Hot June

The Heat Dome over a huge part of North America has been rough.

The Eastside Cats each have their own ways to deal with the heat, the breeze from the multiple fans, and the resulting noise from the window air conditioner units:

Chili Bruce at the front door.

Manny on top of the refrigerator.

Henry hiding in the warmest corner of Henryville!
He's not a happy camper.

We feel fortunate to have fans, window units, and a fridge that makes ice-cubes and keeps watermelon cold.

After a storm front comes through, the temps will dip for a bit, but the high heat and humidity will continue for many days yet.

Stay cool out there, folks, wherever you are!

🥵

In honor of June is Audiobook Month, I recommend:

Some golden oldies:

R.A. Dick's The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, published 1945

Audiobook published 2018, Elizabeth Jasicki narrating

Rosamunde Pilcher's The Shell Seekers, published 1987

Audiobook published 2017, Hayley Atwell narrating

Helene Hanff's 84, Charing Cross Road, published 1970

Audiobook published 2017, Barbara Rosenblat and John Franklyn-Robbins narrating

Nicholas Meyer's The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, published 1974

Audiobook published 1994, David Case narrating

Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, published 1988

Audiobook published 2005, Jeremy Irons narrating

📚

Pisces?

It's Twozday!

Here in Michigan, we've had the HOTS, and some humans have not left the house since Saturday.

Manny and Chili Bruce still manage to nap together; pictorial evidence below:

In the bay window, again.

Don't they sorta look like the Pisces sign?

Manny, in situ and up close.

CB, drooling just a bit.

😹

 In honor of June is Audiobook Month, I recommend:

Susan Hill's Simon Serrailler Series.

1 The Various Haunts of Men (2004)

2 The Pure in Heart (2005)

3 The Risk of Darkness (2006)

4 The Vows of Silence (2008)

5 The Shadows in the Street (2010)

6 The Betrayal of Trust (2011)

7 A Question of Identity (2012)

8 The Soul of Discretion (2014)

8.5 A Breach of Security (2014)

8.6 Hero (2016)

Old Haunts (2018)

9 The Comforts of Home (2018)

Revenge (2019)

10 The Benefit of Hindsight (2019)

11 A Change of Circumstance (2021)

12 The Sound of Footsteps (tbd)

All narrated by Steven Pacey

DCS Simon Serrailler is the central character, set in the fictional English cathedral town of Lafferton.

Simon's family members and staff are a large part of the stories, as is his second life as a artist of some renown.

Have been waiting for book #12 to be published for YEARS; rumors are that the author is ill.

Book 11 ended with Simon deciding to take a big step in his personal life, so we beg the publishers to please please please find a way to get this book to market.

📚

Blep-itude

It's PO'Monday!

Celestial Paddy O'Malley blep pics taken in June:

June, 2012

June, 2013

June, 2014

😻

In honor of June is Audiobook Month, 

I recommend Dan Brown's Robert Langdon series:

1 Angels & Demons (1999)

Narrated by Richard Poe

2 The Da Vinci Code (2003)

Narrated by Paul Michael

 

3 The Lost Symbol (2009)

Narrated by Paul Michael

4 Inferno (2013)

Narrated by Paul Michael

5 Origin (2017)

Narrated by Paul Michael

6 The Secret of Secrets (September 2025)

Narrated by Dan Brown

Am really excited for a new Robert Langdon book!

"Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, pits his wits against a conspiracy/bad guy testing even his considerable brainpower and takes him to the edge of losing all that he holds dear."

Yes, this is an overview of just about each book, yet they are masterfully written and are real page-turners...even if listening to the audiobook!

Let's not discuss the films, even as much as I adore Tom Hanks. 

📚

Spied

A few cuties seen while walking in my neighborhood:

Very friendly, but I've not met this cat before.

This cow-colored kitty is not afraid of me.

Am almost sure that this is Eightball, who needed medical attention in April.

Not seen regularly, this cat had a growing-out shaved area under his chin, just like Eightball had, even if it was several blocks from his feeding station.

😻

In honor of June is Audiobook Month, I recommend the following books by Fredrik Backman:

A Man Called Ove (2012)

Narrated by George Newbern

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She's Sorry (2013)

Narrated by Joan Walker

My Friends (2025) 

Narrated by Marin Ireland

This author brings charm, humor, and attention to the poignant details of everyday life.

I finished "My Friends" yesterday, while acquiring a couple of new tattoos; it's a masterpiece worth the five star rating that I gave it.

📚

Say Cheese!

June 21 is National Selfie Day!

Manny gallantly shared his selfie, which I artified a few times, then made a collage.

Click on the image above to enjoy a jigsaw puzzle.

😻

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend the following series by Kelley Armstrong:

Cainsville:

Omens (2013)

Visions (2014)

Deceptions (2015)

Betrayals (2016)

Rituals (2017)

plus three novellas

Olivia Taylor Jones’s world is shattered when she learns that she’s adopted. 

Her real parents? Todd and Pamela Larsen, notorious serial killers serving a life sentence.

Olivia flees the media storm and ends up in Cainsville, a strange small town that takes a very…odd interest in Olivia. 

She soon teams up with her mother’s appeal lawyer, notorious attorney Gabriel Walsh, as they begin to slowly unravel all the mysteries of Cainsville and the dark truth behind her parents’ crimes.

📚

Let's Hop!

Sum-sum-Summertime!

June 20 Summer Equinox @ 10:42 pm EDT

YAY it's SUMMER!!!

Cannot express how I feel that there are others in the world who find making Stonehenge replicas out of ANYTHING, then post the images to share with numpties like me.

And now YOU get to enjoy them too!

🌞

In honor of June is Audiobook Month, 

I recommend Robert Gailbraith's (pen name for J. K. Rowling), Comoran Strike series:

1 The Cuckoo's Calling (2013)

2 The Silkworm (2014)

3 Career of Evil (2015)

4 Lethal White (2018)

5 Troubled Blood (2020)

6 The Ink Black Heart (2022)

7 The Running Grave (2023)

8 The Hallmarked Man (September, 2025) 

Robert Glenister, Narrator

Gritty, human, and wildly inventive is how I describe the stories of private detective Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott, in London, England.

There is also a TV show, which I have not seen, but I've heard that it's pretty darn good.

📚

Receptacle Love

6/19 is International Box Day!

Yes, cats often LURV cardboard boxes, but some humans seem to hoard them.

No one that I know, I've just heard about it...

Am thankful that we haven't run out of boxes in a long, long, long time.

😹

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend Elly Griffith's Ruth Galloway series:

The Crossing Places (2009)

The Janus Stone (2010)

The House at Sea's End (2011)

A Room Full of Bones (2011)

Ruth's First Christmas Tree (2012)

A Dying Fall / Tomb of the Raven King (2012)

The Outcast Dead (2014)

The Ghost Fields (2015)

The Woman in Blue (2016)

The Chalk Pit (2017)

The Dark Angel (2018)

The Stone Circle (2019)

The Lantern Men (2020)

The Man in Black (2020)

The Night Hawks (2021)

The Locked Room (2022)

The Last Remains (2023)

Jane McDowell, Narrator

Archaeologist Dr. Ruth Galloway lives alone in a remote area called Saltmarsh near Norfolk, England when she's asked to help identify bones found nearby by Detective Chief Inspector Harry Nelson.

In some parts, uncovered bones could be a fresh corpse, or a 3,000 year old Early Iron Age burial.

And oh, the mysteries, murders, antiquities, museums, local legends, and complicated loves that ensue.

📚

Let's Hop!

Playing Coy

Henry's Hopefully-Soon-To-Be-Formerly Feral Friday is temporarily moved to today.

Am working on more action shots of Henry, as he learns that he can sniff my hand, foot, or leg, without repercussions.

It's hard to get pics, as these incidents are fleeting...or maybe 'feeting'?

Ugh...

😹

Henry did not enjoy the ruckus when The Hubby put the window air-conditioning unit in yesterday; much too noisy for his taste.

And no doubt the fans blowing hot air around aren't his cup of tea either, but it's Summertime in Michigan, which means really hot and humid, stormy, smoky, or windy.

🌞

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend the following audiobooks about BOOKS!

*Nina George's The Little Paris Bookshop, narrated by: Steve West, Emma Bering, Cassandra Campbell

*Robin Sloan's, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, narrated by Ari Fliakos

*Erin Morgenstern's The Starless Sea, narrated by Dominic Hoffman and five other readers

Libraries, bookshops, boats, bunnies, secret government departments, time travel...you name it, you've got it!

There are a multitude of authors who've written about the fantasy of books; these are my top picks but I've got more; email me if you'd like more suggestions.

Or, if you have something you'd like to tell me about, DON'T BE SHY.

📚

Choco Cats

It's Twozday!

A selection of together and separate pics for your viewing pleasure:

On the pool table.

Manny left, CB right.

CB on my lap in MY chair.

Another pool table duet.

CB bottom, Manny top.

Manny, in the bay window beddy.

Although they are black cats, they often look chocolatey.

❤️

In honor of June is Audiobook month:

I recommend Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce Mysteries.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (2009)

The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag (2010)

A Red Herring Without Mustard (2011)

I Am Half-Sick of Shadows (2011)

Speaking from Among the Bones (2012)

The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches (2014)

The Curious Case of the Copper Corpse (2014)

As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust (2015)

Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd (2016)

The Grave's a Fine and Private Place (2017)

The Golden Tresses of the Dead (2019)

What Time the Sexton's Spade Doth Rust (2024)

Untitled Book #12 publishing Autumn 2025

All narrated by the incomparable Jayne Entwistle.

Flavia is an 11 year-old girl who is fascinated by chemistry. 

The series is set in 1950s England and later in Canada, and young ladies usually do not bedevil the local constabulary; Flavia will solve the mystery even if it maddens the police, her relatives, OR the government.

📚

Sunny Whiskers

It's PO'Monday!

June, 2016

The sunshine was strong, and Celestial Paddy O'Malley showed off his whiskerage.

He was a looker!

❤️

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend the following non-fiction cat audiobooks:

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicky Myron, narrated by Suzanne Toren

Homer's Odyssey by Gwen Cooper, narrated by Renée Raudman

A Street Cat Named Bob And How He Saved My Life by James Bowen, narrated by Kristopher Milnes

Making Rounds with Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat by Dr. David Dosa, narrated by Ray Porter

Most likely, you've already heard about the first three, but maybe not the story of Oscar, who lived at a dementia ward, and had a unique ability to comfort those patients whose time had come.

Each book is a testimony to the bond between human and feline, and through great adversity, the love is unbreakable.

Including the reader's love for these cats and their humans!

📚

Dad's Smoking The Catnip Again! 😹

World Catnip Awareness day is June 15:

 

😹

This year, June 15 is also Father's Day in the U.S. of A and maybe elsewhere:

Happy Heavenly Father's Day, Puba.

We miss you.

❤️

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend Richard Castle's, Nikki Heat series:

1 Heat Wave (2009)

2 Naked Heat (2010)

3 Heat Rises (2011)

4 Frozen Heat (2012)

5 Deadly Heat (2013)

6 Raging Heat (2014)

7 Driving Heat (2015)

8 High Heat (2016)

9 Heat Storm (2017)

10 Crashing Heat (2019)

Books #1, 2, & 3 were narrated by Johnny Heller

The rest by Robert Petkoff

These are the tales of Nikki Heat, an NYPD homicide detective and later captain, and Jameson Rook, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who also moonlights as a romance novelist under the pen name Victoria St. Clair.

New York: 'nuff said

Nikki is one tough cop, with a sad backstory, and a desire to be a woman amongst dudes.

Jameson is a flakey rich-boy, whose uncanny instincts weave the storylines together with action, snark, and knowing all the good delicatessens.

Hey, anyone who will get me a pickle is aces in my book!!!  🥒

No, I've not seen the TV show; didn't even know there was one until Book #10 appeared.

📚

Rainbowy

It's Caturday!

My boyfriend Sly was enjoying the warm temperatures.

Just played around with colors in the iPhoto edit, adding a touch of rainbow.

Click on the image above to enjoy a jigsaw puzzle.

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend:

Annie Jacobsen's, Area 51: An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base (2011)

The American journalist offers her information about the secret United States military base known as Area 51.

Narrated by the author.

Compelling research that blows the "1947 Roswell Incident" story out of the water.

🛸

Let's Hop!

Furday the Purrteenth

TGIF!

🖤

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend Martha Grimes' Richard Jury Mystery series:

The Man With a Load of Mischief (1981)

The Old Fox Deceiv'd (1982)

The Anodyne Necklace (1983)

The Dirty Duck (1984)

Jerusalem Inn (1984)

Help the Poor Struggler (1985)

The Deer Leap (1985)

I Am the Only Running Footman (1986)

The Five Bells and Bladebone (1987)

The Old Silent (1989)

The Old Contemptibles (1991

The Horse You Came In On (1993)

Rainbow's End (1995)

The Case Has Altered (1997)

The Stargazey (1998)

The Lamorna Wink (1999)

The Blue Last (2001)

The Grave Maurice (2002)

The Winds of Change (2004)

The Old Wine Shades (2006)

Dust (2007)

The Black Cat (2010)

Vertigo 42 (2014)

The Knowledge (2018)

The Old Success (2019)

The Red Queen (to publish in July, 2025)

All narrated by Steve West

Initially a Scotland Yard chief inspector, later a superintendent, melancholic Richard Jury is invariably assisted in his cases by Melrose Plant, a British aristocrat who has given up his titles, and by his hypochondriacal but dependable sergeant, Alfred Wiggins.

The names of each book is or was the title of an actual pub, which figure in the storylines.

I stumbled on this series when "The Black Cat" was on the new books shelf that the library, and found it fascinating enough to start at the beginning, and have kept going as each new book is released.

I've read them, and I've listened to them; Narrator Steve West is one of the best!

📚

 

Arf!

Remembering Celestial Sammy

Sammy appeared in the yard in early 2011.

Originally called New Guy or Guy, The Hubby forgot when at the the low cost spay/neuter clinic, and substituted his granddad's name.

Sammy became sickly, so we helped him fly off over The Rainbow Bridge.

That was June 12, 2014.

Am thankful for Sammy, though with us for a short time compared to others, as he responded to our love with his unique 'arf'-sounding meow, and allowed stroking.

We feel honored that he chose us, and we mourn him.

Sammy's urn sits next to Paddy and Sweetie, as they were 'O' Cats together.

💔😿❤️

Let's Hop!

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend the following non-fiction books:

Simon Winchester, Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883, narrated by the author

Ben Montgomery, Grandma Gatewood's Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail, narrated by Patrick Lawlor

Jim DeFede, The Day the World Came to Town-9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland, narrated by Ray Porter

The titles are self-explanatory, and each audiobook is a treasure-trove of facts, nuance, stories, and the power of humans to triumph over adversity.

📚

Past Blast

How 'about a Sweetnesday?

These images are from early June, 2018.

Our Wee One was cruising into Summer, still an 'O' Cat.

Really miss our Miss Growly Pants!

❤️

In honor of June is Audiobook month,

I recommend Mike Carey's Felix Castor series:

The Devil You Know (2006)

Vicious Circle (2006)

Dead Men's Boots (2007)

Thicker Than Water (2009)

The Naming of the Beasts (2009) 

The Ghost in Bone (2023) no audiobook

Books 1,2 & 3 narrated by Michael Kramer

Books 4 & 5 narrated by Damian Lynch

Supernatural urban fantasy thrillers, featuring Felix Castor, a freelance exorcist.

London, England, with vampires, lougarous (werewolves), zombies, ghosts, succubi, and demons.

Felix has come up against all and more.

Wonderfully witty, action packed, and bewitching.

But I don't think there are any witches.

📚

Liquid

It's Twozday!

Our post yesterday highlighted the goofy Celestial Paddy O'Malley, but Da Boyz will not be outdone!

😹

In honor of June is Audiobook Month,

I recommend Tana French's Dublin Murder Squad.

In The Woods (2007)

Narrated by Steven Crossley

The Likeness (2008)

Narrated by Heather O'Neill

Faithful Place (2010)

Narrated by Tim Gerard Reynolds

Broken Harbor (2013)

Narrated by Stephen Hogan

The Secret Place (2014)

Narrated by Stephen Hogan and Lara Hutchinson

The Trespasser (2016)

Narrated by Hilda Fay

Each book centers on a different officer in The Dublin Murder Squad, and each storyline is completely different from the last.

It's been years since I read these, yet they've stayed in my brain and heart.

Plus, I adore the Irish accents and speech. ❤️

📚

Action Chonk

❤️ It's PO'Monday! ❤️

Enjoy Celestial Paddy's antics from June, 2015:

Fluffing a Duck by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

😹

In honor of June is Audiobook Month:

I recommend Ann Cleeves Shetland series.

Raven Black (2006)

White Nights (2008)

Red Bones (2009)

Blue Lightning (2010)

Dead Water (2013)

Thin Air (2014)

Too Good To Be True (2016)

Cold Earth (2016)

Wild Fire (2018)

The Killing Stones (coming in Autumn 2025)

Narrator: Gordon Griffin for first four books

Narrator: Kenny Blyth for next five books

Unknown narrator for book 9

A detective with the Shetland police based in the main town of Lerwick, but originally from Fair Isle. Jimmy Perez's family is believed to have descended from a Spanish sailor stranded on the islands after a boat capsized, who then married a local woman and settled in Shetland. 

Previously married and divorced, Perez moved back to Shetland and bought a small house in Lerwick, and commands the local police force.

Jimmy is know to be quiet yet compassionate, observant, and able to connect with the community.

There is also a television show based this character; I've not seen it.

Ann Cleeves has authored many other books, and series, including the Vera Stanhope series, which also was made into a TV show.

I didn't like Vera much, but I adore Jimmy Perez, and look forward to the new book.

📚

Wild Waves

 June 8 is World Ocean Day

World Ocean Day catalyzes collective action for a healthy ocean and a stable climate, working in collaboration with youth leaders and a wide range of organizations. 

World Ocean Day belongs to all groups and individuals, collectively, everywhere. 

It’s about how we can create a better future with an abundant ocean and a stable climate, by working together.

A few items found on social media that help drive home the point that humans are schmucking up our planet, and it's time we stopped.

😿

In honor of June is Audiobook Month:

I recommend the following audiobooks by Neil Gaiman:

Coraline (2006)

 Anansi Boys (2006)

A Study in Emerald (2007)

American Gods (2011)

The Ocean at the End of the Lane (2014)

Trigger Warning (2015)

Neverwhere (2018)

The author narrated each of the above.

Neil Gaiman...what a fantastic storyteller.

He's written many, many books; I've only scratched the surface with the seven listed above.

📚