Tuesday, March 19, 2024
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From the Archives: Peaches Settles In

Peaches settles right in.
Peaches settles right in.

I usually only post one featured photo or photos from years past each week, but when I was researching photos for this week’s post as well as a few articles I found this photo of Peaches that I didn’t even know I had, and I’d forgotten this moment had occurred, so I had to share it.

Peaches had only been in our house since the end of June, and here it was the end of August. She was 15, her owner had died and she and her sister had been cared for in their house until it went up for sale. No one would take the two girls, so I did because a friend made a good case for them, as did the woman’s son, that they could not see their best friend and mother’s cats go to a shelter or be put to sleep just because they were 15 years old.

Senior cats can find change difficult, and Peaches’ sister Cream (I renamed them) had no intention of joining the household. She enjoyed spending time with me, and she loved all people, especially the ladies at the personal care home where my mother lived, but she was waiting for her person to come back. She wanted no parts of other cats.

Peaches, on the other hand, seemed to be excited about the change. I get the feeling her sister was a little overbearing, and Peaches was tiny, just six pounds. But in 2005 all my cats were seniors, and even geriatric: Stanley, Moses, Sophie, Cookie, Kelly, Namir, all in their double digits. Peaches wandered down the stairs and come to find me. Later, I would see her among the other cats, sitting quietly, looking out the basement door, and soon enough she was sharing meals.

But I had forgotten how quickly she had integrated herself. Here she was, barely two months after she’d joined a house of six other cats, settled on my drafting table while I worked on a portrait, looking out the window, centered on a file folder, in the most perfect little calico loaf. She was quietly precious.

This is why you just take pictures whenever. Someday you’ll need them.

Read more about Peaches’ story in Never Understimate a Senior Kitty.

. . . . . . .

What other photos did I feature around this date?

In Repose, 2016
Giuseppe and Mewsette in a nice composition.
Giuseppe and Mewsette in a nice composition.

We now have much sun on the desk in the morning with the cherry tree gone, all the better to highlight the housepanthers piled up at my elbow.

Here’s the whole family from the same series of photos. I shared this one on Facebook because who doesn’t like to see the Family of Five whenever possible?

The office staff this morning.
The office staff this morning.

. . . . . . .

What other photos did I feature around this date?

Simon Says, 2015
Simon Says.
Simon Says.

Little Simon LOVES to be on my lap, and he’s also quite the talker. I don’t get much done when he’s there, but kittens need the time to learn what’s fun about people and I don’t even notice the time passing by when he’s there. Don’t forget, Simon is up for adoption through Pittsburgh C.A.T!

All of today’s current photos were posted on Instagram and/or Facebook. Some days I have something I need to share right away but I don’t find time to sit down and write up the post. After my exhibit this weekend I hope to get back to posting more regularly again!

Below, Mimi contemplates the day on an absolutely beautiful August morning. We both found it very difficult to come back inside!

“The day has such potential. What’s a kitty to do but take her time and make her decisions through careful contemplation?”

Mimi contemplates her opportunities.
Mimi contemplates her opportunities.

Then later in the day we got our order from Chewy.com and everyone gathered at the doors and windows to see. I don’t know if they were disappointed that it was only cat litter, but Giuseppe takes the opportunity to teach the little ones a lesson in manipulating humans.

“Be mindful of your arrangement, and always use your head tilt,” Giuseppe tells Alvina, Simon and Theodore in an important lesson on the practice of cuteness. “It even works on them when you are an adult. Look, she literally dropped what she was doing and all the attention is on…well, me, of course.” (But why am I always stuck teaching the kittens? Giuseppe mewses.) This is taken through the screen door.

Four at the door.
Four at the door.

. . . . . . .

A Long Day and a Kitty Belly, 2014
black cat on back
Mr. Sunshine caught napping.

What’s that you say Mama Bernadette? You had a long day? Some things went wrong and took more time than you thought? We did notice you were gone for quite some time. So what’s a “mailing”? What’s that about your customer? Four hours sorting envelopes to put them in the right order? And you’ll have to deal with it again tomorrow?

You brought some kitties home too, and they smelled funny and they meowed on the front porch the whole time you were gone again. Now they are in the bathroom. But they are leaving again tomorrow morning? I guess you’re not going to do that with us too!

And you’re behind in other things too, we know, we hear you talking to yourself. Well, one of the best things you can do when things feel out of control is rub the kitty belly and go off with me to dreamland. I’ll curl my toes and make starfish paws. Everything will be all better.

black cat on back
Go ahead and touch the belly.

Scroll down and you’ll see another kitty belly from 2011. I always say I can tell when the temperature hits 80 degrees because that’s when Sunshine rolls over on his back.

. . . . . . .

When We Put Our Heads Together…We Fall Asleep, 2013
three black cats sleeping
When we put our heads together, we fall asleep.

We do, we fall asleep. We had some big plans since Mama Bernadette left us all alone most of the day yesterday after torturing us with the sweeper monster and making us move so she could “clean”. We don’t need “clean”, we like it the way it is. So after hours of noise and smells and making us move, we were glad to get some rest when she left with her bags packed and said, “I’m headed for the trail, see you guys later!”

She seemed a little too happy to leave us, especially since we have no idea what this “trail” thing is, and not even our wise, experienced Mama Mimi could tell us what that was. So we decided we would put our furry heads together and cat-spire but…we fell asleep and before we knew it, the day was gone, it was dark and Mama Bernadette was coming back in the door. And she smelled funny. Lots of things on her dress and on her legs and arms, and even though we were really hungry not having eaten in days, we made her stand still so we could smell these things. Every inch of her feet and legs smelled liked something different and even her arms, and Mama Mimi said she didn’t know what the trail was, but she knew the smells of “the woods” and “the water”. We could smell a little bit of bunny fur and mousie tracks and spiders, and different waters, not like the ones we drink, and dirt. And leaves, live ones and dead ones. We thought maybe we were dreaming since we’d just awakened, but when we sat back to think about it and looked at our Mama Bernadette, who suddenly seemed a little bit like a stranger, she got our dinner ready and we knew it was all very real.

Later we smelled her bags, and even her big black box thing, and they all smelled the same. We agreed, there is something enticing about this, but all the same it’s frightening, like something we don’t quite remember. Our Mama Mimi says we don’t need to remember it. She does, and smelling it on our human is as close as we need to get. We had to sleep on it. We had very interesting dreams, though.

collage of cats and woods
Leaves and waters and sun and dirt…

 

. . . . . . .

At the Top of the Stairs, 2011
partial photo of cat on landing
Hmmm, what’s that at the top of the stairs?

So this is what I see as I walk up the stairs to my second floor, one paw, then another, some fur, an ear…

It’s just Mr. Sunshine in his favorite position. It doesn’t have to be hot for him to enjoy his happy sleep on his back.

There is nothing like a welcoming kitty belly, though, and Mr. Sunshine’s is as soft as it looks.

black cat on back
Black cat lying on back.

. . . . . . .

Cookie and Coffee, 2010
cat drinking out of mug
Cookie and Coffee

As a follow-up to “I’ll Have Some of What You’re Having”, here is proof that Cookie really does drink my coffee. I know it’s not good for her, but she rarely gets much, and it’s probably that half-n-half that makes it interesting to her. In any case, I have to be really distracted for her to get her face in my coffee cup and drink.

What I really like is the slinky-type of move she’s making, as if I might not notice her.


Art and Gifts featuring cats you know! Visit Portraits of Animals

AfterDinnerNap-Etsy~~~

Animal Sympathy Cards from Portraits of Animals!

Morning Tea With Peaches
Morning Tea With Peaches

Remember the beautiful moments from all those years together. Just a random photo from a morning with Peaches inspired a sympathy card. Read more, and purchase.




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All images and text used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission, although links to your site are more than welcome and are shared. Please ask if you are interested in using and image or story in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of an image or a product including it, check my animal and nature website Portraits of Animals 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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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.

2 thoughts on “From the Archives: Peaches Settles In

  • Thank you for your lovely stories today… Guess I needed some kitty contemplation. I haven’t been able to have a cat in my home for 30+ years now since becoming allergic to them. Friends down south have ragdoll cats and they don’t seem to bother me as much, though, so it’s always nice to visit theirs! My daughter ended up with one of their kittens. 🙂

    Happy to post this out on FB for you. I’m pretty sure my cousin Bill will be excited to find your blog. He writes about his three cats and their antics once in a while ~ always fun to read!

    Happy Labor Day weekend to you, Bernadette,
    Barb 🙂

    Reply
    • Barb, so nice to meet you, and I’m glad you enjoyed, and shared, my stories. Sorry you can’t have a kitty, though. I don’t know what I’d do! I know someone with cystic fibrosis and is on oxygen, but her Devon Rex cat is her soul animal and her service animal too, and even comes into the hospital with her. That breed might be a choice for you too. Happy Labor Day!

      Reply

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