Better Than Catnip

We don't get catnip toys for Firestar anymore. But don't think he's being deprived. There is another "toy" which he actually has been enjoying far more than he ever did his old catnip mouse.

What's cool about this "toy" is that it's something we use on a regular basis ourselves. So not only does Firestar have a constant supply of something fun to play with, but we benefit directly from it, too. And it isn't tremendously pricey!

Cool.

So, what is this new toy?

Dryer sheets.

You know. Those scented things like look like thick tissue paper you put in the dryer to remove static electricity and provide a nice, fresh smell to the laundry.

Well, Firestar goes nuts with them. He plays with them for hours. The only real problem is he doesn't let us throw them away. He hides them and we have to wait until he brings his entire stash out to play with. Then he has anywhere from two to six sheets he rolls around with. At that time we toss some, but always leave him with a stash to keep himself occupied. Having him chew on those instead of our hands and arms is much better.

Playing with dryer sheets. That's how dull it can be in an apartment.
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What Does the Cat You Choose Say About Your Personality

Humans love to take silly tests. Real tests seem to fluster them to no end, but give them a silly test and they rush to complete it.

Probably the most silly of all are the so-called "personality" tests. Give me a break. Humans don't have personality. Only cats do. Besides, don't they already know what they're like? Me - ow.

Anyway, Bevie's sister sent him another one and of course there was the big rush to complete it. And of course the results were exactly what Bevie wanted. Isn't that how these things are supposed to work? The humans decide what result they want and then answer accordingly. Anyway, since a lot of humans sneak into this alley I thought I would throw a test at them, just to be nice. Cats know how to do that, you know?

So, without further meows, here is the test. I have adjusted it slightly to better fit this blog. Word of warning to you humans: think carefully before answering. Your answer says a lot about you.

Question: Suppose you went to a shelter for homeless cats intent on helping one of the little darlings out. You see five cats in five kennels. The cats are as follows:

1. Orange Tabby - male


2. Bengal - male


3. Persian (white) - female


4. Norwegian Forest Cat - male


5. Russian Blue - female

Remember, think over your answer and be sure before reading what it says about you.

Here is the personality profile:

1. Orange Tabby - male means you like male Orange Tabby cats


2. Bengal - male - means you like male Bengal cats


3. Persian (white) - female - means you like white female Persian cats


4. Norwegian Forest Cat - male - means you like male Norwegian Forest Cats


5. Russian Blue - female - means you like female Russian Blue cats

I hope you learned something about yourself. [puurrrrrrrrr]
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What Do You Think of These Ideas

A couple of new ideas for Cat in the Buff.

First, we've got a Kitten of the Month Archive site. This is a place to view all Kittens of the Month.

Second, and this is the really cool site, we've created Firestar's Virtual Image Zoo. This is a place where we can share photographs of wild (and domestic) animals.

The rules are simple:
1. You must have taken the photograph and not just downloaded it from the internet.
2. Try to keep human elements (and humans in particular) out of the photographs.
3. You must email the photograph to: firestarthecat@gmail.com
4. You must include a caption describing where and how the picture was taken

If anything, maybe it will encourage us to all get out and enjoy nature a bit more.

Hint on pictures: Use a zoom and try to fill the frame with whichever animal you are photographing. Don't be concerned about background and such. We just want the animals.
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What's Wrong With This Picture

Came up with this idea the other day and decided to implement it. Have you ever seen those pictures in which something is "out of place"? (Such as missing limbs, cats with bird's feet or such.) Or perhaps they show the same picture twice, but in the second picture certain things are changed or missing?

Well, I decided to do the former. Here is a picture of Firestar on Spouse's desk. See if you can find five (5) things "out of place" in this picture. Answers below.

1. Firestar is not supposed to be on Spouse's desk
2. The hand lotion belongs in the bathroom.
3. That's my tape dispenser, not Spouse's. (So why is it here instead of at my workstation?)
4. The paperclips are mine, too. (But I don't use them, so it's all right.)
5. The books to the far right belong on the "to be sold" pile.

So, how did you do? Give yourself 5 points for each correct answer. If you got #1 right, take a bonus of 1,000 points.

....0 points = Not bad
....5 points = Amazing
...10 points = Very Amazing
...15 points = Incredibly Amazing
...20 points = Beyond Belief Amazing
1,000+ points = YOU WON
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Cat Lover, But No Slave

Took another cat quiz. This time it was What Kind of Cat Person are You? As opposed to What Kind of Cat Would You Be?

Here are my results:

You are definitely a cat lover and meet most of the tests of responsibility. but you haven't yet made a slave of yourself over your cats. That isn't all bad, you know, as you may be a better caregiver and cat parent for it.

Hmm. Not a cat's slave yet, huh? I guess that's Firestar's problem with me then.
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Firestar Would Like This Game

Here's an odd sort of game. It was used on the old 1934 Laurel and Hardy movie, "March of the Wooden Soldiers (Babes in Toyland)". Laurel, playing Stannie Dum calls the tapered wood a "peewee" and demonstrates to Hardy, playing Ollie Dee. Of course, Ollie Dee is totally incapable of doing it.

Wonder how the game got its name. Nothing about it looks like a cat. Cats don't behave like this. Maybe, when whoever started it began doing it, they had a cat which would try to chase down the tapered piece of wood and would get all tangled up trying to catch it. Firestar has done that when Son tosses stuffed cat toys across the room. He kind of "tips" in his effort to catch the things while they're still in the air.

TIP CAT

Tip cat, also called ONE-A-CAT, is an outdoor game dating back at least to the 17th Century. It was introduced to North America and elsewhere by English colonists. The game was widely popular in 19th-century Great Britain and in early 20th-century North America.

Although there are many varieties of the game, all involve a stick about 3 ft (1 m) long used as a bat, and a piece of wood (the cat) about 4 in. (10 cm) long, 1 to 2 in. (2.5 to 5 cm) thick, and tapered at the ends.

The cat is placed on the ground, struck at one end to propel it upward (tipping the cat), and then slammed with the stick as far as possible. In one version, the batter tries to round the bases, as in baseball, before the fielder retrieves the cat and throws it back to home base.

If a batter misses the cat three times or if a fielder catches it on a fly, the batter is out. Earlier versions of the game are based on guessing the distance that the cat is hit, scoring points according to the number that comes up on a four-sided cat, and running from base to base on a large circle while the cat is being retrieved. Some authorities consider tip-cat a forerunner of baseball and cricket.

When Cats Won't Cooperate You Find Something Else to Post

The original plan was to take a picture of Firestar sleeping on our suitcase, which is where he spent the night. But of course he has double-crossed me and is back on the rocker this morning.

He knows something's up, and I don't think he's going to be overly keen on us not being around for a couple of days. We have a neighbor who has agreed to look in on him and make sure he has fresh food and water, but he's not going to be happy. I wonder how we'll be punished when we get home.

Anyway, Son and I were browsing through YouTube yesterday and came across and old cartoon I used to watch when I was his age or younger. It's called Top Cat, and it was one of my favorites. I haven't seen it in years upon years. The episode we found is in three parts of about seven to nine minutes each, and they automatically jump one to another. So you'll need about twenty minutes to watch the entire episode. Also, it wanted to jump to a completely different episode at the end, but we didn't watch that.

I'm being lazy because I think this will be my last post until Sunday or Monday. Going to be away from the computer a few days.



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Taking Proper Care of Our Property

So I thought I would help Bevie out. You see, Bevie not only has big feet and a big mouth, but Bevie gets into big trouble. So I'm doing the post for the day.

I found a neat on-line cat coloring site. It links to another site with even more pictures to color.

Unfortunately, the only versions which can be downloaded are the blank templates. I didn't see how to download a picture once it had been colored. But very relaxing.

Something I think Bevie needs right now. What a pity I'm about to bite the hand that feeds me.

Hey! What can I say? It's play time!
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Just What am I Supposed to do With This

We haven't had a cat video in a bit. Found this one.



You gotta love cats.
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Just Cats

Here are some more cat pictures/cartoons. Courtesy of this site.

Buy Stock NOW!

Yeah, I know. This alley is for cats. But I thought some advertising might be in order. Here's a product we can all use.



I want mine in blue.
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Happy Rabbit Hole Day!

The Bombo Wallofrogs

The Bombo Wallofrogs arrived late in the morning with two busloads filled with bowls of orange tadpoles.

The Weefermegs were there to greet them with all appropriate song and verse, as well as a banquet of fresh Kellilags served over rice pudding.

After the banquet we went swimming at the fru fru pond and Captain Shamizka surprised us all with a rendition of Howard Goofel’s, One Time on the Island of Lupahs.

We played burble ball and horkey nets and generally continued on in amusement until evening fell and we all went to our giflefans.

I hope tomorrow is as fun. We’re supposed to go cheepahsanning in the morning and hike the trails under Themo Morpha after lunch.

Wish you were here.

From The Tales of Whimsy, by Bevie James.
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Cat Idol

There were three contestants for Cat Idol. We'll present them in order and then present the judges' decision at the end.


SQUEEKY CAT


YOWLY CAT


ROCK 'N' ROLL CAT


JUDGES' DECISION



Yes, yes. Give me that Good ol' Rock 'n' Roll every time.

Something to Do When There's Nothing to Do

Not much going on today. Sniffed about and found this link. I started out with some fishing. That was cool. Think I'll check out the food dish.


Oh. Found this picture. Rough neighborhood.

What Kind of Cat Could You Be

This is more for our slaves and peons. But perhaps some of us were born into the wrong breed. Curious to know? Take the test here.

I had Bevie take the test. Turns out Bevie is a Snowshoe.

The Snowshoe is gregarious and talkative. She is always ready for fun and will regularly try to instigate a game. While her strong intellect leads her to try new things, it also causes her to become easily bored when a task is mastered. Variety is truly the spice of life for this kitty! Affectionate with others, eager to interact, the Snowshoe is always the �belle of the ball�.





Not sure if I prefer Bevie as white or buff orange. It's the mask that does it, though. Rooowwwwl.