HELP! PURRAYERS NEEDED FOR KC!

Please go to the Pet Prayer and Praise Blog tonight at 8:30 EST. Little KC has complications from her ladygardenectomy surgery and needs our help.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

mom keeps telling us . . .

"get a job and contribute something to your upkeep, for pity's sake!" so i did. i'm working part time as a bookmark!

VISHUS DEER ALERT!!

Oh, Dear Bast! They Have Recruited Human Servants!!!!! Study these faces well--learn them--KNOW THEM!! They are among us now!!

(WARNING: NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART--THIS WILL FREEZE YOUR BLOOD!)

Click if you dare.

hurray! we gots our bloggie back!!

while mom's not azackly ALL better, she's back at work and now we can surf and blog!!

the bestest news (besides her & dad surviving bronkitis, that is) is that the new cat blogosphere calendar is ready to purchase!!! please go here to read all about it! and steer your beans that way--they're the ones with the credit cards--and remind them they have bean-friends who know and love all us kitties, and would be PROUD to own this marvelous monument to meowers efurrywhere. there're T-shirts and a mini poster, too!!

i'll bet they have bean-friends (like our mom & dad do), who don't have a clue what kitty blogging is all about. what better way to advertise what fantastic felines we are--kitties with hearts to help ofurs!!! not to mention, a darn good look at some of the cutest cats around!

purrrrrs to ya all,

nitro

peeyes: i know a secret about edmund and where he was saturday night! >^*smirk*^<

mom hijacking the bloggie again . . .

and yes, thank you to all who asked, the dear daddy-guy is getting better, too. in fact, he is better than I am, drat it. no doubt he has a superior constitution (and six less years less age on him;-). this morning, he went out and dug holes and drove posts and hung cattle panels across the back of the extra lot, then filled the two wood racks on the porch, then made the weekly wal-mart run without me and did some fine choosing of goodies all by himself. me? i washed two loads of clothes and cleaned up the kitchen, unloaded & loaded the dish washer, and was shot. took my first nap at 11:30 and my second at 4:15. i'm SICK of being tired!

missouri meowers' mom here:

yes, i live, still coughing, draggled-tailed, and worn but alive and so far not in the horse-pistal, as nels says. anyway, i wanted to steal a moment to say thanks to all of you kitties and beans, and bless you for your well-wishes, purrayers, and purrs. i feel SO warm and cherished, which is the most cosy feeling in the world, and energized - a big help when i felt like it was almost too much effort to walk to the kitchen! sadly, the computer is one room farther away, and unheated, to boot, so not much visiting there. the one time i had almost unlimited time to surf and blog, and too sick to care; how unfair is that?!?

it seems that every cough, cold, and sniffle that i get now refuses to go away without more extensive and expensive medicines being thrown at it, and it takes me longer and longer to recuperate. i useta be able to take some aspirin and a sudafed and keep on truckin'. not so, when your body begins to rebel. bah. getting old is not for sissies, as my 90 year old mother keeps telling me. i hear ya, ma; i hear ya like never before!

as those sneaky years keep creeping up on me, i find that i don't bounce back quite so quickly and that it's actually difficult to regain lost ground. a shoulder injury from june of 2005 has finally progressed to the "well, i guess that's as good as it gets" stage.

a bruise that the chocolate buffalo (cocoa the dog) gifted me with on my lower right shin and ankle 3 weeks ago has finally stopped being touchy--but is still lividly evident. cocoa was comin' in at full speed, head down, intent on knocking xena - the elderly labrador - off her pins. unfortunately, i moved at the wrong time and got the brunt of the assault. i don't know which part of her hit me--shoulder, chest, head, foot, all equally hard and unyielding. spun me around like a weathervane, although weathervanes don't usually go arse over teacup unless there's a tornado passing through. well, come to think of it, that's a pretty good metaphor for cocoa. she's just a force of nature, unaware and uncaring of the havoc she wreaks. not a mean bone in her, but they're all made of concrete & rebar. when she hits ya, y'stay hit.

anyway, i hope to encourage the kitties to blog a bit this weekend, since i have returned to work and can now stay upright for most of a day with no need a full-time catblanket (that doesn't mean i don't want one, just that i don't need one). it's possible they will object, however, because it'll mean losing their warm, lumpy recliner/bed accessory. i'll keep the stove stoked and point the fans in the direction of the computer room, and put a poufy throw on the chair--the rest will be up to them!

thanks again, effuryone!! you are ALL my darlings!!

mom's STILL puny!!

nels sez: the poor woman is just dreadful knocked out from coughing (an' she's GOTTA cough up an' out, her doc sez, or she'll put her in the horsepistal wif p'nomyia). she tried monday & tuesday to stay at work (havin' lain on her butt all friday through sunday--we made sure of that), but couldn't manage it either day. today she feels the "best" since last wednesday, although it doesn't come near to being "good".

when we lay on her, her innards make funny squeaky sounds and gurgles and rumbles and ripples. they provide pretty good entertainment until we are flung up towards the stratosphere as her coughin' fit follows. very disconcerting when you've just heard what you are sure is whale song . . . (yes, we listen to Discovery Channel, too--it's all about cats and dogs and gyraffes and fishes and burds and green fev-vers and mouses and ducks and white fev-vers and pink fev, um, flamingos and . . .*hrumpf*)

now dad has called mom, saying he went to urgent care this morning and they sent him off with four prescriptions and diagnosis of bronkitis, too. what is this world coming to??? good thing there are enough of us to take care of all two of them at once!

mom thanks kindly all the kitties'n'beans who have sent well wishes and purrs, and offered prayers. and special thanks to the kitties who teleported over while it was quiet during the first days to purr and cuddle wif us and mom--you know who you are!! she appreciated the nose-kisses and gentle head-bonking. (tee-hee!! it made dad think he was crazy at first, seeing all those kitties who obviously weren't us, who never seemed to be entirely in focus, and who weren't there for very long at any one time. he'd heard about teleporting kitties but this was the first time he'd seen them in action, and had already begun a frantic search'n'rescue operation for his marbles when we reminded him that cats do that in the blogosphere. he enters rooms kinda tentatively now, looking to see who *might* be where . . .;-)

purrs to all, and thanks--nels

nels sez: mom's puny again . . .

that's what they say in the ozarks when you're not feelin' well--you're puny. and boy, is she efur. it's that dumb bronchitis again. she coughed for a whole day and most of a night and din't get any sleep, then went to the bean vet for medicine, and now she's slept about 18 hours in the last day. so we're on catblanket duty again. her ribzes hurt from the effort of barkin' an' she needs her lungs for breathin' so it's hard to find a cuddlespot she can use! she is just zausted from coughin' so much and needsta take it slow and quiet fer a day or two. so far this mornin' she has got up, had a glassa juice, a cuppa coffee, carried a load o'clothes to the washing box, checked e-mails, and now is going to the reclining chair, where we can relax wif her. she'll try to catch up tomorrow on our bloggie! oh, yes, and edmund sez "hey" to a special little kitty out there. hmmmmm. wonder who that is?

widebody wednesday

dona nobis pacem--efurry day

Dona Nobis Pacem
when we first saw the globe with skeezy's picture on his blog sunday, we wondered what could cats could possibly have to say about world peace. but we thought we should try, so we asked mom to make us a globe and put our pictures on it and sign it for us. she did, and then we sent it to miss mimi, wif a letter an' a copy of our globe, like she asked.

so now it's tuesday, and we doesn't have any profound thoughts on how peace can be gotten; we's just kitties, after all. we can't even stop scrappin' amongst ourselves, 'cause that's our nature. but we understands that beans has something called higher intellect that lets them choose how to behave. so why doesn't efurryone behave? we don't understand why, if they can choose a good thing (peace), something that is not painful or harmful in any way to anyone, why don't they do it?

we thinks a first step would be EFURRYONE STOP THINKING ABOUT YOURSELF! quit thinking about how much you can "get" and start thinking about how much you can "give"! get some of what our mom calls "empathy"--spend some time imagining (and, we hope, understanding) how the ofur guy feels. then ask yourself how you would like to feel that way. then think about how you could change his life for better. and then start doing it. but peace is necessary to do this; it's furry hard to feed, clothe, and house people when bombs are falling, supplies are siphoned away by greedy people, and the people who would do good are denied access to those whom they would help.

all we can do is conclude that peace is a necessary thing. how can we get it? we don't know. it seems like a circle: it's gotta be peaceful so people don't need to worry about surviving and when they don't hafta worry, then they can have the time to think about and do things like attaining peace so that people won't hafta worry. . . we don't know; we're just cats. but we know we gotta have it.

when we wrote that letter to miss mimi, we had no idea that it said just about all we could say about world peace. but when we thought it ofur, we realized it really does:

we wish all the human beans in the world and all the 4-legged, 2-legged, winged, crawling, and swimming peoples would get together and make this world work like it is supposed to. that would truly be peace. peace is the only thing that will let efurry kitty live nine lives of comfort, safety, warmth, and contentment, with plenty of food and clean water. and if that's what kitties should have, isn't it just what efurryone else in the world should have, too? peace can give that to us. give us peace.

dona nobis pacem

miss mimi lenox, a blogging writer/thinker/musician, gave us and merlin, of merlin's meows a furry nice mention here. she has lotsa bloggies, and we hopes you will visit them by viewing her complete profile and checking them all out! you will find lotsa stuff to ponder, enjoy, and laugh with. may bast bless her! she is a Good Bean.

many thanks to our best friend, skeezix, who turned us on to this excellent endeavor. clicky here to learn about it. and, dear kitty friends--get WITH IT!! join up now--you still gots time (like, until tomorrow) to tell the world that we think and feel and blog. (you doesn't hafta mention the "world domination" part right now . . . mom sez that would be "impolitic". geez; efurrything is politics these days. she sez it'll stop after tomorrow. *sigh*)

why are we doing this, you ask? click here and think about it. like we said, peace is the only thing that will let efurry kitty live nine lives of comfort, safety, warmth, and contentment, with plenty of food and clean water. and if that's what kitties should have, isn't it just what efurryone else should have, too?

this is close as we can come to meezer monday

here is our balinese cousin, charlie fluffytail. he is a Cat-Who-Came-Before, and was furry dear to mom. his cat mama & daddy had fancy "papers", but his little ribs weren't formed right, and the breeder wasn't gonna let him be a kitty anymore. well, daddy heard that and was sad, 'cause he knew mom had seen him & his litter and loved him dreffully, even though he walked with a waddle like charlie chaplin. so dad gots the breeder to sell him anyway if dad promised they would nefur try to "show" him, and bringed him home for a birfday present for mom. an' know what? after a year, his ribs was just as right as any kitty's. so good thing dad bought him and let him go on bein' a kitty! only nels 'members him, but he sez he was a quiet cuddler wif furs like silk, and he was a Good Kitty to effuryone, cat & bean.

tara the canadian kitty

if (like us) you've been wonderin' where new little tara's blog has gone, it's HERE. she's charlie & pandora's "cousin"!

hey, guys?

we's doin' blanket-duty on mom in the several places she hurts from cuttin' wood yesterday. she isn't hurt-hurt, just stiff and sore (acause she's old, she sez), an' pretty cranky. we's thinkin' of yas all, and has a picture ready to post for monday, so we'll see you then.

an' it ain't hurtin' us any to rest up after yesterday's party, either--we was quiet, but WE HAD FUN!!! thanks again, smeagol, strider, gizmo & mystery and beans--you threw a rockin' party for all of us, from mini-moes (who are now pretty clean, thanks to fat eric) all the way up to beans (who just watched from corners and almost bursted with love at seeing so many nice kitties together)!

many happy purrs from
nels, ed, nitro, & xing lu

so THAT'S what it looks like . . .

wordless widebody wednesday!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN, Y'ALL!

(and don't neglect Part Deux of the Prize Package Opening, below!)

Prize Box Video - Part Deux

we wants to point out that nels is not really a meany-cat. it's just that he so seldom does anything but eat, sleep, and potty that when he showed up for the opening, we couldn't resist "embroidering" a little . . .

Prize Box Video - Part I

ok, here's the first part of the fun!!

leaf stew!!

 this is cocoa's water dish outdoors--it was clean, new water this morning! the day turned grey, cloudy, & cool, and the wind blew and blew!! not all our pretty trees are pretty anymore. *sigh* 

nope; not yet

no video yet, that is. in the mean time, here's a picture of a sleep shirt that mom's bean sisfur sent her. we think it ROCKS, 'cause we all cuddle and watch the bean tv program with mom & dad. we wishes there was one for us, starring THESE babes!! way to go, aunty marilyn!!

colors

mom's workin' on the prize package video, so in the meantime we're gonna show how pretty it is here--even this late in the year--now that the dadgum rain has stopped.

here's leafs in our oak













an' here's our oak tree up at the top












an' this is our oak (right) an' maple (center) tree tops (an' some other skanky bush on the left side of the street that mom couldn't get rid of)






an' here's the new maple mom & dad bought at a nursery today (an' no, that's not dad, that's the tree nurse).

wound up like an 8-day clock . . .

nitro sez:

my prize package from skeezy's contest came today an' mom let me open it an' effurything inside smelled like primo nip so all the ofur cats came running to see what smelled so good and so mom put me inna bean litterbox room wif her so she could take mooveys of me while i opened it all an' i did an' she did an' it all smelled so good i rolled in efurrything an' rassled the nip-bag around a lot an' then discovered there was fev-ver butt mousies an' i losted all interest in efurrything else (but i still kept lookin' at the pink fev-ver boa an' tryin' to decide whether or not to go back to it) and tost 'em an' bunny-kicked 'em an' hockeyed 'em all around the little room until her camera filled up so she went an' downloaded an' came back an' put some more of the stuff out for the ofur kitties an' took some more mooveys (which she won't have ready to put on our site until prolly monday) while we rolled an' hissed an' kicked the toys an' then we got mad when she put the nip out of reach for a while 'cause we was gettin' sillier an' sillier so we hadda just play wif the toys an' then dad came home an' played wif us anna toys an' made mom promise that we could go to "Nipstock" later tonight an' even though we don't know what nipstock is, we can do it--i'm just sure of it--if it involves even a little bit of nip!!!!

i'm gonna take a nap n . . . .

nitro's costume secrets revealed!

mom sez:

taking the picture of nitro in his halloween costume wasn't all beer & skittles. the shirt is a size 3mo-6mo from the thrift shop, and i sewed the bling around the neck from my jewelry parts stash. getting him into it was like dressing a recalcitrant baby, but i was encouraged that he didn't freak out during a coupla shirt-wearing dry runs.

however, came the photo shoot, getting that HAT to stay on was a whole nuther story. first i stuffed it with tissue paper, and the crackling of it was so alluring to him that he kept trying to see up into the hat. then i tried stuffing it with bubble wrap, but that was heavier than the tissues, and he didn't like it. i knew i shoulda stuck with the tissue, but we shot with the bubbles. if only i had been smart enough to stiffen the crown with white glue (which is how he got those perky ears) and then glued it to his head!

and here's the story of the "proud meezer posture" several kitties commented on: when we got him all dressed, he suddenly developed an advanced case of jello-bones--would NOT stand or even sit on dad's lap, just collapsed into a puddle of nitrobutter. so we ended up setting him on the kitchen table with dad behind him. dad started out by holding him up by the collar. that pulled the bling into his fur and outta sight, so i told him to grab him by the scruff. he did, and that worked best, but the poor kitty looks like he's had two too many face-lifts.

after the costume came off, he did come seek me out, so he didn't hold a grudge. what a Good Kitty! i wonder how he'll like playing Santy Claws . . .

we highly recommend . . .

today's "Two Lumps" cartoon. if you're not already a fan, you could start now!

(not quite) wordless wednesday

ok, it's a woofie, not a kitty, but mom asked if she could pick the picture, and we let her. she's been thinkin' a lot about him lately: this is thor, The-Dog-That-Was, and the most good-natured woofie that ever was, too. xing doesn't 'member him, but the rest of us do, and he was a Good Dog.

ok, it's not wordless, either, but we figgered we'd better 'splain so nokitty thought one of us had turned coat, or been eaten!

an' this wasn't halloween, either. the Boy just felt like doing it, and thor was happy to go along with him. like we said, a Good Dog.

tummy tuesday - edmund

here, in all his fluffitude, is the one, the only,
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, Earl of Pierce:

hell is at 35 degrees and holding:

here are nitro, edmund, AND xing lu, all on mom/mom's chair AT THE SAME TIME! granted, even though the boys are playing by the kitty-courtesy rules and ignoring her like mad, xing's still muttering and swearing at them. if mom weren't there, xing woulda been gone in an ill-tempered, growling flash. and possibly a puff of sulphur vapor.

ripped from the arms of morpheus . . .

and tossed ignominiously into a Prisoner Transport Unit! that's how my day began.

i was snoozin' peacefully in my chair across from the toasty-warm wood stove, nestled in my cozy new micro-fill mini-comforter. mom got two them of yesterday, so we now has one each (except for xing, who doesn't sleep in the living room anyway). *zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*

*zzzz---SNORK! wha'? wh. . .NYOOOOOOO!!!!!!* i was unceremoniously dumped into the PTU with scarcely any time to express my outrage. off we went in the big red machine to . . . you guessed it--the vet. by now i was mute with wrath, and said not a meow all the way there.

well, my left ear has been itchin' me something awful, and while i let mom & dad knuckle the dickens outta it, i won't let them put a q-tip or the snout of the medicine bottle in it. in fact, teeth and claws figure into the equation when they try, so they don't try furry often any more. last night, i finally scratched the backside of my ear all bloody, and they said "something must be done." they certainly didn't consult with me about what that "something" might be! hence, the trip to the vet.

there are three lady vets in practice together at angel animal hospital, but dr. shelley harders would be my pick if i'da had one. miraculously, that's how it worked out. my wrath cooled at last; i knew she wouldn't hurt me. we knows her of old, since she worked for the first vet, dr. snow, who owned the hospital. when he retired, she and two other ladies took over.

she checked me out in general (i seem to be in good shape for a 16-bean-year-old kitty), and she was furry patient as she q-tipped the gunk out & checked for mites (score: nels 1, mites 0). then she sloshed in some cleaner liquid and soaked and q-tipped it out again. she put medicine in, and gave some more of it to mom to use on me later (much luck to her on that!). dad sez if it works good on me, he's gonna try it--he has perpetually itchy ears, too, and the poor guy just can't get those hind feet up to scratch satisfactorily!

by this time, i was so completely seduced by her charms (and dad's iron grip) that i let her cut my shivs--front AND back!! ahhhhh. what a lady!

then they packed me back in the PTU, and off we went home. dad passed 'round treats with a liberal hand and told me what an excellent kitty-boy i was, and mom promised some mighty good 'nip a little later. it was awful exciting--got my geezer-cat blood racing so that my nose turned fluorescent pink--but now i'm just gonna go back to my cozy spot and nap until i smell that 'nip!

cheers, nels

dirty ol' dread pirate blogger

today we has visited efurry single bloggie that we links to, an' it hasn't let us leave comments on but one or two! we are furry frustrated!! we isn't ignoring you (even though nitro has "the big head" now and barely speaks to us; that snip. he thinks we deserve it, since nokitty else wanted to wear the costume), we is pre-vented. (we allus useta think that meant holes punched in it beforehand, but all's we gots is the ones we was borned with!) anyway, we is hoping that d.p.b. will straighten up and fly right by supper time, so mom can post. for that matter, we hopes he lets us post THIS!

thank you, one and all!

to efurry cat'n'bean'n'woofie'n'bird'n'whoefur voted for me (or even thought about it):

Thank you furry, furry much!

it means lots to me that a jurry of my peers peered at me and said they liked me. usually, i'm the one causing trouble and gettin' squirted. it's a nice change to be causing fun and laughter! i know there was some furry tough competition, and it's an honor to be in such company. when we started bloggin', we were welcomed warmly and have been befriended many times. we has such a nice community--we are proud to say we're cats, and we blog!!

now, mom said from the time i picked little scooter, that even if i din't win, we would sponsor him. so we're gonna add to the prize from skeezy. and we'd like to challenge each of you to do the same--not scooter if ya doesn't wanta, certainly. but maybe the kitty you chose. or another kitty entirely. or maybe one not even at best friends sanctuary. (we donates to a local no-kill shelter here in missouri, too, but best friends is special to us 'cause it's special to skeezy and his fambly.)

but please donate SOMETHING to a shelter SOMEWHERE!! there are so many of us who suffer, who are alone, who need medication, who need lovins, who need a safe, warm place to sleep, & uncontaminated food and water. shelters, especially no-kill sanctuaries like best friends, can give these things only as long as we lucky, blessed kitties and our beans make it possible.

even small amounts are welcome--please read skeezy's message in the very first comment on this post. if you can afford it without discombobulating your budget, please donate. you'll sleep better tonight. thank you. *what the . . . how'd i get up on this flea-soap box? i better get down!*

we loves you all, you know!

purrs & kitty kisses from
nitro

the cat ate my homework - honest!!

a video our bean cousin, pam, sent us:

thanks, cousin!! meows!!! n-e-n-x

beware of flying objects . . .

nels sez:

well, this morning She hadda go change her pants. She peed 'em. before breakfast. and it was all xingxing's fault.

xing likes to sit on the table that the puter face sits on while She types. all of a sudden, xing started that well-known rhythmic urping that signals an imminent hairball (and she, being very fastidious, hurls some whoppers!). She didn't wanna annoy xing just then by moving her, so She just moved papers outta the way and told her to go for it; which she did.

but the hairball didn't come all the way out! xing panicked and did a scrambling, floundering about-face turn to jump up on the puter body where it sits next to the face. while she did this, her head went through the 180-arc with her mouth pointing upward, spraying hurl-juice ceilingward with great success.

then her head followed through with a snap, disengaging a world-class hairwad, which smacked into the wall--four feet away!! it slid slowly down the wall like those icky garden slugs, and plunked onto the carpet. us boys watched in awe. we've projectile-yakked a few times, but NEVER anything like that. xing has a new weapon, and we respect her for that. we're staying outta the way when she hurls.

oh, yeah; it took Her almost three minutes to get Herself together enough to go clean up the mess, wipe Her eyes, and use Her asthma inhaler. and then, of course, to change Her britches.

PLEASE VOTE FOR NITRO . . .

so little scooter gets another sponsor!! Click Here to go directly to my entry!
and Click here to go to the contest page!

hell has frozen over . . .

the mom sez:

photographic proof that it's a cold day in hell AND missouri, and there are no wood stoves fired up in either place. you would never catch nelson this close to ed & nitro, otherwise.

xing lu, however, is cuddled up in the kitty cozy in her suite of rooms. when you see her lying this close to the boys, you might's well hang onto yer glass eye and yer wooden leg, gertie--life as we know it will be comin' to a screechin' halt in a matter of minutes!

we'd like to get him one of those heated kitty cups, but he'd probably pee in it to declare his ownership and electrocute himself in the doing. hafta mull this over for a while. we know his "arthur" bothers him and have started him on glucosamine and chondroitin, but heat would give immediate help. darn opinionated cat!

halloween costume posting

we has put nitro's halloween costume picture on the contest page, so g'wan ofur there and see all the inventive kitties' pictures! there are LOTS of 'em, but room for more--so if you hasn't participated yet, be sure to check out skeezy's page, 'cause he's extended the deadline for efurryone who hasn't had a lot of time to do this!!

a cat's gotta do what a cat's gotta do

to keep warm on a cool fall day! unfortunately, not long after this was taken, he rolled and stretched and pushed the "test page" button and scared hisself right off the printer! *silent kitty laugh*

--nels

She finally got the party video done

. . . although She does NOT have the clip of us draggin' the fev-ver butted mousies outta the box (and nitro EATING the peacock fev-ver). She claims she put them into the puter, but when she went to make the video, they were not there. we wonders. anyway, here it is!


we have posted it on our pages at catster, too!

halloween pictures

no, not of us--mom's workin' on nitro's costume for skeezix's contest, though. when she got to thinkin' about costumes, she decided to look up her old pictures (before digital days) and scan them into flikr. so there's a flikr badge in the sidebar where you can see what The Boy looked like in years gone by. we can tell ya, he'da scared us! (well, nels sez he scared the kitties who lived here plenty, anyway, little boys being what they are!)

We present to you: Henry!

that is to say, Mr. Henry M. Catterton, at this site -- please mosey on ofur and bid him a hearty kitty blogosphere hello, and help him out all you can! (an' that'll encourage his mommy to get on the stick and build that bloggie with him;-) she's a furry, furry artistic lady, so we'll prolly see some really nifty stuff!

Welcome, Henry!!

xing's taking notes on how to blog . . .

studying another blogger's bloggie, for tips and tricks and things to do on ours. she's certainly intent!

a little more about pawdicures . . .

us meowers has joined the dk&f secret paws group! over there, i posted a little about pawdicures in our house. you should go read it! and join secret paws!!

purrs, nitro

TA-DA! better late than nefurr . . .

Finally: the awards for the Caption Non-Contest of 26 Sept (winners announced 29 Sept). Mom apologizes, blushing furiously, for being such a dope as to run a contest without even having awards ready. She sez you can lift yours right off this post, or e-mail us, and we'll send the picture to ya, ready to print out and hang on your monitor, or html to use in your bloggie, if ya wanta. we knows lots of ya already has your sidebars overloaded, so if ya just wanna look at it and admire it, that's fine with us!

First Place: Eclair
	Second Place: The Meezers
Third Place: Hot(M)BC
	Honorable Mention: Catzee
Special Mention: Beau
	Poetry Award: Grr, Midnight, & Cocoa

we're on a movie-makin' kick

here's one of nitro.

she thinks she did better this time at matching up the end of the music with the end of the video.

mom's first movie project

scene: She lies back in the recliner, and before long ed levitates his 23 lbs onto Her chest. *whump*

*jeez, ed--take it easy! i only got two lungs, and they don't work too good all ready!*

with his head in the crook of Her neck on the left side, right paw over Her left shoulder, left paw over the right shoulder, he kneads Her hair and purrs like an idling truck. finally the purrs diminish, and he extends his right front and rear paws to the side like pneumatic braces, pushing himself just enough to roll himself over Her side and into the space between Her body and Her arm along the arm of the chair. he begins to snore lightly. heavily. lights out! *zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*

this is this is Her furry first attempt, so please be kind in your assessments, and remember it's hard to operate a camera without looking through the viewer, and with your non-dominant, arthritic hand holding it up in the air!

see what i have to put up with?

it always happens this way. i just want to settle down with Him and watch some nice pictures on the big box, and i then have to constantly fend off cocoa! i get no respect.

(why did She laugh so loud when i typed that?)

and the winners are . . . (drum roll, please)

#1 - Éclair
#2 - Meezers
#3 - HOT(M)BC
Honorable Mention - Catzee
Special Mention - Beau (for sheer quantity. unfortunately, after the judging began)
Poetry Award - Grr, Midnight, & Cocoa (totally COOL limerick)

and for you doubters out there who wondered about the validity of having a boss, a QA guy, and a bookkeeper as judges, we herewith list their submissions:

boss: (unprintable, but hysterically funny)

QA guy: Cat said, "I knew the Lord would provide!" Mouse said, "Ohhhhh, I shoulda listened to that preacher!!" (mom's comment: if the jews got manna in the desert, did their cats get mice-a?)

bookkeeper: Cat: "up 6 . . . up 7 . . . up 8 . . . up 9 . . . " Mouse: "Cat, just get yourself a regular medicine ball to exercise with--i'm gettin' seasick!"

bookkeeper's second submission: Mouse: "Cat, tell me again why we want to be in the Guinness Book of World Records?????"

our mom: Cat: "Hey, this juggling thing really does get easier the more you do it . . ." Mouse (looking right and left): "Moe? Larry? Where'dyas go????? Guys?"

our boy: Cat: "Wahoo! it's raining mice!" Mouse: "D*mn wind gust . . . "

AND THANK YOU ALL FOR PLAYING!! please stay tuned for the next non-contest; we'll see if we can come up with some stickers for your pages, at least!

talk about a pile o'kitties . . .

what a stunning sand sculpture!! you can see more sculptures (but not a single one as kittified) by clicking here. this one didn't win a prize, though. sadly, it collapsed before the judging.

the voting begins . . .

OK, a completely independent panel of judges (mom's boss, the QA manager, and the bookkeeper--all of whom know "funny" when they see it) has been tasked with deciding on the winner of our non-contest. we'll keep you posted . . .

Luna's visit to the vet (translation)

Sue asked for it, here it is:

Mama says that I have comported myself like a perfect lady. The vet gave me antibiotics, and also a spray for my fleas and some medicines to use in the house. He says that with lots of caresses and care from Mama and Papa, I will be healthy in a month.

(under picture) Here are my medications. Although they taste bad, like a good “gatorrista” (must be dialect for some kinda kitty, maybe brave kitty?), I will take them in order to get well very quickly and play with all my friends.

Thanks for all the welcoming greetings. I never thought I had so many kitty friends.

and here's Luna's blogspot. you need to check out the chairs at her vet's office!!

peeyes: don't forget our "caption non-contest", below!

NEW: Two-fold Caption Non-Contest

WARNING - TOO INTENSE FOR RATTIES & BUNS - RATED "C" FOR CATS ONLY!!

well, not really a "contest" in the sense that you get a prize--'cause we can't afford a prize right now--but you DO get braggin' rights!! so:


What is the kitty saying? What is the mousie thinking?
(Note: they don't have to be having a conversation--in other words, the two phrases don't have to match each other.)

LUNA IS HOME & SAFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GOD IS GOOD!!! Y'all remember the little Spanish kitty who got losted by some dopey bean calling himself a vet? Well, here's mom's translation of today's post by Luna's mom:

Surprise! Look who we found! Someone who saw the announcement about Luna in a magazine called us to come see a cat who was hanging around some garbage cans, and when we got there--SURPRISE! It was our little Luna, very scared, and (there were) a lot of other street cats around there, too. She was very skinny, with fleas and a sore on her nose, but thanks to God and all your prayers, she is with us now. Tomorrow, the Veterinarian will see her (of course, not that irresponsible person who lost her). I, myself, will take her and leave her (Luna) with her (the Vet) until the visit is over, and carry her back home. Thanks to Saint Francis for protecting her and Saint Anthony for finding her. THANKS TO EVERYONE!! [Sniff!!] Now all we want is to be with her and spoil her!

tee-hee!

ed sez:

our She is very nervous. She changed the litter boxes over two hours ago, and nobody's used 'em yet! not even nitro, who straw-bossed the whole operation, an' he's been known to use one while She's pouring in the new stuff. so this is really wigging Her out. we just decided to drive Her crazy in a new way and not use 'em for a while. *smirk*

They went to a wedding yesterday. They got in His big red metal box and were gone all morning and all afternoon. They got home JUST in time to feed us on schedule. we were gettin' sorta worried! the weather was furry, furry nice, so it was held outdoors in a gazeebo. (that's an outdoor house with no walls, if we understood His splanation right. not a house without walls, izzit?)

anyway, the lady and man, their mommas and daddies, some friends, and a guy in a black nightgown all went into the gazeebo. the black-robe man asked the two people if they wanted to get married, and then he said they were. then they hadda sign papers, and our He and She signed them. wonder if that means They're married to them too? gonna be kinda crowded here, if so! but They didn't bring them home with them, so probably not.

it's a lazy, gloomy, cool day here, and They even put on long-legs pelts today. now He is "putting up hay", but She calls it mowing the grass. She is putting their substitute pelts in a big box, and after a while, takes them out and puts them in another, noisier box. we don't get that, but She's alla time checking to see that we don't explore them. says that kitties don't like those machines. how's She know? is She a kitty? it's mean not to share. after all, look how much She uses them! She wouldn't do it if She didn't like it, would She?

at that wedding, the momma of the lady who got married was taking movie pictures with a different kind of camera than what we's got. She wants one now, so She can take movies of us and put titles and such on them, 'cause she has learned to do that. but He says it'll be a cold day in hell before They get one. should i tell Her that we read on Max the Psychokitty's blog that satan goes ice-skating? that'd mean it was pretty cold there! ;-)

anyway, hope you are all well, and your beans are cuddly!

some beans is GOOD!

clicky here for the story of some boy scouts who helped a kitty. it's a furry nice thing to read, and a furry good idea that could maybe help somekitty you know, someday!

we're bored

bored, bored, bored. our beans never do nuthin' worth blogging about. what's a kitty to do?

we starts getting restive and hungry around 4:30 in the morning, so we talk, sing and thump on the door until He gets up, stumbling and muttering. She won't leave crunchies out in the open at night, 'cause fat ed will glom onto them all, and get even MORE jy-MUNDUS. He makes that koffee stuff and doles out our food. afters, He washes up, scrapes His face fur, changes pelts, and goes to the job at 6:00. He tells us to be good kitties, and to guard the house. well, duh! we're always good (for something) and if someone comes in, we'll watch 'em close to see if they have any stinky goodness!

when He's gone, it's pretty quiet, unless xing came out of her "suite" before He left. then we chases her and knocks stuff around, and it gets very asitin' for a while; but for some reason, she don't like it much. (her "suite" is the two rooms in the center of the house that The Boy used to live in. she hides in there most nights with the doors closed, 'cause otherwise the beans come out really mad and hollerin' when we chase her around and make her howl.) They just don't understand having fun. maybe THAT's why They're so dull.

our She likes to sleep a little later, so at 6:45 we hears the black box on the headboard start talkin'. usually, She talks back all grumpy and whacks it a good one. we wait a little more, an' eventually She staggers out to peer at the floor in case there's something She wouldn't want to step on. (an' don't think it's only us that drags stuff outside Their door. the d*gs leave their sheep chew-hoofs there, too, and if they're not spit-icky, they're dry and sharp!)

it takes Her 'way longer to navigate the gettin'-up ritual, as ed posted about a couple weeks ago. then She plays with each of us, pets xena, and makes a peanut butter sammich for breakfast. we all beg (successfully). at 7:30, She goes to the job, and we lays around, napping and looking at each other the whole day. sometimes a bird flies past or a squirrel sits on the carport, but that's it. nuthin' to blog about. and we don't gots no toys, 'cause cocoa and xena eats 'em all. blaaaahhhhhhhhhhh.

what's this "job" thing, anyway? wouldn't They rather stay home and take naps with us and amuse us? we're VERY nappable and amusable, and we'll trade lotsa head bumps and purrs for amusement. it's a furry favorable exchange rate just now! They can't possibly understand how important this is; dull humans. dull. dull. dull.

we're bored. bored. bored.

just 'cause it tickled our fancy . . .

what on earth is this kitty thinking?
(and don't ask where our fancies are; we're not telling!)

The original Vita-Mineral Mix from 3 years ago

Mom found it on an old hard drive!!

1 ½ cup yeast powder (any food-grade yeast—brewer’s, tarula, or flaked)
½ c kelp powder or granules
1 c lecithin granules
1 c wheat germ—TOASTED!!
1 c bran (wheat, oats, rye)
½ c dolomite or bone meal (dolomite’s easier to find)

mix together and store in covered coffee can or similar container. REFRIGERATE!!! add 2 tsp of mix to each small 6.5 oz can ( I just stir 1 tsp into moist food morning & evening). three times a week, give one drop of vitamin E and add ½ tsp of cod liver oil.

some health care tips for kitties

nels sez:

mom sez to tell ya, we has noticed that some kitties in the catosphere have admitted to a few health problems. when spottycat-that-was no longer had uncle eeker to groom her, and got too old to do a good job of it herself, she began having matts. mom gave her the powder listed on this page and it did wonders. her fur grew back in, became glossy again, she didn't have dander, and didn't matt anymore. it took several months, of course, for all this to be accomplished, but at least she didn't have to spend her last four years being constantly annoyed by people trying to cut out matts. those darn things really hurt--they are like dreadlocks. they twist and pull on our skin, and that's why we don't like pettin's there very much.

it's the furry furst one on the page, Anitra Frazier's Vita-Mineral Mix. beans can get the stuff in the health food store, or maybe even in larger regular food stores. mom's pretty sure she also bought raw wheat germ, toasted it in a low oven until it smelled good, then stirred it and cooked it a little more, and added that to the mix. YOU MUST TOAST THE WHEAT GERM, 'CAUSE IT'S TOXIC OTHERWISE!!! this newer recipe doesn't add it. but you can, if you want; it can't hurt AS LONG AS IT'S GOOD AND TOASTED!!!!!.

it doesn't take long to do, and it's easy to just sprinkle on wet food or mix with a little water and pour on crunchies. you makes a bunch at a time, and can keep it sealed up tight in a clean ol' coffee can in the fridge! the dose of the mix is 1-2 tsp per kitty per day.

chaotic cat says "Hummy microwave heats digestive bran and then rubs it into my coat to clean me instead of putting me in yucky water ... wonder if this will also help with longer haired cats too?" can't think of any reason why not, unless they don't like being rubbed or brushed.

if you hafta cut matts, mom sez, grasp the matt at the base (closest to the skin, so you don't pull on it while working) and cut from the edge farthest away from the skin down towards the body. you gotta have a mellow cat, sharp scissors, and do this with incredible care and lotsa patience. do this several times, making a sorta fringe. that breaks apart the matt and lessens the tension, so it's easier to cut off down at the skin edge. this method doesn't pull on the skin, like the so-called "matt cutters". OUCH!

poor rocky's got pee problems, and maybe he and any of you other cats out there with that tendency might benefit from dr. pitcairn's powder - it has vitamin c in it, and ofurr healthy things!

we wishes all our kitty furriends good health so we can keep playing together for a long, long time! purrs & kitty-kisses to you all!

kolar kitty, redux

jake, of jake & bathsheba, made this suggestion a couple of days ago in a comment on the story of the kolar cat, KC: "Maybe the company should rescue another kitty since they're good for the customers."

well, here's the story on that:

after KC went to nanet's, boss offered to get mom another kitty from the home-grown stock at his house, or take her to the shelter to get one, or whatever she wanted. but she said she just couldn't do it anymore. losing KC was SO traumatic, she didn't know what would happen to her brain if it happened again with another kitty.

and since nanet had gone to a different workplace, that meant there would be only one "traffic cop" (mom) to constantly remind a group of so-called "grown-ups" to (1) be sure the doors were closed behind them, (2) to not stand in the doorway holding open the doors while talking (boss's d*g, bullet, got run over in the street in front of work when a customer did that), (3) stop scaring the kitty, (4) stop teasing the kitty, (5) etc., etc.

while she loved & adored little KC, and enjoyed her company so much while she was with them, those were also the most psychologically wearing two years of mom's life, and just couldn't bear to do it any more. besides, what would be the odds that any other kitty they got would have the perfect temperament that KC did for being a shop cat? so, sadly, no more cats at kolar.

(however, one of the repair team brings his d*g, buck, in with him when he comes to work now. that makes the one grump who didn't like cats happy, and the rest of us cat lovers like him, too. buck was thrown away just like KC, but now has a wonderful furrever home with his daddy, monty.)

kitty herd size poll results

here are the results of our previous poll, with 38 kitties responding:

15.8%
1
31.6%
2
26.3%
3
13.2%
4
5.3%
5
5.3%
6
0.0%
7
2.6%
8+

so we can see that moderate size families are just about the norm. or as "norm" as cat households get . . . =^;-)^=

party sammiches

mom sez:
we're tryin' to bring up those raggamuffin kits of ours to be perlite and socially acceptable, so we're sending along these sammiches when they teleport in for the festivities at skeeeeezix's tomorrow.

hope yas like 'em! enjoy, and drink responsibly!!

our She is just silly

edmund sez:

y'know, She has this picture as her screensaver, both at work and at home.


criminentalies! why not a picture of us?? or one of us, at least? or one each, alternating weeks? what a sappy-lookin' guy. She just sighs and giggles whenever She sees it, then goes around smiling for a while, like after She sees skeezix's birthday hat picture. we don't mind that at all; HE'S a great guy, and at least he's a real cat--what's the big whoop about senor pussycat?

burns my tailfeathersfur every time i think about it. do YOUR beans make the "oooooooo ahhhhhhhh so cute" *giggle* noises for this guy? can anykitty know what goes on in their heads?

Look! we are honorary catizens of Hot(m)BC!!!

We are just so PROUD! Thank you, MomRobyn, Sanjee, Boni Maroni,
Mini, Gree and Pepi!!

K.C., the office kitty

nels sez:

one morning in the long ago, She was late leaving the house for work, so she hurried off in the green machine. as She got near the office, She saw a little black kitty with a white bib, wandering in the center of a busy intersection. She made the machine STOP! and She dashed out into the traffic to scoop up the kitty. it scrambled up Her front, perched on Her shoulder and purred like a swarm of bees into Her ear as She got back into the machine. then it climbed down onto her chest and clung there, purring, all the way to the office. it was a new office, but an old job. they were in the process of moving Kolar's computer-building business into a larger space, and there was much to do.

when She went in the front door, the boss was right there. "whatcha got?" he said. "a kitty; i found it in an intersection." "whattaya gonna do with it?" "i dunno. we're already maxed out at my house on cats; the old man will holler if i bring home another one. i thought maybe somebody here might take it. or--maybe it could be an office kitty?" *fluttering eyelashes madly*.

"hmmmmmm. yeah, maybe it could be an office kitty. we'll try it." what a nice bean he is!!! he lives out in the country, and his wife is hostess to a jillion-cat herd that lives outside, so he is quite used to kitties, although he prefers *shudder* big ol' hairy d*gs.

anyway, soon the other office lady, janet aka "nanet" came in, and inside of an hour, the kitty had a name (KC for "kolar cat"), a bed (in a drawer, with a towel to sleep on), a collar, food, water, bowls, a litter box and scoop, toys, and a scratching post. things appeared like magic! everybody (except one grump) had kitties and brought or bought stuff for her. our mom took her for Her shots and ladygardenectomy, and nanet took her home to visit with her two kitties on weekends, so she was never locked up alone for more than overnight. our mom and nanet referred to themselves as her "co-mommies".

so KC began her career as an office cat and official greeter. she was a natural--a friendly, interested, well-mannered (N*E*V*E*R used her claws) kitty, very purry, she would come up to people bringing in machines and strop their ankles or jump right up onto the counter to see what was what! nobody EVER got stinky about her being there, and most asked for her if they didn't see her right off.

after about two years had passed happily, an employee from a remote office came to town for a seminar and stayed in the upstairs loft of the building. while he was unloading his suitcases, he propped open the door and out she went unbeknownst to him. the next morning, our mom was heartbroken when they could not find her. she'd been known to hide in cabinets and other deep, dark places, but even crunching her favorite toy, a crackly tinfoil ball, failed to bring her running. they figured out what must have happened, and She sent her boss(!) out to drive up and down the streets to see if he could find her--either way. (i told you he was a good bean; and he also knew very well not to cross a woman whose cat was missing.)

She called the businesses on either side of Kolar to alert them, and with a heavy heart, called nanet at her new job and gave her the bad news. soon there were fliers posted nearby, with a picture of the kitty. all day dragged by, and mom cried all day long. sat at Her desk and leaked quietly, didn't care who saw, waited on customers at the counter and answered their questions about why. some of them even came 'round the counter to hug her and assure her KC'd come back.

all night, She cried some more, and then some more. next day, same thing. sadness. gloom. leaking.

on the third morning, as mom was opening the door at work, the phone was ringing. the lady at the business next door wanted to know if the kitty we were looking for had a white chest and red collar. scared that they had found her dead on the rough hillside behind the building, She trembled but answered, "yes". "well, she's locked in our bathroom and she's about to tear the door down. for goodness sake, come get her! one of our workers found her in the bed of his truck this morning!!!" mom's heart sprouted wings and flew her right over the big fence and onto the porch next door. the lady laughed with her as they saw not one, but TWO black paws scrabbling anxiously out from under the bathroom door.

we don't know how long she'd been in the bed of his truck, how she got there, or anything else. all that was important was that she was home. mom hugged her until she squeaked! and scolded her, and hugged her, and cried some more, but happy tears. then She called nanet and shared the big news, so there were TWO bawling, happy women in springfield that morning. mom and nanet agreed that something had to be done to prevent that happening again.

so at lunch time, nanet's sweetman, alan, came and picked little KC up and whisked her away to her once weekend, now furrever home. nobody--not mom, not boss, not anyone--EVER wanted to go through THAT again, and gladly gave up seeing her if it meant she would be safe. so mom had visitation rights and went to see her now and again. KC's still living there, happy and spoiled rotten, with her brofurs.

that was three years ago. folks who come in to the office still ask, "where's the kitty?"! i guess she made quite an impression. =^..^=

One of the 2,996: Yvette Anderson

The kitties' mom here, taking over the blog for this important message:

On this solemn day of remembrance, I am honored to memorialize Mrs. Yvette Anderson of New York, NY, who worked at the NY State Department of Taxation and Finance as a Keyboard Specialist. Her office was in the World Trade Center's North Tower on the 87^th floor. She was at work on 9/11/01, and like so many others, left this world for the next on that day. May she live forever, safe and radiantly happy, in the arms of her G*d.

Orphaned at the age of 15, she learned to be self reliant and hard working, values she left as her legacy to family and friends. Many folks would have become humorless and dour during a life of striving, but not Yvette. Her picture perfectly illustrates her joie d'vivre.

She demonstrated her work ethic by holding two jobs (weekends, waitressing at a soul food restaurant; weekdays, Keyboard Specialist at the Tower), AND working on a Bachelor’s Degree in Restaurant & Hotel Management. She dreamed of opening a restaurant of her own, specializing in good ol’ Southern comfort foods.

She was only 53 when terrorists murdered her, but had already accomplished much in her life. She raised children, tended to the elderly, and took joyous part in the vibrant life of the White Rock Baptist Church, in praise, song, dance—and food! She nourished many of the flock in body and soul.

We remember her in prayer, and are thankful for her life as a G*dly representative here on earth, for the positive role she played in the lives of many. Her life had meaning, and we can still profit by her lessons.

Thank you, Yvette, for being one of us. Your time here was far too short, but so very well spent. You and those you left behind are never far from our thoughts, and we continue to pray for healing and well-being for all who miss you.

my Mommy gave us a nip party!

xingxing purrs:

ahhhhhhh! and she recorded it for posterity:
here's the boys, too, sleepin' it off with big ol' nipnaps


please don't forget to vote in our poll on the right side of the page! my Mommy's going to post this for me, 'cause i'm gonna take my nipnapnow!