How does Cat Lady spend Black Friday?
Am I like "Target Lady," the hyper-Type-A female character starring in the Target TV commercials who seizes the day-Black Friday-in a major way?
You won't catch me standing in a long line today at PetSmart, waiting with other Cat Ladies for the "Buy 25 Pallets of Fancy Feast, Get 1 Free" doorbuster sale. I'm safely at Catland, with our ten cats, where there is not a gate-crasher in sight. We're decorating for the Christmas holidays, and Cat Man is in heaven because his Longhorns beat the Aggies last night in the football rivalry finale of them all.
Don't get too crazy out there, Cat Ladies, if you are among the millions roaming the malls 'til midnight. For me, there is no place like home on Black Friday. Lucius, Lydia, Leo, Lillie, Linus, L.B., Alvar, Perkins, T.J., and Miss Tommie unanimously agree.
Query of the Day: Do you raid PetSmart on Black Friday?
Friday, November 25, 2011
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
A Horn of Plenty...Felines
I tip my Cat Lady’s hat to artist/cartoonist/illustrator Lisa Hanawalt, who in her “Visions of Thanksgiving” Op-Art piece for the New York Times, came up with the perfect coinage and imagery for tomorrow’s holiday: “Cornucatta,” or, a “horn of cats.”
My Thanksgiving “cornucatta” will overflow with ten cats whose primary colors just so happen to complement the primary palette of our holiday tableware: pumpkin, charcoal, and a mélange of the two.
Move over turkeys—here come our kitties. And here’s wishing you and yours a healthy and bountiful Thanksgiving Day.
Query of the Day: Are you serving a Thanksgiving feast to your cats?
My Thanksgiving “cornucatta” will overflow with ten cats whose primary colors just so happen to complement the primary palette of our holiday tableware: pumpkin, charcoal, and a mélange of the two.
Move over turkeys—here come our kitties. And here’s wishing you and yours a healthy and bountiful Thanksgiving Day.
Query of the Day: Are you serving a Thanksgiving feast to your cats?
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Coosome Twosome
Aren’t these two kitties the cutest?
Ocho (in grey) and Mr. T. (in tuxedo garb) belong to my great friend and colleague Heather, who briefly returned to her hometown of Houston this week and escaped the snowy environs of Ohio.
While Heather was away, Mr. T. did play—to the tune of sliding down a laundry chute. Mr. T. wound up in the basement of Heather’s house, where he had ample opportunities to explore new territory. But as soon as Mr. T. came up for air, he found his best buddy Ocho. I think Mr. T. said, “It’s cold down there. Commence Snuggling.”
I love furry tales with happy endings.
Query of the Day: Does your cat like to perch on top of your laundry basket or slide down a laundry chute?
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
You’ve Got a Friend
That’s what Mary, my Wellesley roommate, said to me when I walked through the front door of her lovely home in Minneapolis. Audrey, also a longtime friend from Wellesley days, and I were curious if Mary had arranged for one of our classmates to jump out from behind the living-room couch as a surprise opening act for our mini-reunion. Enter Maeby.
Maeby is my new best friend of the feline persuasion. This darling tortoiseshell cat with the expressive flat face, which seemingly floats above her compact body (she doesn’t have much of a neck), bonded immediately with me. We had the best of times playing and cuddling during my too-brief stay.
Not that I needed documentary evidence, but I was very satisfied to find—so many miles from Catland—that I could still earn my keep as Cat Lady. Mary’s two other cats were affectionate, too, though Maeby is my girl.
When Mary and Audrey and I attended Wellesley during the 1970s, James Taylor was the man. I can remember many nights in our dormitory rooms listening to his album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon, and replaying his version of Carole King’s “You’ve Got a Friend.” Little did I know then that this song would serve as a personal anthem for a weekend filled with nostalgia and enhanced by my meeting yet another furry friend.
Query of the Day: Are you a cat magnet?
Maeby is my new best friend of the feline persuasion. This darling tortoiseshell cat with the expressive flat face, which seemingly floats above her compact body (she doesn’t have much of a neck), bonded immediately with me. We had the best of times playing and cuddling during my too-brief stay.
Not that I needed documentary evidence, but I was very satisfied to find—so many miles from Catland—that I could still earn my keep as Cat Lady. Mary’s two other cats were affectionate, too, though Maeby is my girl.
When Mary and Audrey and I attended Wellesley during the 1970s, James Taylor was the man. I can remember many nights in our dormitory rooms listening to his album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon, and replaying his version of Carole King’s “You’ve Got a Friend.” Little did I know then that this song would serve as a personal anthem for a weekend filled with nostalgia and enhanced by my meeting yet another furry friend.
Query of the Day: Are you a cat magnet?
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
"Totality"
Because I refer to Lucius as my BFF, I was curious when I saw the headline “Best Friend Forever” in this past Sunday’s New York Times Book Review. Was someone writing about my first cat? I had my suspicions.
Every Cat Lady knows that a dog is considered man’s best friend, but cats keep gaining ground. In fact, the Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago has recently launched a new campaign about adopting felines, with the theme of “man’s new best friend.” I couldn’t agree more.
So who is the mysterious best friend forever? Rin Tin Tin, of course. Susan Orlean’s new book about “the life and the legend” of the famous German shepherd who took Hollywood by storm is getting lots of favorable press. While reading the book review, I was struck not only by the tenderhearted anecdotes about the remarkable Rin Tin Tin but also by the mention of journalist J. Allen Boone, who was “totally” obsessed with his beloved dog Strongheart, a German shepherd who starred in movies during the 1920s.
I put the word “totally” in quotation marks because just in case you are thinking that Boone was the male ancestor of the Valley Girl, think again. Boone had his own theory of the animal-human bond, which he named “Totality.” He would not accept anyone referring to Strongheart as “dead,” even after the animal had indeed died.
I like the idea of “totality,” of our perfect oneness with an animal, or two, or ten. Naturally, there are extreme exceptions to the rule—the reviewer comments that Boone is a reminder of “what real derangement looks like”—and then there are people like us who simply love cats with all of our hearts and souls. Whether we convey these intense emotions silently or boisterously, the choice is “totally” ours.
Query of the Day: Do you have a favorite moment of “Totality” with your cat?
Every Cat Lady knows that a dog is considered man’s best friend, but cats keep gaining ground. In fact, the Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago has recently launched a new campaign about adopting felines, with the theme of “man’s new best friend.” I couldn’t agree more.
So who is the mysterious best friend forever? Rin Tin Tin, of course. Susan Orlean’s new book about “the life and the legend” of the famous German shepherd who took Hollywood by storm is getting lots of favorable press. While reading the book review, I was struck not only by the tenderhearted anecdotes about the remarkable Rin Tin Tin but also by the mention of journalist J. Allen Boone, who was “totally” obsessed with his beloved dog Strongheart, a German shepherd who starred in movies during the 1920s.
I put the word “totally” in quotation marks because just in case you are thinking that Boone was the male ancestor of the Valley Girl, think again. Boone had his own theory of the animal-human bond, which he named “Totality.” He would not accept anyone referring to Strongheart as “dead,” even after the animal had indeed died.
I like the idea of “totality,” of our perfect oneness with an animal, or two, or ten. Naturally, there are extreme exceptions to the rule—the reviewer comments that Boone is a reminder of “what real derangement looks like”—and then there are people like us who simply love cats with all of our hearts and souls. Whether we convey these intense emotions silently or boisterously, the choice is “totally” ours.
Query of the Day: Do you have a favorite moment of “Totality” with your cat?
Friday, October 21, 2011
Lost Cat, Found Hunk
Last night, after tucking in the cats, I turned on the TV in search of something new and stimulating.
You won’t be surprised to learn that what hooked me in the first episode of “Case Histories,” on Masterpiece Mystery, was the opening scene in which a tough, but kindhearted, detective tries to find a lost cat. Of course, a lost cat is neither a new nor an abstract concept to me. Been there and done that, times ten, plus another seven rescues—all from our backyard.
And, not surprisingly, the Cat Lady on screen played to stereotype. Nothing new about a nutty Cat Lady, complete with bulging eyes and disheveled hair. Cats surrounded her, except for the one that had got away.
But as for the stimulating—the tall, dark, and handsome actor named Jason Isaacs—well, I think every Cat Lady needs one like him in her backyard.
Query of the Day: Would you hire a private detective to find a lost cat?
You won’t be surprised to learn that what hooked me in the first episode of “Case Histories,” on Masterpiece Mystery, was the opening scene in which a tough, but kindhearted, detective tries to find a lost cat. Of course, a lost cat is neither a new nor an abstract concept to me. Been there and done that, times ten, plus another seven rescues—all from our backyard.
And, not surprisingly, the Cat Lady on screen played to stereotype. Nothing new about a nutty Cat Lady, complete with bulging eyes and disheveled hair. Cats surrounded her, except for the one that had got away.
But as for the stimulating—the tall, dark, and handsome actor named Jason Isaacs—well, I think every Cat Lady needs one like him in her backyard.
Query of the Day: Would you hire a private detective to find a lost cat?
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Microchip Me?
I did not intend to be away from Ten Cat Alley for so long. My leave of absence was completely unscheduled, and Lucius did not approve it.
But in case you think you need to implant a microchip in my upper left arm to keep track of my whereabouts, have no fear.
In the immortal words of every stray tomcat I've encountered (and there have been many, as you know), I'll be back.
But in case you think you need to implant a microchip in my upper left arm to keep track of my whereabouts, have no fear.
In the immortal words of every stray tomcat I've encountered (and there have been many, as you know), I'll be back.
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