Sofa So Good!

 What you say you lost? £1?

 Got a torch?

 Not much room to move here!

Would a couple of pen tops and a boiled sweet do instead?

Three ways ......

.......that Austin makes me chuckle (inwardly!)

1) The way he rushes up to me arching his back; screeches to a halt three feet away; makes like a crab; sidles; clonks his furry bod against me and then cuddles my leg with his lovely long tail, before returning to his extremely important business project that's ongoing behind the crocosmia.

2) The way he talks to me with barely audible little chirrups; just touching base; making sure we're still ok.

3) The way he looks me straight in the eye, blinks slowly before going all coy and rolling over on his back waving his front paws. I believe he knows that all those years ago I went to the rescue centre to get a dog!

Next time Austin says he will list three things he tolerates about me (negotiations about keyboard access are at a critical juncture and talks could break down).

Cat Flap Result .... (sort of)

If you've been with me from the beginning (and I'm sure you haven't, as I never told anyone I was blogging for months!!) you will know about the cat-flap-in-the-shed saga. In September 2009 I posted the sorry tale "Getting into a Flap".  Funny series of pictures, go on take a look!  

Despite the initial flurry of excitement from Tigger who went in and out once, there has been nothing to indicate that the two have cottoned on to how the jolly thing works. Since then I've trailed up to the top of the garden (on sunny days!) to open up so the boys can sleep away the day. Good exercise for me, but a bit of a waste of a cat flap!  Until today ... nearly two years on!

I went up to do the usual and Austin for some reason didn't want me to go?  He threw himself bodily against my legs meowing and kicking up an awful fuss, impeding my progress to the point of me either having to fall over, kick him, or stop. The first was undignified, the second, unthinkable and third was understandable. So I did the third followed by the first. Happily the second was avoided.

When I eventually arrived at the shed, to open the door, this is what I saw:

Doesn't he look pleased with himself?  He'd managed, after all this time, to suss it out. It only took one year and ten months!  I was so happy, I did a little dance. Well I would have done, if Austin hadn't been velcroed to my leg! I think he must have been a bit put out (yeah, out the shed!!).  He went off and had a bit of a sulk.

Now all I need is for Tigger to teach Austin and we're sorted!

By the way, these photos come to you courtesy of my brand new Nikon Coolpix ;>) This is the case I got with it >^..^< I'm right chuffed!

 

I've been +1'd !

I will never get my head around all the things you can do with stuff you find on the internet. You can buzz it, tweet it, digg it, fark it. You can bing, ping, ding, zing ...... whatever! You can like, peek, link, wink, blink. You can even dogpile and hotbot (though I don't think you can do both together!) Then there is, of course, Google.

Just lately, this little doohicky thingy has turned up everywhere on the internet. Have you noticed it?

And the question on everyones's lips down the supermarket is "Have you +1'd someone today"?  

Well not that I'd noticed! Could I have done it accidentally? Is it legal? Is it safe? Should one see a doctor? I have once again descended into the morbid flux of online paranoia.  Even more so now, because I've got a +1 option appearing on the bottom of each blog post and what's more someone has +1'd me on my last post!

This is a tad worrying.  What will happen to me? Has my card been marked? Will I be sought out by the blog police? Will I and my blog be sent to Google Room +101 for decontaminating and be subjected to untold Orwellian horrors?

It seems the end is nigh ...... sigh!

So, I've girded my loins and had a rummage around google (I googled google!!), being careful not to accidentally +1 anything that can come back to bite me, and it came up with something called Google+, but without the 1.  Before I knew it (thanks Dave!) I found myself "hanging" out in "streams", "sparks" and "circles" as I signed up on yet another social networking site! It's more than this agéd crone can cope with.

However, I am still not absolutely certain as to what the jolly +1 button is and why it is ubiquitous on the interwebs? Personally, I feel there is more to it than meets the eye! Is it perhaps an option (say, like on satelite TV) which allows you to access a website an hour later if you can't be faffed now?  "They" say it's similar to the facebook "like" button, but I don't know. Proof will be when folk start saying "I +1 you very much. Will you have dinner with me?"  And then of course, what do you do if you don't like something? Is there going to be a -1 button?

Ok let's be serious.  I've been +1'd and I've got to come to terms with it. It's a .... you know .... fate accomplished.  

I definitely +1 this picture :D

 And ..... breathe ........  Ahhhhhhhhhhh! 

Got to go, I think someone's just farked me !

The Quilt Digression

This, as the title says, is by way of being a digression, which is allowed under the CATachresis rules of engagement. 

I thought I'd put in some pictures of a few quilts made by my very talented aunt. She was a nurse/midwife for over 30 years and most of that time she lived in Nelson, British Columbia, Canada. She is now 83 and lives her retirement years back in her birth town of St Ives, Cornwall, England.

This is the quilt she made for me about 25 years ago and is a design comprising the flower symbols of the Canadian provinces:

It is a beautiful, bright and rich in colour.  It makes you feel good just to look at it.

This next one is called "Stars in the Garden" from the "Piece O Cake" design:

The last one in this little show is called "Rose of Sharon" (I think) and was a present to my parents.  My mother still has it on her bed..... 

 

...... and this is the quilt that shields Austin when the traumas of his little life become too overwhelming!

I would like to apologise for the poor quality of the pictures, as they don't do the beautiful works of art justice! It's a mixture of poor photographer and an "aim 'n shoot" camera.  But I hope you get a general idea :)

Don't Mess with your Kitty!

Austin here. My good pal Mr Puddy wants stories about how humans try and mess with us kitties.  There is no one big story, but just a rule of claw to be noted by chief human slave. So here goes:

If I want your attention and you don't respond immediately, I will become BIG CLAW and wreak havoc. Hehe hehe hehe he...... .

AND more specifically, if you close any door to me, I will not be held responsible for what BIG CLAW does:

 Carpet outside door to bedroom!

Lesson for my human : Don't Mess with Ya Kitty ; )

Name of Kitty : Austin da Kool

Kitty's Weapon : The BIG CLAW

Austin proves Fibonacci

I think Fibonacci got his spiral ideas from a cat!!  

To be precise I think it was Austin!

 

What do you think?

Happy Sunday >^,,^<

The Story of Ivy (Edited)

This is Ivy and she needs some help. You can read about her on Jan Mader's blog Animal Talk.

She's a sweet good natured little thing and she can have a good life. She just needs some help getting started.

Thanks for reading >^,,^<

Edit
PS Update on Austin. He passed a better night sleeping on my chair. Plenty of rain, but no thunder. He thanked me this morning by leaving a (dead) little gift outside my bedroom window!! Not really appreciated, but hey, it's the thought that counts!

Storm clouds

Austin was in a state of agitation when he was let got out of his bed this morning. I had no idea why? He was meowing as if he was auditioning for Cats the musical. Well we know he would make the best Mr Mistoffelees. However, he was not his usual cheerful cocky self; not by a long chalk.  It wasn't until much later I found out that we'd had torrential rain and thunder in the night! Now I vaguely remember some kind of explosion, but put it down to a dodgy prawn salad!

So, bless him, as he is terrified of loud noises, he's been like a limpet all day. Even when we (myself and the materfamilias) tried to go for a walk up the road, he followed us doing his I'm-a-pathetic-orphan-no-one-loves-me mew. 

We decided to be firm with him, so strode along determined to shut out the sound of the plaintive cries. However, not too much ground had been covered before I weakened and decided to go back, because the last I saw of him he was heading for the thick bushes in a neighbour's garden which I knew had a large dog in it. 

Some of the sorry tale was logged on my rubbish 10 quid mobile phone: 

I eventually managed to retrieve him from some bushes and even though I couldn't see him, I could hear him. He didn't let up with the wailing.

 

Let's go home. Pleeeeeez!

So where is he now?

My poor baby. I feel like the worst kind of hard hearted, brute of a monster.  So tonight he will probably be sleeping nice and cosy under my duvet and I will be in the doghouse!