Sentient and Loving

December 10 is International Animal Rights Day.

"International Animal Rights Day is an annual event honoring animals as sentient beings who deserve the same protections as people. 

This global observance is marked by demonstrations that expose animal exploitation, mourn the animal victims of human tyranny, and rally support for universal animal welfare."

Learn more here.

~

December 10, 2023 is a Gotchaversary of sorts:

Celestial Paddy O'Malley inked on my right arm!

Today is another tattoo day, as I've scheduled two new designs, and yes, there are cat images involved.

Will provide pics after the healing process.

~

Walkin' and Readin'

Recommended audiobook listens:

Val McDermid's The Grave Tattoo

A psychological Lake District thriller in which a present-day murder has its roots in the eighteenth century and the mutiny on the H.M.S. Bounty.

Michael John Witgen's Seeing Red: Indigenous Land, American Expansion, and the Political Economy of Plunder in North America

Against long odds, the Anishinaabeg resisted removal, retaining much of their land in the Old Northwest—what’s now Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.  Outnumbering white settlers well into the nineteenth century, they leveraged their political savvy to advance a dual citizenship that enabled mixed-race tribal members to lay claim to a place in US civil society. 

Dete Meserve's The Memory Collectors

Four strangers time travel to the past, to find themselves stuck on the day all their lives were changed.

Can history be rewritten?

~

Let's Hop, even if very wordy...

Not Easy

It's Twozday!

Manny and Chili Bruce are simply the bestest kitties on the planet, paws down.

It's mind-blowing that they've been with us for eight years now, and I never tire of snapping pics to show off their handsomeness.

Except, due to operator ineptitude, getting really clear images of both of them in one shot is not easy.

I try in sunshine, with different backgrounds, and using every setting I can think of.

Often, one cat is in purrfect focus, when the other is a tad blurry.

There is no quit in this cat mama, so my photo library will continue to be expand with Da Boyz images; you've been warned!

😹😹😹

A bit off kilter, yet I like that each has a different pose.

Up close with Manny; the lack of eyebrows is a dead giveaway to identification.

Chili Bruce, our Brown Bear, gets browner with the hot pink of the Pink Blue* chair.

*It's an old chair, with blue fabric and all wood is painted blue.

A bright pink-colored blankie mostly hides the clawed upholstery, thus the title of Pink Blue.

Didn't ever say we are totally rational 'round here...

Let's Hop!

December Ussies

It's PO'Monday!

December, 2016 was a very cuddly time of year for Celestial Paddy O'Malley and me.

❤️ ❤️ ❤️ 

Looks like he's had enough in this last photo; he's stuck his tongue out!

😹 😹 😹

One Plus One

It's time for Sunday Selfies!

However, Da Boyz refused to separate, so here is Manny and Chili Bruce's Ussie.

Let's Hop!

Click on the badge above to visit The Cat on My Head

Like Leaded Glass

It's Caturday!

Today, we present a playful Henry, artified in my Prisma app with the Trendy filter.

Sorta looks like he's laying on a leaded glass window.

Click on the image above to enjoy a jigsaw puzzle.

Let's Hop!

Up The Wall

It's Inside Still A Bit Feral Friday!

Henry now allows me to pet him all along his back, his noggin, and his sides, and even scritches under his chinny chin chin!

Only first thing in the morning; all other times of the day, it's a no-go.

One thing, however:

Henry pees up the wall occasionally.

Thankfully, we have a supply of pee pads, so after the first incident was carefully cleaned, all liquid is neatly caught.

This occurs only at one litter box; the other seems not to cause him any distress.

His litter boxes are large, high-sided, and of course, he's the only user, so it's a puzzlement as to why he's behaving like this.

My first thought is to move the litter box, and The Hubby and I are carefully considering a new placement.

The vet reports that his kidney values are good, so it could be some territorial issue that we aren't cottoning onto, or he's frustrated if I am not home for the day (travel, work, family stuff).

I've told Henry that we aren't angry, just want to know what we can do to make him happy; so far, he's not telling.

😹 😹 😹

Loving

Today is Celebrate Shelter Pets Day!

Always on the first Thursday after Thanksgiving, to me this event boils down to Adopt Don't Shop. 

Funnily enough, of the eight cats that we've hosted at Eastside Cats, only two were adopted; all others were delivered free of charge by the Cat Distribution System, in our backyard.

Our anipal shelters need our help; please donate money and your time as you can.

❤️Thank You, Rescuers!❤️

Let's Hop!

Surprises

It's Walkin' and Readin' Wednesday!

Wildlife other than cats has been abundant recently:

Red-tailed hawk, looking for lunch.

Not my photo, but I watched a red fox scamper through the streets one morning, and it was gone before I could pull my phone from my coat pocket!

Someone's pet bunny was out for a breather on their front porch.

Pretty rare sightings, these!

~

Recent audiobook listens that I recommend:

The Book of Lost Hours by Hayley Gelfuso

What if you could erase memories and time, and if our government does do it, then some other country will try?

The Legacy Series by Melissa K. Roehrich

Four books in the completed series.

The upper crust Legacy treat the fae worst than dirt.

But the gods want to fix the imbalance, by sending their offspring to fight.

Except no one told these progeny what their roles are, and there is hell to pay.

Dark Renaissance: The Dangerous Times and Fatal Genius of Shakespeare's Greatest Rival by Stephen Greenblatt

Fascinating non-fiction work detailing the life and times of Cambridge-educated possible spymaster Christopher Marlowe, the playwright of Tamburlaine and Faustus, whose work helped pave the way for William Shakespeare and others to thrive during a time of plague and religious persecution.

📚📚📚

Let's Hop!

Celestial Twinsies

 It's Twozday!

Since, however, yesterday's post was for Da Boyz' Gotchaversary, please enjoy a short slideshow of our first set of twins, Angel and Chuck.

They were in a litter of four: two all-black, and two cow-colored, just like their mother.

Both gave great hugs, and we send them warm fuzzies at The Rainbow Bridge.

Angel: 7/18/04-1/24/20

Black and white fur, pink ears, paw pads and nose.

Chuck: 7/18/04-11/20/17

Black, with white splash at throat, and low on his tummy.

😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️

😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️😻 ❤️ 😻

😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️

Let's Hop!

Homecoming

December 1 is Da Boyz' Gotchaversary!

They were adopted on 12/1/2017, so that's an amazing eight years of love, silly antics, and for the humans to figure out which one is which.

Notice in this slide show, that Chili Bruce had one white whisker, so at first it was easy to tell them apart.

Hall of the Mountain King by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Their adoption papers read: Age 9 months.

Veterinarian said: 2 to 3 years old!

If we use the highest figure, then Manny and Chili Bruce are about 11 years old.

Ahh, they are simply PURRFECT!

😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️

😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️😻 ❤️ 😻

😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️ 😻 ❤️

Let's Hop!

Trills

November 30 is St. Andrew's Day in Scotland, and for the global Scottish diaspora.

How' bout some silly bagpipe cartoons to celebrate?

A personal note:

Years ago, The Hubby and I attended a jazz festival.

As we walked toward the site of the festival, we encountered the most beautiful bagpipe music.

We guessed that someone was practising in a nearby parking garage, and the music moved my soul unexpectedly.

I began to cry.

Not in sorrow, but like I'd come home; something familiar.

Never discovered the bagpiper, nor the song that was played...nor why there was bagpiping at a jazz festival.

A very unique moment for me.

~

It's Selfie Sunday!

Henry took up the Sunday Selfie challenge, making sure he included his much-loved toys.

Let's Hop!

YAY!

Mercury has been in retrograde from November 9, ending November 29: today!

Yay!

It's Caturday, and here's an artified image of Celestial Paddy O'Malley, using my Prisma app and the Hot Tea filter:

Click on the image to enjoy a jigsaw puzzle.

Let's Hop!

Moving on Up

It's Inside Feral Friday!

GAH, Henry is so CUTE when napping!

Oh sure, stare at my TBR* reading pile!

*To Be Read

Gosh, Henry...no beddies for you to sleep in, only the toy box?

Look right, look left, dude!

Gazing down.

I often leave the screen door open at the top of the stairs, just to see what Henry does.

Newest Henry developments:

1) He's now allowing me to stroke his back. 🙌🏻

2) Before bed each night, he and I go on a spring toy hunt; me with a flashlight, as he watches and gets excited when I find one and toss it to him.🔦

3) The last photo on today's post is the first time I've captured Henry on the stairs-side of the open screen door; he's usually behind it, staring through the screen.🕵🏻‍♂️

Yummies for the Tummy Day

Happy Thanksgiving!

A few items for your amusement, found at random on social media:

As confusing as things have been, be thankful for what puts a smile on your face, and the faces of others.

Or, for cats, what makes them purr!

Let's Hop!

Cat Charmer?

 It's Walkin' and Readin' Wednesday!

I met four cats in one day on my neighborhood walk; enjoy this video.

Recent audiobook listens that I recommend:

Argus's Kitty Cat Kill Sat

Lily has been the captain of a space station for hundreds of years, after civilisation has fallen.

But she's no pussycat.

Jasmine Mas's Villains of War Duology

1) Blood of Hercules

2) Bonds of Hercules

The Gods are not on the side of anyone but themselves, and Alexis knows she's a pawn in their game.

Until she changes the game.

T. Kingfisher's The Saint of Steel series

1) Paladin's Grace

2) Paladin's Strength

3) Paladin's Hope

4) Paladin's Faith

When their god dies, and the bond breaks, the men and women of the Steel Paladins are cast adrift in life. 

Each book follows a different character, as they each seek new places in the world.

Magic, war, romance, friendship, and the true meaning of following one's heart.

📳 📳 📳