Picture Monday, May 11, 2009; No Notgeld, Only Cats

Notgeld got mad last week and didn't come to the party. It found out that I left out #15. To make up for this I was able to get some pictures of Peanut. You may remember that I left her out of last week's cat spread because she refused to come out of hiding.

In the first picture Peanut is in the chair on the left. I looks like she is getting ready to surprise Boo and Puss. Peanut is also helpful in keeping the router held in place. Bristow sits on the router while Peanut uses it for a pillow.

I'm not sure who this is. I found it while going through my files and thought it was interesting.

© 2009 Barry T Horst


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Meet The Cats

After posting about Angel Cat I was thinking about the other neglected cats at our house.

HMMMM!!! I thought to myself, "Have I ever posted pictures of all the cats at one time on the blog?"

I then answered myself (Which is very Bad!), "I don't think so!"

So, here we go.

Tabby, also known as "The cat with glowing eyes."

Rory, a cat with attitude. And it's not real good. Just ask the others.

Puss. He's my baby. He's laid back like me. Can't ya tell?

Callie. Another cat with attitude. You can see it in her eyes.

Bristow. Handy to have around in case you need something to sit on top of the router.

Boo. He was working on his Mesmerizing routine when I took this picture.

Peanut. There is no picture of Peanut. She would not cooperate. She's that way.

© 2009 Barry T Horst


This work is licensed under a
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Now I Know!

I always wondered what the cats did on Saturday nights when everyone was sleeping.

Since we had the time change to Daylight Saving Time I slept late this morning. When I got up I began looking for the cats. They were all scattered throughout the house; having been up to mischief no doubt.

I found Mr. Puss in the washroom.

He was looking in the washer. I wondered why, so I Looked a little closer.

That's when I began to see what he was looking at.

It appears that the cards from his wild poker game last night were in the wash. How the cards got in the wash is any one's guess. I didn't even know he played cards; let alone doing the wash.

Now that I know what he and the other cats do on their Saturday nights, I just wonder what happened to the "kitty".

© 2009 Barry T Horst


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The Night After Christmas Morn; A Reprise

'Twas the night after Christmas morn, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings and such lay on the floor in a mess,
In hopes that it would surely not block our egress;

The children were playing all snug in their room,
While visions of new games danced in their heads I presume;

And momma in her finest, and I in my finer,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap in my recliner,

When out in the den there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the recliner to see what was the matter.

Away to the hallway I flew in a rush,
Tore open the doors and stood with a blush.

The light on the breast of the new-fallen tree
Gave the lustre of calamity to the objects I see,

When, what to my wondering eyes should materialize,
But 7 cats from the branches, "What am I to surmise?"

With a mischievous leader, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Mister and his sidekicks.

More rapid than eagles his cohorts in crime came,
And I fussed and I yelled, and called them by name;

"Now, Peanut! now, Tabby! now, Callie and Boo!
On, Mister! on Rory! and now Bristow, you too!

To the top of the chair! To the end of the hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, they jump to the sky,

So to the end of the hallway the cohorts they flew,
With an ornament of catnip, and a candy cane too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard Grandma quite clear,
She was scolding each cat, each scofflaw that was near.

As I drew up my hand, and was turning around,
Down the hallway Mister came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail,
It was all tarnished with the pine needles that fell;

A bundle of toys he had in his mouth,
As he looked like a tramp, beginning to head south.

His eyes -- how they twinkled! His tail was so comic!
His nose started to twitch as his whiskers he did flick!

His curious eyes were drawn down the hall,
He squinted and stared at his apparent downfall;

The bundle of toys he held tight in his teeth,
By my feet he stopped and left them beneath;

As if to leave an offering of peace,
An apology for being so caprice.

He stood regal and erect, a right stately old cat,
And I laughed when I saw him, as away he did scat;

A twinkle in his eye and a twist of his tail,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to bewail;

He made not a sound, but went straight to our room,
And started to refresh; and also to groom,

And laying himself down upon the furniture,
He gave us all a nod, and started for to purr;

He opened his eyes, to his cohorts gave a mew,
And away they all flew with barely an adieu.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he nodded off contrite,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."
© 2008 Barry T Horst


This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.Please visit the Giveaway of the Day near the bottom of the left sidebar for free software downloads daily.

Picture Monday, June 2, 2008

Going through the pictures I found a few that brought back memories. At least for me they did. I share them with you and hope you enjoy them also.

This picture was taken in 2005. This is Molly our Black Lab that passed away and Mr. Puss. They are enjoying a rest together. At this time Molly was having trouble with her eyesight. Whenever I took her outside I had to carry her down the steps and then carry her back up later.

Peanut taking a snooze on the router. I know she liked it but I can't imagine using this for a pillow. She also likes to sleep on the cable box. I have had to move it in order to discourage her from sleeping on it. I know she probably likes the warmth; but gee, she sure makes it hard to use the remote.

Puddin' enjoys the warmth of the sun streaming in through the window. She also likes to curl up in the linen closet among the towels.

No, I don't have a bear! This is one of the Baylor Bear mascots. This was taken at the 2007 Homecoming Parade.

This is Puppy. She really isn't a puppy. She is around 4 years old but I've called her Puppy all along and you know what they say, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks!" Her real name is Tiger Lily. The name came from Peter Pan.

This doesn't happen often. All six cats on the bed at once. I guess their union calls for a uniform rest and relaxation break.

© 2008 Barry T Horst


This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Please visit the Giveaway of the Day near the bottom of the left sidebar for free software downloads daily.

Picture Monday, April 28, 2008

Searching through the photographs have turned up many photos of pets long gone. Here are a few.

This is a picture of my Dad's dog Maita and her pups. This was taken at his parents house in Robinson sometime in the late 40's or early 50's.

The picture on the left is a picture of our Maita that we got in the 60's. She was a red Dachshund. The picture on the right is of some of the kittens that we had back in the 60's. This may be the group that I named after the Beatles. That's right John, Paul, George, and Ringo.

This is a picture of Chris' dog Katrinka taking a rest from a long day of chasing cats and various other small creatures. Chris had Katrinka when we were married and Katrinka was an old lady by this time.

Not a pet from times past but a good picture. This is our Trinky taking a snooze after a long, tiring day of chasing small creatures. It must run in the family.

© 2008 Barry T Horst

This work is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Please visit the Giveaway of the Day at the bottom of the page for free software downloads daily.
-------------

Nothing Special, But He Thinks He Is

So Mr. Puss thinks he's pretty special. I get up each morning and he shows up at my side in the bed. Is he there to see me? Nah! He knows that my spot on the bed is warm. As soon as I am up out of the bed he is claiming his spot. Of course it was my spot but I had to relinquish it. Next thing you know he's buried under the covers.

Mr. Puss has a way with words. I come home in the afternoons and when he sees me walk in he kinda squeaks. That's his signal for me to come see him and to heartily rub him on the back. He likes to be stroked on the back. When he is feeling "special sporty" he'll roll over and let me rub him on his stomach. You know he's had enough when he bites your hand.

Rory is the same except she is different. Instead of rushing to get the warm spot in the bed she rushes to curl up in the sink. She doesn't like to leave the sink. In fact she is very adamant about staying in the sink. Even if you turn the water on. Have you ever tried to get a hair ball out the drain pipe? Well that's easier to do than get Rory out of the sink. She goes limp and then the faucet gets in the way. Then she gets cranky. Maybe I'll just grow a beard.

Then there's Puppy. I took her out last night so that she could attend to personal needs. What do we do. We spend 15 minutes checking out the place that the rabbits run through the fence. I don't know what it is with those rabbits, but Puppy is intrigued by them.

Speaking of rabbits; yeah I did happen to make it from cats to rabbits. The last time I had my vegetable garden I had several visitors. I am certain they were the refugees from Mr. MacGregor's garden. I am planning another vegetable garden this year. I suppose I better start planning for the bunnies. I wonder if they like peppers?

© 2008 Barry T Horst


This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

The Night After Christmas Morn

'Twas the night after Christmas morn, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings and such lay on the floor in a mess,
In hopes that it would surely not block our egress;

The children were playing all snug in their room,
While visions of new games danced in their heads I presume;

And momma in her finest, and I in my finer,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap in my recliner,

When out in the den there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the recliner to see what was the matter.

Away to the hallway I flew in a rush,
Tore open the doors and stood with a blush.

The light on the breast of the new-fallen tree
Gave the lustre of calamity to the objects I see,

When, what to my wondering eyes should materialize,
But 7 cats from the branches, "What am I to surmise?"

With a mischievous leader, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Mister and his sidekicks.

More rapid than eagles his cohorts in crime came,
And I fussed and I yelled, and called them by name;

"Now, Peanut! now, Tabby! now, Callie and Boo!
On, Mister! on Rory! and now Bristow, you too!

To the top of the chair! To the end of the hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, they jump to the sky,

So to the end of the hallway the cohorts they flew,
With an ornament of catnip, and a candy cane too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard Grandma quite clear,
She was scolding each cat, each scofflaw that was near.

As I drew up my hand, and was turning around,
Down the hallway Mister came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his tail,
It was all tarnished with the pine needles that fell;

A bundle of toys he had in his mouth,
As he looked like a tramp, beginning to head south.

His eyes -- how they twinkled! His tail was so comic!
His nose started to twitch as his whiskers he did flick!

His curious eyes were drawn down the hall,
He squinted and stared at his apparent downfall;

The bundle of toys he held tight in his teeth,
By my feet he stopped and left them beneath;

As if to leave an offering of peace,
An apology for being so caprice.

He stood regal and erect, a right stately old cat,
And I laughed when I saw him, as away he did scat;

A twinkle in his eye and a twist of his tail,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to bewail;

He made not a sound, but went straight to our room,
And started to refresh; and also to groom,

And laying himself down upon the furniture,
He gave us all a nod, and started for to purr;

He opened his eyes, to his cohorts gave a mew,
And away they all flew with barely an adieu.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he nodded off contrite,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."


© 2007 Barry T Horst



This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

What a Night-Did Some Shopping-Never Left Home

Dreams are really wonderful things. I have noticed that in my dreams I often know the people involved; or at least they are vaguely familiar to me. Also, in dreams I can do things that I know that I can't do in reality. I remember having dreams in which I could run faster than a speeding bullet, leap tall buildings; you know, the whole Superman thing. In dreams you can do things you have always wanted to do but were unable to. You can do the impossible. You can...... well, follow your dreams!

Last night I had a dream. In this dream I was shopping. I was shopping in a Goodwill store. I was shopping in a Goodwill store for a toothbrush; an electric toothbrush. Now tell me, who goes to Goodwill looking for an electric toothbrush? I found one that I apparently thought would fill the bill. It was red. Not only was it red, but it had a Kool-Ade logo on the side. Now that is what I really want, an electric toothbrush that advertises for Kool-Ade. When I went to the counter to ask the sales lady about the toothbrush she informed that there was a small hole in the side, but that it still works. I looked and sure enough, there was a hole. I remember thinking to myself in the dream, "How did she know there was hole in it? How did she know that it worked? Did she use it?" Yuck! I put the toothbrush down. I didn't really want a Kool-Ade Electric Toothbrush anyway.

I don't think I will be following that dream anytime soon. Oh, and the lady. It seems that she is the mother of one of my students from several years ago. Just think, one night you might be working at a Goodwill Store or looking for used electric toothbrushes. Yeah, in your dreams; in your wildest dreams.

Before I go, I must tell you that Boo-Boo is sitting here with me this morning. He would like some attention and is trying to get it by rubbing his head on me while I type. This makes for a lot of re-typing. He also takes his paw and will touch my arm as if he is saying, "Play with me, PLEASE!"

"Yes I will play with you and rub on you Boo as soon as I finish this!"


© 2007 Barry T Horst



This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Morning Surprise!!!

I went to shave this morning.

Look what I found in the sink.





© 2007 Barry T Horst



This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Alarm Clocks and Cats

Not wanting to be a slugabed, I have an alarm clock on my bedside end table. (Geez Rory. You make a better door than you do a window!) Rory just jumped on the desk and has decided to play with the cursor on the monitor. (Get out of the way! I can't see!) Anyway, as I was saying...Chris also has an alarm clock on her side. They are fairly normal and straightforward as alarm clocks go. I was looking in the latest Sharper Image catalogue yesterday and they had a few different alarm clocks. One was very interesting. After pushing the snooze button a second time it will roll off the end table, search for a place to hide, and them sound the alarm. This way you must get out of bed to turn it off. {Here it is: Clocky Run-Away Alarm Clock } I have seen others that have lights that simulate the sun rising in order to wake you slowly.

You may be wondering why I am writing about alarm clocks. You may be wondering why I am writing about alarm clocks at 5:15 in the morning. This is why. I have my alarm clock set for 5:30 AM so I can get up and get ready for work each week day. I don't set it on week-ends. I don't have to get up that early. The cats have yet to figure this out. If I don't get up at 5:30 they see it as their mission to wake me up. I suppose they are afraid that if I don't go to work I will not be able to buy them cat food and kitty litter. Either that or they are truly concerned for me and would hate for me to be late for work. I suppose the reason for the early morning wake-up could even be because they are bored and simply want to be entertained. I am not sure why they do it. All I know is that they do it. This morning was no different except that Mr. Puss started around 4:45 AM. He came to my side of the bed and started to meow. In my face. After he woke me up I began to pet and talk to him. Yes, I talk to my cats. Whats wrong with that? Having awakened me and feeling good about himself he retreated to the top of the desk and laid down. He is there now supervising the Blog once again.

Mr. Puss likes to go to Chris' side of the bed and take his paw and lightly touch her on the face. When Chris pushes his paw away the game has begun. He will proceed to touch her face again. If Chris ignores him, he will pursue the game until she complies and pushes his hand away or pets him. Boo-Boo and Mr. Puss will also play with your hands. If you are asleep and your hand moves they will attack it. If you want them to stop you will have to take your hands and bury them under the covers. Tabby and Boo-Boo will also visit Chris if any portion of the bottom of their food dish is showing. I suppose they believe they are out of food and will starve if the bowl is not filled at that moment in time.

I have to relate a funny story that happened shortly after Chris and I got married. Chris' parents came to visit us one weekend. We lived in Arlington at the time and her parents spent the night. The next morning Chris' dad, Hank, came to breakfast and started to tell us about the strangest thing that happened while he was sleeping. Apparently sleeping with his feet out from under the covers, one of our cats from the early days came along and decided to take a nibble on his toes. I remember him saying he didn't know what it was and kicked it across the room.

Aren't cats wonderful? We really could save a little money and not have to buy alarm clocks.


© 2007 Barry T Horst



This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Which is Better...a Window or a Door?

I can remember when I was younger I would often hear, "Barry!!! You make a better door than you do a window!" Well, for those of you that do not know me I want to assure that I was not a carpenter in my younger days. At the time I did not know what the speakers meant. After all, I was just a kid. As I grew older and wiser, I came to learn just what they meant.

However, the meaning of the phrase was driven home quite well recently. I was in my favorite recliner and watching TV. When along comes Mr. Puss and plants himself right in front of the TV. And just in front of the TV, but right in front of the remote control sensor. One of the wonders of the 21st century brought to it's heels by a cat. I begin to politely request that Mr. Puss should remove himself from his desired location of rest. This doesn't work. I then begin to loudly proclaim, "Move cat! You make a better door than you do a window!" That didn't work either. All I got from Mr. Puss was a, "Are you talking to me?' look.

Now, I know exactly what is meant by "You make a better door than you do a window!" And I am sure that Mr. Puss will be around for sometime to make sure I do not forget any time soon.

PS...Peanut likes to remind me of the same concept while she lounges on the cable box. You see, she has the unique ability to place her tail at the precise spot on the cable box that is capable of blocking the remote signal to the box, thus bringing the entire concept of modern society to it's knees. Or at least the ability to use the remote for the cable.

In this picture you see Mr. Puss directly in front of the remote sensor. And look under the TV. That is Peanut placing her tail in the precise location to throw the cable box into the Dark Ages. Tabby is in the foreground. INTERESTING SIDE NOTE: The movie on the TV at the time is "Talk About A Stranger" (1952). The young boy on screen is Billy Gray a couple of years before "Father Knows Best" premiered. Also his character's name is Bud; just as it was in "Father Knows Best".



More Blog later....


© 2007 Barry T Horst

How Many Are Too Many?

For those that don't know it, I like cats. Maybe I should say, "We like cats."

Let me tell you a few things about our cats. First, we have too many. How many are too many and why do I say that we have too many?

Let me answer the last half of that question. Or better yet, let me tell you HOW you know that you have too many cats. When your wife (Chris in this case.) puts the electric blanket on the bed because it is getting cold and she turns it on and there is no room on the king size bed for you because the cats are there keeping warm, you have too many cats. Also, when your wife changes the sheets and can't get finished because the cats think she is playing the greatest game on earth with them, you have too many cats. That being said, I will let you do some work and figure out how many cats we have.

There is Peanut. When we got her, the kids wanted to name her Skippy. I didn't like Skippy. For some reason the name reminded me of a peanut butter brand. I called her Peanut until the name stuck. Then there is Tabby. What can I say? Tabby is a tabby. We got these two after a festival in East Texas. They were in a petting zoo and we heard that when the festival was over the fellow running the petting zoo was going to "dispose" of them. What can I say. They came home with us. We also have Callie. Yep, she is a calico. My son, Scott found her behind an air conditioner at his high school. These are the oldest of our cats. Some time later we acquired Boo-Boo. I stopped at a convenience store to get Chris a Dr Pepper and heard a kitten meowing and saw this little fluff ball. After some effort we were able to rescue him. Once in the van, we noticed a funny smell. He smelled of paint thinner or something of that nature. On the way home we began to notice another smell, but I won't go there. Needless to say, he got a good scrubbing when we got home, as did the van. Now our little fluff ball is the largest of all of our beloved critters. These four have been in the family at least 10 years now.

Believe it or not, I am not through with the cats. Approximately four years ago I was blessed with Mr. Puss. He was a birthday gift from my daughter, Julie. As with most of our pets, the name changed a few times. He started out as Mr. Kitty. Then our grandson, Jace started calling him Puss-Puss. I later refined the name to Mr. Puss. Wow! Five cats! Now that is a lot.

This is Mr. Puss supervising the latest blog posting.

Nope, still not through. Last summer, Julie just absolutely had to have a kitten of her own. After all, five is not enough. She researched the subject extensively on the Internet. She settled on a kitten from a kennel(?) that was 80 some odd miles away (Guess who had to drive her there?) and required real cash to get the little bugger. We got the kitten and went home and the little thing got sick and had to be nursed back to health. Julie did a great job with her on that note. Her name is Rory (short for Aurora).

If you counted correctly you should have counted six cats. (Even if you didn't count it is still six cats!) That is quite a few, but we love them all. In later postings I will tell you about their antics and let you see them all.

UPDATE......

Guess who just had to have a kitten all their own? Yep, as of yesterday Julie is the proud Momma of Bristow, a gray Tabby kitten.

You're right. That is seven. Oh yes, Julie has assured me that she will take care of Bristow and all expenses that she incurs.

TOMORROW: Preparations for the holidays; lights, decorations, and such.

© 2007 Barry T Horst

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.