Thursday, March 28, 2024
Basilblack catscatsdaily photofeline artworkgiuseppejelly beanmewsettemr. sunshine

Daily Photo: What We’re Waiting For

five black cats in the kitchen
Five in the kitchen.

From all the way back on December 18, its the four siblings plus Basil. Not sure of the reason for the gathering. They were watching me as I worked at the sink but I wanted a better angle to see all five so I walked over by the basement door and they followed me. Except Mewsette, who is often deep in contemplation. I posted in Instagram saying, “Hmmm…..” This was during the week after my open house when I was still inviting people and others had contacted me about stopping, and I decided to make more dish towels and totes and accessory bags, and…and…they just wanted some attention. Well, who could resist?

From Instagram

Today! I am finally caught up with Instagram photos from 2019

I don’t think Bella ever spent a winter day outside, and that’s because this #formerlyferal girl was #rescuedandsocialized before that could happen. So Bella enjoys #birdwatching from inside! Happy New Year!

She was watching me as I filled the bird feeder. I love photos of them through the reflections on the windows.

black cat at window
Bella birdwatching inside.

 

Front porch fun.

Mimi had a great time enjoying the sun today. So did I!

Winter Artifacts

I’ve been watching this feather through the back door, tangled on the bare honeysuckle vines, waiting for a sunny morning to capture its transparency. Today could not have been brighter, but the gusts of cold wind kept the feather on the move, and my cell phone couldn’t compensate. I still like the composition, the colors, the shapes.

Still, a friend gave me a roll of black and white film, and once I’ve used up the roll with my old Pentax K1000, I’ll see what I managed to capture with my lens and converter.

feather and vines
Something interesting outside the door.

. . . . . . .

Photos from around this date in previous years

Can’t You Do Something About This?, 2018

Mimi is tired of cold.
Mimi is tired of cold.

“I don’t mind cold weather. I’ll even walk in snow. I used to live out there, I can take it. But when it’s too cold even for me, you know it’s cold outside.”

Words spoken by Mimi, and could have been spoken by me too, except that I never lived out there. But she and I both enjoy being outdoors and generally don’t mind what Mother Nature is serving up because the weather changes all the time. Mimi keeps hoping things will have changed each time I open the door. They have not, and I can’t fool myself. But I’ll tell you, when the temperature hits 32 degrees we will both run out the door and stay there! Below you’ll see some photos from this date last year and the year before, and there are still green leaves! Parsley and rosemary in my pots on the steps! But even then, I knew we were getting off easy.

In the meantime, they are enjoying their new room!

The new room!
The new room!

Cat toys always make things look a little messy. Looks like home! The cardboard boxes stacked beside my rocker will all be packed into the entertainment unit when I take the time to sort through another section and toss out old software boxes and old receipts for taxes. But the room reminds me of when I moved in, all the light, the open space, and already the cats are playing more.

I haven’t been posting on Instagram since well before Christmas. I miss sharing photos there and onto Facebook, so I’m sure I’ll start it up again. But for now, I’m just posting them here.

~~~

What other photos did I post on or about this date?

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Mimi Starts the New Year With a Good Luck Scratch, 2017

Mimi has a good scratch for the new year.
Mimi has a good scratch for the new year.

Mimi loves her scratching post! I’m sure someone would think a fierce panther had left her mark on that birch tree. It’s interesting to see what Mimi likes in a scratching post: she likes to stand up and stretch, and she likes a really rough surface. I have two chunks of wood with bark in the house for her and others.

You can kind of tell I’m playing catch up here…

~~~

What other photos did I post on or about this date?

.

Enjoy the Sun While You Can, 2016

Mimi enjoys a few minutes of morning sun from the top of the steps. Enjoy the sun
Mimi enjoys a few minutes of morning sun from the top of the steps.

Rather than race out into the wet cold yard, Mimi decided to pause at the top of the steps on the deck to enjoy the brief bit of sunshine we had today. A wise girl is Mimi, and she probably learned that lesson living on the streets for several winters—you have to make time to stop and enjoy the sun while it’s shining where you are, in fact, you should go out of your way to be where it is if you can. Within minutes the sun was gone, and the day became quite dark and gray. But that has its beauty too as everyone had really good naps all day long.

I enjoy those quiet winter mornings outdoors. I was out in the yard adding warm water to the bird baths and topping off the feeders. I actually fill them in the late afternoon for the birds to have a snack before they go to sleep, and then to have the seed as soon as they awaken. There are many cats to feed in the morning and I don’t like for the birds to go hungry waiting for all the cats to get their fill.

The parsley is the green behind Mimi. It’s protected on the deck and stays green, reviving after each freeze as long as they aren’t too long. Fresh parsley in winter is a real treat! As is the rosemary.

. . . . . . .

Shared on Facebook

Bella fits purrfectly on my tablet.
Bella fits purrfectly on my tablet.

Bella set me straight on a few things.

” ‘Your’ tablet? Surely you know that all papers belong to cats for whatever purpose they choose even if you are currently making your scratchy marks on it. You can finish your scratchy work later. You see, it fits me purrfectly, so of course it is mine.”

Guess Bella told me. I keep a tablet for cat notes in the kitchen and record at least what I fed them and what they ate each meal and anything else I observe that I might want to remember. Comes in handy when conditions arise, but apparently it’s not as important as Bella’s bath and nap. Actually, it means she kikes me and wants to be part of what I’m doing.

Bella decided she was supposed to rest on my tablet as I took notes, so I had to stop.
Bella decided she was supposed to rest on my tablet as I took notes, so I had to stop.

 

. . . . . . .

What other photos have I shared on or around this date?

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Iz Cute, 2014
black and white cat behind cat tree
Iz cute.

“The human will never notice me here—I blend right in with the background!”

I have to move all their stuff out of the tub to bathe—a concept they still don’t understand—and the cat tree ends up straddling the sink. Ernie hopped up to investigate it and was very cute about it. But everything he does is cute. You can’t have a triangular nose patch that runs all down onto your chin and throat without being cute about everything you do. His triangular nose is very kissable too. I do that as often as possible. He likes it. What was that about feral? Yes, he is still a little shy, and he models that below.

black and white cat behind cat tree
You can’t see me.

Later in the day Dr. Michelle came to visit. Before Christmas they’d still been in the carrier and hiding in the tub when anyone came to visit, and hissed, but they were markedly different this time! We did have to coax Bert out form under the cabinet though.

orange cat under cabinet
Bert reluctantly comes out from under the cabinet.

His brother Ernie is a little more relaxed and encourages him. “Hey, dummy, if you don’t come out, we don’t get treats!

orange cat under cabinet
Bert encourages him.

Bert has no problem taking the treats though. The rule is that they have to take them from your fingers, no cheating by putting them on the floor or even in the palm of your hand. When food is concerned they can learn to trust this pretty quickly, especially with the right flower essence on your hands.

woman with two cats
But he has no problem getting treats!

“Hey, you forgot me!” Ernie waves one of his white mittens to alert Dr. Michelle to a possible problem.

woman with two cats
You forgot me!

. . . . . . .

How They Celebrated New Year’s Day, 2011
All seven in the kitchen.
All seven in the kitchen.

A Nice, Quiet, New Year, 2011

It started out as me and Kelly and Cookie, and one or two at a time the family decided to join us after dinner, so we had a nice New Year all together at the table.

Kelly is at the water bowl, and on the table from the left is Jelly Bean, whose butt is the only thing showing, Cookie, behind her is Mewsette in profile, next to her is Mr. Sunshine, and in the crochet bag sitting up looking at Sunshine is Mimi, lying down in the bag is Giuseppe.

Mimi hopped into the crochet bag when Cookie hopped out to get a drink of water, and Giuseppe, ever the mama’s boy, joined her in there. Mewsette came to hang with me and Cookie and Kelly who were fussing with my crochet project. Jelly Bean felt left out so he wandered around and finally settled on the crochet project as well when Kelly went to get a drink of water. I had been sitting in the chair just behind Cookie and JB.

I had actually finished this scarf and it’s going to a feline-loving friend who will probably not notice a few spare cat hairs!

Here they are from the other angle, which is what I saw before I decided to get up to take the photo.

Is there room for me in all this?
Is there room for me in all this?

I love it when they all settle around me, but this has been a novelty in my years of living with cats. It’s mostly because five of them are related and often do things all together, while Cookie and Kelly are usually with me. When Dickie and Peaches were here they added to the fun, though I never managed to get a photo of all nine together.

If I need for them to move I actually get up and walk away and one or two will follow. Believe it or not, there are times when I need for them to move.


Gifts featuring cats you know! Visit Portraits of Animals

AfterDinnerNap-Etsy

Fine Art • Photography • Gifts • Greeting Cards • Books • Commissioned Portraits & Artwork

"Suncatcher", pastel, 12 x 18 © Bernadette E. Kazmarski. Allegro on a sunny windowsill.
“Suncatcher”, pastel, 12 x 18 © Bernadette E. Kazmarski. Allegro on a sunny windowsill.

This sketch was among my four first pastels. I remember studying the highlights on Allegro’s fur, and the light outside the window and on the wall, with the deep shadows. He was on the basement windowsill, and I’ve always love the dramatic lighting of scenes like that. Read more and purchase.



Copyright

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.

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