Thursday, March 28, 2024
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From the Archives: A Few Independence Day Memories

tabby cat on table
Stanley and I had a nice Independence Day in 2006.

Stanley is a little sleepy but we wanted to send you wishes for a nice Independence Day, even if you’re not American! We hope everyone manages to get through the official and unofficial fireworks displays, keeps out of grills and doesn’t eat too much of anything they aren’t supposed to.

I am thankful to the people who risked their lives and fought the Revolution and on this day declared our independence from the influences of Great Britain and Europe declaring that in this new land we would do things a little differently, and that about 100 years ago my grandparents, all four of them, found a way to get to this country and make new and better lives for themselves so that on a quiet morning in July 2006 I could sit on the deck of my house and take photos of my cat in peace and freedom.

You’ve seen photos similar to this one, and indeed I took a number of photos of Stanley that morning intending to do something with them some day. I took this one intentionally so the flag would be part of the photo but Stanley wasn’t sitting any taller than this no matter how I tried to cajole him to pose sitting up with the flag behind him—he was about 24 years old. I also used a distance shot from this on Memorial Day, below, where you can read a little more about that photo.

cat and flowers and flag
“Stanley With Flag” on the 4th of July, 2006.

And you may have also seen the sketch, “Stanley With Geraniums”, which was one of the pieces of artwork I’d planned on creating from the photos I’d taken that day. This was the featured artwork and desktop calendar for July 2013.

ink and watercolor sketch of cat
“Stanley With Geraniums”, ink and watercolor, 9″ x 12″ © Bernadette E. Kazmarski

. . . . . . .

Celebrating Independence Day With Cookie

 Celebrating our independence.
Celebrating our independence.

And a few years later, 2009 to be exact, I had a different table on that corner of the deck, and Cookie was supervising me.

Above is how I typically spend my Independence Day—not that I don’t enjoy picnics and fireworks and all the usual celebratory things, but it’s all about independence, right? So I and my cats do as we please, and for me that usually entails working on a creative project (even if it’s technically work), listening to music or a recorded story or something engrossing on the radio, and spending time with my cats, who also enjoy as much independence as they want every day of the year.

I am “technically” working today as well, on a number of creative projects, but today I am inside and Mimi is watching over me.

. . . . . . .

And of course the holiday wouldn’t be complete without an address from the cross-border lovers…they’ve been celebrating all weekend.

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Bonne Fêtes Nationales, 2013

The bonneted Mlle. Daisy Emerald and the beplumed Giuseppe Verdi in their Revolutionary roles.
The bonneted Mlle. Daisy Emerald and the beplumed Giuseppe Verdi in their Revolutionary roles.

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Happy Independence Day to all our American cats, and have a nice day to everyone else!


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All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in using one in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of this image or a product including this image, check my Etsy shop or Fine Art America profile to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.


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© 2016 | www.TheCreativeCat.net | Published by Bernadette E. Kazmarski
Weekly schedule of features:
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Bernadette

From health and welfare to rescue and adoption stories, advocacy and art, factual articles and fictional stories, "The Creative Cat" offers both visual and verbal education and entertainment about cats for people who love cats, pets and animals of all species.

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