Me and the motley crew

I'm not sure why, but lately the pets seem to be swarming around me, more so than usual. They like to lay all over my expanding belly, or snuggle next to me on the couch. I don't know if they sense that there's another little life present in the house, but I'm not complaining about the increased affection (for the most part, lol).

Last night, three of them—Adora, Spanky, and Dollie—spontaneously gathered around me on the couch and hovered around me for a good five minutes. It was so odd and funny that I quickly snapped a photo with my Mac (I was working on my laptop). They were being goofy and rubbing against me and each other, and even Baby Jack was wiggling in sympathy.

A nightly ritual

Me, Dollie, Spanky (by my belly), and Adora


This is how we end up every night, with me snuggling under a blanket and the dogs/cats piled around me, sleeping. The only one who didn't join us last night was Max, who was off prowling around in the basement somewhere, I'm sure. Sometimes we mix it up and they all lay on Pete, or we split them 50/50. It's hard to move with dogs and cats on you, but it's super cozy!

Sleeping kitty

They are so cute when they're sleeping and not causing trouble, aren't they? Dollie's favorite room is our dining room/kitchen, which is still under construction and full of fun things to play with like scraps of sandpaper, stray screws, and lots of dust. But she also finds it a great place to catch a good nap.

Thanks to everyone who wished us a happy anniversary (Pete and me, that is, not Dollie). We had a great weekend up in Savanna hanging out at the farm and just relaxing a lot (and eating, of course). I'm moving a bit slow this week, and still getting to reading everyone's recent blog posts (I've been soooooo out of the blogging world lately!), but looking forward to our upcoming trip to the Adirondacks on Saturday. I've been busy locating my cameras and running mental checklists for the journey. Hopefully we can get some much needed R & R up there and come back refreshed and calm.

Dollie, come home

Our spunky and chunky little cat Dollie (the one in the banner for this blog) has run away, and I'm very sad about it. Last time I saw her was yesterday morning at 5:30 a.m., when the dogs dashed outside to chase her up into a tree. She later came down and ran off, and I haven't seen her since. She's very affectionate and friendly, so I worry someone's taken her in without checking to see who she belongs to (she's microchipped but lost her collar). And she's not an "outdoor" cat, but prefers to stay inside, except for the occasional trips out on the patio or up a nearby tree. I've been walking from open doors to open windows in the house, calling her over and over, with Max at my side, "helping" me look.



Anyhow, I hope she comes home soon. It's rainy and cold outside, and everyone seems lonely without her.

Dollie vs. a bowl of cherries

If you are a photographer and have pets like me, you know that you often get "helpers" that "assist" you in your photo shoots. They tend to move stuff around for you or pose in your shot to help you focus. Sometimes the ensuing photograph is better than the intended original, but often you get a blurry mess. Other times you get something interesting or even worthy of saving. In any event, you have a laugh at your furry children's antics.



Such was the case this past weekend. I had bought some cherries at Target and decided, on a whim, to take some photos. And since our dining room floor is still unpainted, I thought the white bowl and red cherries would look pretty with the blue-green-brown floorboards in the background. I set the bowl on the floor and started to take pictures, snapping off a few somewhat blurry but colorful images.



I was just getting into it when a furry head popped into view in front of my camera lens. Dollie (the cat in my blog banner, for those of you new to this blog) had somehow caught wind of this impromptu photo session and decided to help herself to one of the cherries. She picked one out of the bowl with her little monkey paw (I swear she has opposable thumbs) and started to play a game of cherry soccer, Dollie-style. I just sat back and watched her for a while, snapping a few pix but mainly enjoying this burst of spontaneous game play. She played with her little "ball" for quite some time, until it was either squishy from being batted about or eaten by one of the dogs (Adora likes cherries, we've discovered).



Later on, the bowl of cherries was sitting on our enamel table in the kitchen, and Dollie decided to play some more. She hopped up on the table, took another cherry out of the bowl, jumped onto the floor with it in her paw, and started playing soccer again. I had to laugh and watch her again, since she obviously was having fun and was oblivious to the world around her as she played. Dollie partially hid inside a plastic bag at one point, using it as a sort of blind, and repeatedly pounced on the hapless cherry. Another tactic was to send the cherry flying under and around the construction equipment in the dining room, whereafter she'd chase the little missile and intercept it in different ways. This game play is not unusual behavior for Dollie, but it always surprises and delights me. Max is a much calmer, more relaxed cat, and very rarely plays at all, but Dollie is full of mischeif.



What a weird, weird cat.

Weekend guests

Izzy and her friend Abby stayed overnight on Saturday and into the day on Sunday. They are the first official guests we've had in our house since the spare bedroom has been semi-finished. Matt has been here before, but that was to either house-sit or to just crash on the couch. It was kinda weird but cool to cook for them, give them blankets and linens, and entertain them. Hopefully we'll have more people staying over in the future.



Dollie decided it was her duty to be the official guest companion, and made herself a little bed in a basket tray table designed for drinks, not cats. (It was a cheapy Ikea plastic neon green tray table, but I swapped out the tray for a white basket I happened to have.) Dollie seemed to be in heaven, having the girls fawn all over her, tuck her in at night, and feed her scraps.



Glad to know our guests will never lack for (annoying) company.

Dollie on drums

Pete's friend Jeff left his drum kit out in the dining room on Friday night (we usually store it in our weird little storage room). Dollie couldn't help herself and climbed on top, sniffing and accidentally clanging the cymbals. Max preferred to keep his distance, although he did seem intrigued.



Funny thing is, Jeff HATES cats, so Pete snapped some pix to show Jeff. At work on Monday, Pete said, "Hey man, we had a new drummer stand in for you the other day. Dude, this cat is pretty good, he's really got talent." Jeff didn't fall for it, and when Pete revealed the pictures, giggling like a madman, Jeff took it like a good sport.

Trapped in the spare room

Certain cats like to frolic inside/underneath the dining room floor when Pete is working on it and has his back turned, so these particular cats had to be properly contained. You'd think they were being sent to prison or something, the way they were looking so confused and hurt.

Sorry about the icky windows, I'm in the middle of renovations and cleaning and job hunting, and I have yet to shine them.

To each his—or her—own

Even if that means you like to sleep in a potted plant.

Secret cat code?

Dollie laying all over my other desk and the PC keyboard



I was writing captions for the billions of pictures I uploaded to Flickr for the honeymoon pix, Day Twelve (will it ever end?) and stopped in the kitchen to grab some more coffee and talk to Pete. When I came back, I surprised Dollie, who was on my keyboard and had written this:

\ bbbbbbbbb

```cvw222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222

(and so on for a million more 2's)

222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111
11111wbv

For this photo:



I'm not sure what it means. Could it be a secret rendezvous place (in Maui, of all places) for her other cat cohorts? She seemed rather suspicious, and quickly tried to hide what she was typing with her furry body. I was on to her though, and shooed her away from the keyboard, hopefully stopping the code from being transmitted to other cats across the country.

Two can play at this game, my feline friend, two can play...



Dollie laying on my closed (and safe, for now) laptop

Me and my Dollie-Cat

Today I decided to use one of my favorite mugs as I uploaded more of my Hawaii pix to Flickr and worked on my freelance project that's due like super soon. What mug, you ask? Why, my Dollie mug, of course! I don't remember where it came from—I think someone gave it to us?—but as you can see, the cat on the mug looks just like Dollie's mug. Ho ho ho, I crack myself up!

Anyhow, of course Dollie happened to appear as I was getting my coffee. I don't like her going on the counters (I usually shoo her off) but I let it go so I could take her picture next to my mug. She seemed rather blasé about being famous enough to appear on a mug, but that's just her, she's very humble like that. And sorry about that crud on the counter—it's the result of living with a messy husband.



What?! Has Dollie taken up smoking too? I don't think I can live with another smoker!

I'm probably very biased, but although I have three cats (Max and Dollie, who live at my house, and Ginger, who lives with my parents), I think Dollie is the absolute cutest cat in the world. Although she is sweet, hyper, friendly, funny, and super affectionate, she is also quite a scrapper. She loves nothing more than climbing and exploring, especially the dirtiest and most dangerous spots in the house—which there are many, since this rental house is old and in ill repair. I will often go in the basement to do a load of laundry and call out to her, only to see her pop up from high above, chortling in her funny little cat talk, face peering out from some duct work, completely covered in spider webs but having a grand old time.

Minutes after the above pix were taken, I heard a commotion in our creepy basement. I went down there and peered below, between the wall by the stairs and a gap near the back of the refrigerator. I saw Dollie hanging from some sort of ventilation and shimmying along a brick column.



She eventually had to let herself fall from this spot, but she calmly walked away and reappeared a second later, ready for some Fancy Feast. You would never think that a cat that is as chubby and short limbed as Dollie would be the adventurer. Max the slender and elegant model cat prefers to lounge around, but Dollie is as hardy and curious as they come.

Okay, gushing over. Back to work...

Oh yeah, check out my first three albums of Hawaii pix here. I'm still writing captions for Day Three, so you might want to check back later to look at that album, but One and Two are ready for viewing. And Days Four through Thirteen are on their way this weekend.

Capturing the moment

I'm grateful that there are times when I'm able to grab my camera and squeeze off a few shots before the moment has passed. I don't necessarily get award-winning pix, but I do get some memorable shots that make me smile.



I happened to be passing by when I spotted Max sitting quietly in our dining room, gazing outside, bathed in sunlight. I whirled around, grabbed my Alpha, and took a few pix.



Max was startled by my presence and didn't stay still very long, perhaps a few seconds, and then moved on.



But I got a few pix out of the moment anyway. This sort of thing makes my day.

(P.S. Check out vivid, where I have posted more photos taken of Max, Dollie, and the crazy construction in my dining room.)

Snowy sick day

I'm starting to sound like a broken record, aren't I?

Today I felt horrible, with chills, fever, bad headache, swollen lymph glands, nausea, etc. So I called in and went back to bed for another five hours. That didn't seem to do too much, because right now I feel worse than I did when I got up. I'm hoping I'll feel better tomorrow and Thursday, because I hate being sick on holidays! I also missed Jen and Georgia, and strangely enough, I miss driving to and from work with Pete.

Anyhow, here are some pix from today, taken when I had a few bits of energy here and there (which wasn't often).


Snow, snow, and more snow! Our backyard


Max being goofy in the dining room (under construction)


Max peering outside


Max pleading with me—to go outside?


A view out front


Bored out of my skull watching VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s


Spanky looking solemn


Adora looking bored, just like me


Hot cider and tea with crackers is all I've managed to keep down so far


Watching exciting daytime television


Dollie frolicking in the dining room


Max thinking his private cat thoughts and looking outside

Max and Dollie were fascinated by the snow that snuck in the front door when Pete left for work this morning. I think they know it's too cold to play outside, but they're still restless and bored and curious about all that white stuff.

Well, it's back to the couch for me. I've got yet another episode of 100 Greatest waiting for me, and then it's on to the news and such. Dare I say I was so bored today I would have preferred to work? But I hear we ran out of work and people were sent home early, so I guess this is the better of the two options, with the 4-8 inches of snow we're getting today too.

Time to eat more saltines...

Happy Thoughts—Day 5

My furry children. Life would not be as happy without them, and I know this is true, because Pete and I lived without pets (except the fish) for the first few years we were together. And let me tell you, I was always lonely for the poke of a wet nose, the touch of a furry paw, and the warm and happy lick from a happy dog. They truly make us happy, and remind us of the simple things in life.

I'm so tired...

{Dollie, dreaming of catnip and playing in my closet...}


{Huh?}

...but I have slept a wink. Many, many winks in the last few days. Doesn't seem to be helping though.

These pictures of Dollie sum up how I feel today, and how I've felt this weekend in general (although Dollie is normally the most energetic creature in this house). It's so cold and dreary outside that all I want to do is sleep, read, watch tv, each chocolate, and drink lots and lots of hot chamomile tea. I had to go to Target today to get some supplies, and it was like pulling teeth just to get me to get in the car and go. I froze my butt off out there and had trouble remembering what I needed to get, and even that Starbucks soy green tea latte didn't give me much of a boost. I did peruse the shoes, but only half-heartedly, and I didn't linger long to examine the latest skirts and shirts on display, either.

I must say I rarely get weekends like these where nothing major is going on. But this weekend, however, I have had the luxury—yes, luxury—of puttering around my house, cleaning and doing laundry and such, being cozy with the animals and Pete, and simply doing a little hibernating, just in time for winter. And since I've been feeling under the weather for the last several days, due to some nasty canker sores that have wreaked havoc on my immune system, it's been nice to just rest and relax to let my body catch up. I know, yuck, canker sores, but I'm prone to them and they're not fun, and I ain't gonna pretend I'm feeling all sunshine-y and happy. They like to mess with my Hooveritis, too, which flares up whenever I get them (which is frequently), so it's a double health downer for me when that happens.

Well, my weird medical maladies aside, I hope you've had a relaxing and cozy weekend. Or perhaps you were wild and crazy or got lots done. More power to ya! Don't mind me, I'm just going to get back onto that nice warm spot on the couch that I've created and throw a few snuggly blankets over me. See ya Monday...zzz...

Proud mama

Guess what? I entered a pet photo contest over at Urban Grace Interiors, and my two furry children were included in the finalists slide show! There are a ton of good photographs and of course super cute pets, so the competition is fierce. Check out all the finalists here. (Adora and Dollie are in the first sixth or so of the slide show, only one photo away from each other.)

Dollie and the fish tank

Dollie on the fish tank, looking sleepy...


..but then she stirs, and...


...decides to peek inside the fish tank...


...and then seemingly focuses on her prey...


...followed by an impromptu cleaning session, and then...


...a stretch and a yawn...


...then suddenly, alert...


...and attempts to walk on my keyboard, but I deflect her once again. Ha, foiled!



(Photos taken with my iPhone)