Category: Cats

We’re trying something new this year… putting ornaments on the tree! I don’t think we’ve had ornaments on a tree since we adopted Arwen back in 2017, since cats – especially kittens – and ornaments are a notoriously bad combination.

In 2020, Zuko moved in, postponing the possibility of ornaments longer. Even now, none of them are particularly breakable. We lucked out and rediscovered a bag filled with crocheted ornaments – candy canes, snowflakes, and tiny trees with wine corks – and have supplemented those with a couple 3D-printed decorations from a friend.

So far, only a couple of the cork-filled trees have gone wandering through the house. Next year, I may be tempted to dig out my animated character ornaments. They’re plastic, of course.

Many times, we just have to coo at how adorable the cats are, particularly in the rare instance when three or more are in the same general space. In this case, I was summoned to see three cats peacefully resting on the bed, only to have the fourth cat – Arwen in this case – jump up on the bed to join the rest. Of course, that didn’t last – Zuko immediately got up to give chase, quickly leaving just the two elder cats to their cat nap.

And sometimes, we have to groan because the cat is both adorable and misbehaving, as is the case in this second photo, a view of the kitchen window, slightly open, from outside. Not open quite enough for Arwen to sit in the window, she decided to lounge right next to it, which means she’s hovering on a small sliver of counter next to the dish drainer. That is not generally where we want our cats hanging out, mostly for the obvious reasons of “get your butt away from our clean dishes” and “don’t put your butt where we set any dishes”.

And then there’s yesterday, which was more of a “how in the world did you…” moment and did not involve a photo. In the early mornings, before work, I typically let the cats play in the garage. I was doing something in the living room when I heard a strange thumping from the garage (through the shared wall), so I looped through the kitchen to see what was going on. Zuko dashed out from behind the dryer as I arrived, but I couldn’t see Arwen. I could hear her though, from somewhere near the dryer. Somehow the laundry basket that was on the dryer had gotten knocked off to rest in the corner between the dryer and the freezer. Upside down. With Arwen under it. I have no idea how they managed that. (Obviously, I freed her immediately. Didn’t even grab my camera.)

Early morning is my ideal workout time, but I’ve been having trouble getting out of bed most days, largely because one or more cats are still on the bed. They used to make getting up easier – as soon as I was awake, the cats would run around the room demanding breakfast. That has changed in the last couple years, particularly with Arwen who likes curling up just under the covers, resting on my arm. And she’s staying there even after I wake up.

It’s not just her though. Diane is usually by my waist at that point, sometimes still curled up with June, and Zuko is usually by my feet. The other morning, after I woke up and was reading news updates, Diane got out of bed, walked to the other end of the house to deposit a hairball… and then came back to bed! (It wasn’t on the bed or on carpet, so I’m not complaining.) Even June, our most prolific meal howler, on occasion climbs back onto the bed instead. Not for long, mind you, but she does.

My crack-of-dawn workouts are suffering as a result, but damn, they’re cute.

It’s been a week here. You’d think I’d get ahead on the blog with a three-day weekend, but it was painfully cold all weekend (wind chills down to the negative thirties Fahrenheit) and there was a lot to do, including taking June and Diane to their annual checkups. So enjoy a cute photo of Zuko.

I’ve spent most of the week at jury duty, so I’m sharing some photos of Zuko instead of writing anything meaningful this week. At some point in the near future, I expect I’ll share some thoughts on the jury duty process (though probably not the trial itself), as I’ve found it fascinating.

I have several things I wanted to write about this week, but alas, this cold I picked up in Montreal is knocking my socks off (well, if I usually wore socks around the house). So you get cat photos! The first is a rare occurrence: all four cats resting on the sofa. It’s rare because Diane usually growls anytime she notices Arwen trying to settle near her, even when Arwen’s actually trying to curl up nearby with June.

I have multiple hunt & feed style feeders for the cats. Diane, being a more dignified (and slower) eater, will not compete with the other cats for food, so she gets her bit of dry food separately while the others get to work for it. In this case, they’re hunting in a light bulb-shaped toy that wobbles.

The week got away from me and I have an odd collection of mental distractions at the moment, so I’m sharing one of my stress relievers today. In other words… a cat photo!

This is literally the view from my work desk many afternoons. Every so often, I’ll look over and smile at however they’re piled on the sofa today.

Despite being a short work, it’s been crazily busy, so I’m sharing some cat photos.

Don’t you just love Zuko’s look, like he’ll be outraged if I open the fridge door? (Why no, he’s not supposed to sit on the fridge, but the new fridge is taller and I’d have to grab a step stool if he sits anywhere other than the very front.)

You can’t tell in most of the photos of him, but Zuko is super long and he likes stretching out… though not usually on the sofa. (He also likes chewing on the leopard print blanket in this photo while pawing at it and purring.)

In the mornings, the cats tend to spread out across the house to different napping spots. In the afternoons though, they gradually make their way to the sofa with careful placement. Diane will growl at Arwen if she’s not fully settled yet, and Arwen is careful not to curl up by Zuko unless that’s the only remaining spot.