Thursday, March 28, 2024
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From The Archives: Lucy Birdwatching, January 2007

black cat birdwatching
Lucy birdwatching.

Oh, she can almost reach out and touch that dove! Between the flying snowflakes and the fluttering birds, little Lucy almost can’t contain herself. The big north window has always been a prime birdwatching spot because the feeders are right outside the window. Lucy was about nine months old here and full of play.

Below, making plans…how was she going to get that dove? Birdwatching is so exciting!

black cat birdwatching
Lucy and the dove.

And then that sparrow landed on the edge of the feeder and started giving Lucy a piece of his mind! Oh, those ears started to flatten out, and if that window hadn’t been there…

black cat birdwatching
Lucy and the sparrow.

Memories of Lucy are always sweet. Sometimes with an unexpected loss, especially far too young, we forget there were lots of happy moments before that.

From the Archives in Previous Years

Almost Synchronized, January 17, 2007

two cats bathing
Sort of synchronized.

Namir thought he was having an after-dinner bath, but he was in fact performing the important work of mentoring a kitten. Working in my office that evening I looked down from my computer to see Namir having a very thorough bath with Lucy carefully watching his technique. Darned digital camera from that era didn’t focus on every other photo I took, but I can tell you she was serious in this endeavor. Lucy adored her mentor and soon began her own thorough toilette, glancing at Namir every so often to match his posture.

Below, each works out a variation on the curl.

to cats bathing
Two variations on the curl.

I moved around the room, filing papers and sorting items, organizing boxes of customer’s printed orders and planning the next day’s work. No matter where I walked around them, neither of them paid me any attention at all. It was a good lesson.

two cats bathing
Lucy adds an extra touch.

Life could be fraught in those days. Just two days before, we had said goodbye to Stanley at age 25. My mother had been in the hospital with pneumonia after the holidays, which meant that she was in ICU on life support for a few days. My brother was feeling isolated in his apartment with the agency. The previous autumn the mortgage company had foreclosed on me after months of accusations they hadn’t received my payments, a charge that would be proved fabricated, and in two weeks I would proceed with filing for personal bankruptcy to stop the proceeding, a situation that is resolved but affects my life to this day. But on that night in the office, two beloved cats could do their thing on the braided rug and completely distract me from everything. What a miracle that is.

From the Archives in Previous Years

The Cats in the Hat, 2010

These aren’t really “from the archives”, but I don’t have any from the archives in previous years to add. So I thought I’d choose these photos of Kelly and Cookie from January 2010, because they are real favorites.

Kelly subjects the crocheted hat to the sleepability test.

Every crochet item I make must be tested by at least one kitty, especially Kelly, my Lead Crochet Tester. This means it must be subject to the following activities as appropriate with the shape and size of the item: walked on, kneaded, climbed into, climbed underneath, smelled, tasted, slept on, slept in, carried off or fought over.

Kelly generally tests items for sleepability, and this alone involves most of the items above. She did try to fit herself into it in various ways, but only succeeded in getting all four legs in it and crouching in it. The hat flunked Kelly’s sleeping test, though it was fun to sniff and walk on.

Cookie was actually the first one to step into the hat, but she was distracted by the crochet bag. Not to be outdone by Kelly, when Kelly was done with her testing Cookie got back into the hat. Cookie usually tests for bathability, how comfortable the item is for having a good bath. Again, the hat flunked Cookie’s bathing test.

Perhaps this means I get the hat all to myself? Only if I hide it or hang it where no one can get into it!

Cookie subjects the crocheted hat to the bathability test.

Photos From the Archives and Vintage Photos

Photos pulled “From the Archives” were taken by one or another digital camera of mine between 2002 and, well, yesterday, but usually they are older than that, and I had never had the chance to feature them. Vintage Photos are from my film archives back to 1983 when I purchased my Pentax K-1000 camera. They’re a fun way to “introduce” other members of my feline family who came and went before I began blogging, and to illustrate my feline family in general from days gone by.


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Lucy the Most Exceptional Kitten garden flag.

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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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Weekly schedule of features:

Sunday: Essays, Pet Loss, Poetry, The Artist’s Life

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Wednesday: Commissioned Portrait or Featured Artwork

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Friday: Book Review, Health and Welfare, Advocacy

Saturday: Your Backyard Wildlife Habitat, Living Green With Pets, Creating With Cats

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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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