard my pirate ship the Sea Dragon.

Ready to make all my captives walk the plank. Then we will stash the loot, swab the decks, and batten down the hatches.

Swig a glass of rum! Ye landlubbers, ye'll find yer sea legs soon.

Let's haul wind into the sunset. Arrrrr!

Sunday Selfies

Kitties, I am trying to get this timer thing worked out for these selfies.     I know not every picture comes out just right, but if you don't try, you won't have anything, right?     I have been impressed with Summer's selfies where she gets a little off center, then adjusts, then if she still is off center, she adjusts again.  She does not give up!     She has sticktoitiveness.      

So here we go:  Try # 1:

Picture took too soon - not looking at the camera

Try # 2:

 Slightly better, but still not good.

Try #3:

Hopeless.

Oh, well, I guess Summer is an award winning kitty for a reason!!!

I guess I will try again next Sunday.    Time for a nap in my ManCat Cave.

I am joining the Kitties Blue Sunday Selfies Blog Hop as usual today.      Happy Sunday Night, all.

http://thecatonmyhead.com/astrids-sunday-selfies-poem/

Easy on Sunday

I have taken to sleeping in my "Man Cave" during the day a lot.    The location is under the computer table, where there are lots of wires and power strips and cords etc.    I like living  a little dangerously.

"Mom, get LOST!

I am skipping a selfie today for Selfie Sunday, because it has been rumored on Austin Towers' blog that some cats are not taking their own selfies.     I don't want there to be any chance of me being accused like that.  Have you ever!    It is clear the above photos are not selfies: you can see both my front paws! Or can you?

Thursday in the Garden

Kitties, it is a long time since I did a gardening post!    As you may know, our garden has a lot of trees which make a lot of shade, so flowers do not do well in our garden.  And also - THE DEER.

Well, to overcome that issue, almost every spring, Dad plants impatiens in window boxes and also some in round pots, which are kept on the deck - there they get enough sun and shade to do quite well, and the deer don't get to them.      Also he grows some parsley (for the caterpillars) and a couple of herbs such as basil and mint.  

Cutting a long story shorter, when it came time to work on re-staining our deck (which is big and two levels), he cleared everything off the deck to clean it and prep it for staining.   The impatiens window boxes were at the end of the driveway, and the herbs were outside the garage door, and in the evenings, he would bring all the plants into the garage.   The poor car had to sit out even!

But ONE NIGHT HE FORGOT.    We already knew that deer like impatiens:   note that the BACK window box is untouched but the front one and right side of the middle one are pretty gobbled.   We imagine it was maybe the baby deers, since we think Mama would have eaten even more.

And there's hardly anything left in this round pot that was flourishing with impatiens all over.

We thought the other plants had been left alone by the garage but further inspection showed they had even tasted the Christmas Cactus plants (not visible here) and did a bit more than tasting the basil.

Here is a closeup of the basil:  see where they nipped it right off?

Since then Dad had been very careful to bring in the plants at night, and he has transplanted some better impatiens into the box where they nibbled just at one end.   The deck staining is finished, and very soon, all those plants should be back on it.  

I want to thank and acknowledge Jonesie for hosting Thursdays in the Garden, even though I don't post about our garden very often.

Remembering Audrey

Today we especially remember Audrey, who went to the Rainbow Bridge on May 10th, 2014.     We miss her every day, her beautiful pale fur, her sweet purrs, and fun ways such as curling up in Dad's arms when he was using the laptop.     Dear girl, we will see you again one day.

Also, my family's other kitties who went to the rainbow bridge:  Rusty, Kimi, Smudgie, and the kitties Mom remembers from her childhood:   Davey, Preebo and China Cat.      And my brother's dear boy Terence.

And Auntie M's sweet ones too:   Flossie, Kimi-2 and Amy.    

We also miss some woofies who were in  Mom's family, who went to the Rainbow Bridge - Misty, Taffy, Vicky and Moppet.   

Run free and happy, all you sweeties!!

Sunday Selfie

Friends, I know I have been MIA for a while:  here is a Sunday Selfie to celebrate the beautiful Sunday we have here today.      Dad is busy working on staining our deck, otherwise I would show you myself out there enjoying the whiffies.

Instead you get me with some slightly annoyed ears.     I don't know what I was annoyed about when I took my selfie - probably the flashie focus light.  

Once again, I am joining with The Kitties Blue at The Cat On My Head for today's blog hop.  

World Cat Day and Bootsie Needs Our Help

Today is World Cat Day.    You mean EVERY day is not World Cat Day?    

One way we can help celebrate all that we have on World Cat Day is to help kitties who are less fortunate than ourselves.       One of these sweet kitties is Bootsie, who was abandoned by his family and has a terribly painful ear condition that needs surgery.     Brian and Terry Frum  have set up a YouCaring site where you can read more about Bootsie and his plight, and make a donation.       No amount is too little: every bit helps.    Just click HERE.    There are also several updates about how Bootsie is doing, so do read them too.

Team Dash Kitten has added an auction they will be hosting for the whole WORLD to help Bootsie. To participate in the auction, either by donating something for it, or by bidding, go to ALL EARS FOR BOOTSIE

Ann of Zoolatry, thank you for both these great graphics!

NOMS Day

Today is NOMS Day, a day to celebrate our other species friends and encourage tolerance and friendship.    Thanks to The Cat Realm for the great badge!        Here at our house, I am the only inside pet, but outside we have bird feeders that attract a lot of birds, even a hummingbird feeder that has frequent visits from one female hummingbird.   She is SO fast, I have no picture.   Then we have chipmunks running around our stone wall, and even a woodchuck who visits quite a lot.  Yup, no pictures.  

However, the most exciting visitors this summer have been the deer - it is hard to call them VISHUS deer, because the little ones are so cute.      The main visitors we see are two different mamas, one with a single fawn and another with twins.   Dad thinks the younger Mom of the singleton is the daughter of the other one.     Here are some pictures:

Inside the house, I have to be satisfied with some very quiet NOMS friends, like Mr/Miss seal here:

Winner of Nellie's Finish the Sentence Game

Kitties, how cute is this:

This past week, I entered Nellie's Finish the Sentence game #22 and was the very first entry.     The sentence to be completed was "Hot days are...." so I thought immediately of "Hot Days are Lazy Days".   Truth be told, around here ALL days are lazy days, but hot days are definitely the MOST lazy ones.     I never ever thought my entry would be picked by randomizer, because it was the first one.    But it WAS!

Don't you love the picture?    Aren't those back feet the best, and the tabby W on my head?  

Thanks so much Nellie and Mom for my super duper cartoon.

If you have not ever entered the weekly contest, head on over to Nellie's blog and be sure to enter week #23!!

Somewhat Uneasy Sunday

Hi, kitties.     Sorry we have been so limited in commenting this week.

Dad is still involved in painting, and I do like to lie on the canvas drop cloths he uses to protect the rugs and furniture from his splatterings.      As you can see here:

Kitties, I have some unsettling news, though with some of the things other pets and humans are facing, it is not that big of a deal.      Mom has been noticing that I seemed thinner, even in spite of having a good appetite.      She thought there was a chance I had diabetes.    So on Wednesday I was hauled off to the vet and they stole some blood from my arm to do their tests.   They checked the glucose right away and told the humans it was normal.       However, the test results showed that I was mildly hyperthyroid.   The vet had also commented on my heart being faster than normal, but said it could have been from just being there.    Seems not so, as that is a symptom of hyperthyroidism too.

I know many kitties have this, and my humans went through it with Audrey, whose T4 level was much higher.      So they are going to be trying to get me to take some medicine for it.   Wish us all luck!

Sunday Selfie

Sorry for the slight blur, but I only took one shot so this is all I have for selfies today.

I wanted to say a little bit about Wednesday's Wordless post.   I do enjoy being on the deck and often look in that direction - Dad thinks I am watching for chipmunks.     But I also look down through other parts of the railing uprights.

But what I was really trying to show you was how nicely Dad had arranged the beach umbrella to provide me with shade.    I don't like the very bright sun outside, but with a bit of shade, and a nice bit of yellow towel for my tush, life is good.

Today as usual,  I am joining the kitties blue at The Cat on My Head for today's blog hop.

Wordless Wednesday

Sunday Selfie/Assistant Position

Really, my assistant has been slacking off beyond reasonable.   Spitty was advertising for a new assistant, and I think I need to as well.     Occasional Sunday posts just doesn't cut it.

I am joining the Kitties Blue at The Cat on My Head for Selfie Sunday.    Mom got this picture yesterday as I was on the couch, angling for her to pick me up and put me over her shoulder.

Belated Happy Independence Day!!

Easy on Sunday

Lots of napping going on around here today, folks.      It has been mostly drizzly or rainy over the past couple of days, so my usual 22 hours a day of napping has increased to 23 1/2 hours!     Here are two different naps at different times of the day, so the lighting is different (I think the flash went off in the second one.   ::shudder:: )

No Sunday Selfie today - I was too busy getting my Easy on!

International Box Day

Kitties, I am not a box type of kitty.  Not to mention that my Mom left it till just now to provide a box!     So she had to use a little trickery to get me into the box for long enough for a picture.     Blanket plus treats!     The last picture is just after I ate them and just before I leapt out of the  box.  It is even a bit blurry!

Happy Box Day all you furries!

Uneasy Sunday

Kitties, this painting stuff is for the birds.      It is going on too long.    Dad has all the furniture pushed into the middle of the room (half of it taken out) and the humans keep going to the store for yet another pint of a sample color for the walls.  Meantime, Dad does priming, spackling, etc, and takes loooong breaks to nap with me on the deck.    

So I have to squash myself in between the furnitures and catch my inside naps as best I can:  drop cloths can make decent napping spots, actually.

Sometimes it is so hot I have to cool my belly off.   

Have a great, Sunday!   Happy Flag Day!

Half a Sunday Selfie

First, I want to thank all my friends who made suggestions for a caption for my picture last Sunday.   All the suggestions were great, and light years beyond anything my Mom might have thought up.

Second, here is my selfie for today and you will notice it is just a PARTIAL selfie.   But I wanted to post one taken in the family room with the paneled walls.  because, kitties (hold your breath, now), Dad has started to PAINT those walls a lighter color!    It is likely to be a torturously long process, because first the wood needs to be sealed with a primer, and then it will need at least two coasts of paint over that.      So don't hold your breath, but one day in the not too distant future, I will show you the result!!

In other news, we recently switched to Precious Cat litter in the blue bag and it is SO much less dusty than my previous Fresh Step.    I would even venture to say that it is dust free.   Now why can't all litter be like that?    So much better for everybody's lungs.

I am joining The Cat on My Head for today's blog hop.    Have a wonderful Sunday.

Hug Your Cat Day

Today is Hug Your Cat Day!      So I expect to get OODLES of hugs out of my Mom today.     I usually get SOME, but I plan to milk the holiday for all it is worth.

Thank you to Ann of Zoolatry for the great graphic!!!