Thalia Update

Thalia's health continues to improve after she contracted an upper respiratory infection. She now eats without my having to heat her food in order to make it more stinky appealing, and she has been playing with her favorite sister Jackie. I keep her segregated from Ebby and Salem so that they don't get sick, too, and because Thalia gets a little skittish around them when it comes time to eat. She still sneezes, but other than that you would never know she is sick.

Jackie has been helping her big sister to recuperate by offering the occasional ear bath, and by running off Angel should he get too close.

Jackie also ensures Thalia gets enough rest by taking several naps with her throughout the day.

At this rate Thalia should be her old self in no time.

In other news, the Official Angel and Jackie Webcam has been off-line for a few days because of server issues. I intend to have these resolved by this evening sometime. Please check back tonight or this weekend to see our two favorite pups in their natural habitat.

Please also check out all the other critters at Friday Ark at The Modulator.

Thalia Sinks to a New Low (Part II)

So, the other day I was looking for Thalia so that we could spend some quality time together. It was raining outside, so I lit a fire, busted out my favorite rainy day movie, (The Godfather, part one,) got myself a big frosty glass of water, and was all set to snuggle up under a blanket with Thali for the next couple of hours enjoying Hollywood at it's finest. All I was missing was Thalia.

I called her at first, and generally she comes a runnin', but this time my calls were for naught. So, I methodically looked through the house, paying close attention to all of her known favorite napping spots.

I looked high and low, but I couldn't find her anywhere. I started to worry that she may have escaped to the great outdoors, but with it raining like it was I thought for sure she would stray no further than the front porch. I looked out the window of our front door, but didn't see Thalia anywhere. I turned away from the window pensively, and racked my little brain for clues of where she may have run off to.

I walked through the kitchen, and saw this over in a corner at the far end of the kitchen...

That is a prefabricated bathroom cabinet with a sink in it. You know the kind. You can get them at any home improvement center all set up and ready to go. All you need to do is secure it to the wall, and hook up the plumbing. This one is pretty nice, and my wife found it on sale at a warehouse in Los Angeles a few moths ago. When we first looked at the house we live in now, the only thing we didn't like about it was the bathrooms. They are tiny, and the fixtures are probably all original from 1963. When my wife saw this, she figured it would be perfect for the guest bathroom. The only problem is, it doesn't fit. So, for now we move it from room to room trying to find a place for it. Right now it is in the kitchen, and is being used as a sort of storage/table, thing.

Anyway, as I approached the storage/table/cabinet/sink,I thought I saw something strange...

It looked like something was in the sink! My wife had covered the top of the cabinet with this throw you see in the picture. But, it looks as if something somehow fell into the sink...

As I approached I began to recognize the shape and color of the object in the sink, and I realized it wasn't a "what", but a "who" is in the sink...

Yep, there she is, my Thali all curled up, and napping in the sink. She actually looks pretty cozy in there, so I decided to leave her, and go watch the movie myself.

She looked up at me as if to say, "Stop taking those damn flash pictures of me, and let me SLEEP!", so that's what I did.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia Face Down in the New House

It has been a while since I have posted a picture of Thalia in the pose that made her famous, so this week I thought I would feature our favorite Siamese doing what she does best, defying all logic by breathing through a sheepskin throw...

As I have said before, Thalia seems to love pressing her face into the warm fleece while she naps. We should all have it so rough. An aerial view of Thaly looking something like a loaf of bread. She really doesn't mind where the sheepskin throw is, all that matters to Thalia is that there is sufficient room for her and her face. I tried doing this once myself, and I have to say, it is rather pleasant to feel that soft fleece against the skin on my face. How she breaths, however, is any body's guess.

Jacqueline and Angel are on vacation this week, but look for them next week in a whole new adventure! (OK, not really an adventure of sorts, but rather a few silly pictures.)

Until next week, please head over to Mickey's for the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and don't forget the Friday Ark at The Modulator for even more animals of all persuasions. And lastly, please remember to hit up the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

First Pictures in the New House

I was hoping to have something better for you, but so far these are the only decent pictures of Jackie and Angel in their new home. However, we will be living here a very long time, and so rest assured there will be some great photos of our favorite two little dogs in the coming years.

In any event, in between the unpacking and the arranging of all our stuff around our new place I was able to take a couple of shots of the dogs as they got used to their new surroundings. The biggest change for them, I think, is the carpeting. We had carpet in our condo when Angel was still a baby, but we replaced it ALL with laminate flooring when he was about a year and a half old. When Jackie arrived, the new flooring had already been installed, so it is all she has ever known. Looking at the pictures below, you can see she gets along with the carpet juuuusst fine...

The floors at the condo were cold for such a little dog as Jackie. We used to lay down at least three pillows downstairs during the day. One for Angel, one for Jackie, and one for Salem, who is so fat she prefers laying on the ground so that she doesn't have to hop up onto any furniture. We of course brought the pillows with us, and they are still coveted for their coziness. Here Jackie is taking full advantage of the pillow's comfort. When Papa entered the room he took notice of the lack of available pillows, and decided he wanted Jackie's. He might be big, but he clearly hasn't grasped the meaning of the old adage, "It isn't the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog". Angel tried to bulldoze Jackie off of her pillow, but very shortly after I took this picture she rushed him, snapped at him, and earned her spot back on her pillow. Angel sulked off and took a nap in Jackie's crate. The cats are all quarantined in the garage until I can get them to understand their food, water, and litter box is located there. I am sure they get it, and so they will be allowed to wander the house soon. Thalia escaped, though, and was seen throughout the house on the second day.

And that ends another fascinating chapter in the exciting adventures of Jackie and Angel. (And Thalia). Please also check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Fort Ebby

While Thalia builds her fort out of cloth, Ebby prefers her made of wood.

Wouldn't she make a lovely one side of a pair of book ends?

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia Itches

Thalia, like most other cats, is sensitive to her surroundings. Anything new must be checked out. Take a look at her in the picture below, what do you see?

Notice the look on Thaly's face. I have always felt that a cat's face isn't very expressive, but in this picture her face clearly shows her interest in whatever it may be that she is looking at. Let's see what it is... Why, it's Brutus! Brutus, (my name for him until he gets a real name,) is just two days new in our little household. He is an Oscar, and has had a rough go of it the past couple of days. We will be moving out of our 1200 sq foot condo into an 1800+ sq foot house soon, and so we decided to get a fish tank. Brutus here is our first fish. Evidently, Brutus makes Thalia itchy. I guess it's better than trying to eat poor Brutus.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia

This Sunday will mark Thalia's third anniversary as a member of our family. Unlike Salem and Ebby who were born of the streets, I bought Thalia from a breeder. After I lost Athena, I really didn't want another cat, but I had always wanted another Siamese because we had two when I was a kid, and I always liked their coloring and personality.

I remember bringing Thalia home in her little crate. She was the sweetest little thing, and she hardly took her big beautiful deep blue eyes off of me the whole ride home. (The breeder lived a good twenty minutes away from us.) I felt sad for Thalia's mother; she had already had her other kitten taken away from her earlier that day, and looked a bit frantic. Here's a picture of Thalia's mother

When I first saw Thaly's mother the day I went to give the breeder my down payment, I thought she was a beautiful cat, but a bit small. The male was in the house, but the breeder discouraged me from seeing him because he wasn't very sociable. But, after meeting Jasmine, (that's Thalia's mother's name,) I was sold.

Thalia turned out to be even more beautiful than her mother. Thalia is long, and very fast. She is a true hunter. I can't wait until we have our house, and she has room to run.

When it came to personality, Thalia did not disappoint me. She is crazy, but she is also smart.

Anyway, I am rambling, so on with the pictures...

Thaly's personality was prevalent from her first day in the house. Here she shows her expertise at unsheathing her claws, and taking a defensive stance. Even at this tender age she was a Siamese Ninja. Thalia has her tender side, too. She spent most of her early days lazing in her new daddy's lap. This is when I knew Thalia was special. She shares a love for Disneyland with her daddy. Thalia has become famous with her "face plant" way of napping. It is still a mystery how she is able to breath. Thalia loves her brother Angel, and her sister Jackie. And she loves her daddy too. Thalia possesses unrivaled grace. But, above all, Thalia is just plain beautiful.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Pretty Ebby

Ebby is the featured cat this month here at Athenamama. She currently holds the title of Official Athenamama Cat of Halloween, and today I thought I would post a few pictures of her.

Here's beautiful Ebby lying on her ironing board. It's one of her favorite sleeping spots. Especially right after it has been used. Ebby is the only one of our cats that we allow out front. She has shown herself responsible enough to go outside for a while, frolic amongst the fallen leaves, and then ask to be let back in. Thalia goes outside and instantly goes into panic mode. This is Ebby standing next to her favorite scratching post/climbing tree. She gets her steam up, and runs about three feet up the trunk of this tree before she stops, cries, and then comes back down. Silly Ebby!

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Ebby's Story

One night my wife and I were spending a lovely evening at home watching television, when suddenly she turned to me and told me to turn down the television volume. I asked why, and she told me she thought she heard voices outside. We live in a condominium complex, and so we often hear people talking on the pathways that meander through the complex. I did as she asked, and sure enough there was a group of people just outside our window talking.

Being the nosey people we are, we strained to listen to the conversation, and we soon realized that these people had found a kitten, and were trying to find out where she belonged. My wife and I had recently fostered three kittens for a local cat rescue outfit, (that is how Athena came into my life,) and so I ventured outside to talk to the people about possibly taking the found cat to the adoption people.

The man holding the kitten told me that he had been out that evening for a walk, when he suddenly saw a large white dog chasing the poor thing. He somehow managed to catch the kitten and chase off the dog. After that, he wasn't sure what to do, and began knocking on doors in an effort to find the kittens owners. I told him about the adoption people, but he said that he couldn't foster the kitten because he had too many pets already. So who do you guess took the kitten in?

Ebby in her natural habitat.

At first we kept the kitten in the garage because at that time we already had Angel, Athena, and Salem. We felt that was too many animals for this street kitten to manage so soon. But the kitten felt lonely in the garage, and yowled to be let out. Fearing a call by the neighbors to the animal protection agency, we let the kitten out, but supervised all contact between her and the rest of our crew.

Athena took a liking to the new kitten at once. In fact, Athena treated her like her own kitten even though Athena was still technically a kitten herself. Soon, she and the kitten were fast friends, and they were inseparable.

I contacted the adoption agency and they said they would of course take our kitten as long as we agreed to foster her. I said that would be fine, and since the foster family can choose the name for the cats available for adoption, we decided to name her Ebony. We named her Ebony because she is almost completely black, and also because she came to us in the dead of night.

The very first time I took Ebby to the adoption center she quite literally cried herself hoarse. She cried when I put her in her crate, she cried all during the drive to the adoption location, she cried from the car to inside the building, and when I picked her up, the people at the adoption center told me she had cried ALL DAY!

They also told me the only time she didn't cry was when a lady asked to see her, and they brought her out of her crate. Unfortunately she only stopped crying long enough to attack the lady. She didn't hurt the woman; just a few scratches and one well placed bite, but it was enough to turn the poor woman against the idea of taking Ebby home.

Ebby also didn't cry much on the way home, however, she did try. By then, though, her voice was gone, and I think she knew she was going "home" anyway because she just sort of curled up in her crate and napped on the way home.

While Ebby was at the adoption center, Athena was going nuts wondering where her "baby" went. She would wander around the house calling to Ebby, and became more and more distressed when Ebby wouldn't appear. She became so wound up that she started bugging me by following me around, howling, and trying to get me to follow her. When I brought Ebby home Athena lavished great love on Ebby, rubbing up against her, and cleaning her ears. (The ear cleaning style of showing affection has since been passed down to Jackie.)

And that is the way it went for three weeks, and each week it became more and more evident that we would be doing a great wrong to Athena and Ebby by separating them, thus, the last trip I made to the adoption center was to let them know Ebby would no longer be available for adoption, she had found a home.

Tragically, when Athena was a little over two years old, she died, but that is another story, and has already been told*. Ebby became melancholy, and to this day has not really bonded with either of the other two cats, or with Jackie or Angel. She keeps to herself, and doesn't seek human affection very often. She does spend most of her time in my stepson's room, and he treats her well. She also will come to me every so often, and she will sit with me for a while and let me pet her. When she does, I think of Athena, and the special relationship the three of us had. I wonder what Ebby thinks.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

*My apologies to CheeseBurger Brown. I love his writing, and stole this phrase, "but that is another story, and has already been told" from him.

A Couple of Cats

It's been a while since I posted any pictures of the cats, so here are a couple of Thalia and Salem. Ebby was off being antisocial...

The camera LOVES Thalia. For some odd reason Salem has taken a liking to our bed. Why, I don't know.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Two on a Couch

I am short on pictures this week, but the ones I do have are pretty good. The only problem is that none include my boy, Angel. I am a tad disappointed about that, but there is always next week, right?

In any event, let’s get on with the show...

I found my two babies sleeping together on the couch the other day. It's a bit remarkable because Jackie, who isn't capable of getting up there on her own, is very territorial. Especially when she is on the couch. Sometimes, though, she likes to snuggle with Thalia, so I imagine that was the reason for the truce. Another shot of the two of them together. I was trying different camera settings. For some odd reason, a number of the pictures came out corrupted. I saved them onto my hard drive at home, and brought these with me to work on a CD. I am hoping they got corrupted during the burning process when I transfered them to the CD. I will need to look at the original files when I get home. No, Thalia wasn't chased off the couch by Jackie, I just caught her later snoozing in the grandson's car seat. I thought it would make for a good picture.

Check in next week for a new chapter in The Adventures of Angel and Jacqueline. And don't forget to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Queen Mother Salem

I had several requests to highlight our oldest cat Salem in a post of her very own, so I figured why not now?

Salem is the oldest of all our indoor pets. She was my stepdaughter's kitten when I met my wife eight years ago. She was a skinny little thing back then, and didn't bulk up until after we moved in together some two years later. Maybe it was the stress of the move, or maybe it was the mice in our home, whatever it was, Salem now weighs in at 24 pounds which also makes her the heaviest indoor pet, even surpassing Angel.

Salem is a big, big cat. She looks even bigger because of her full coat. Her undercoat is very thick, and she has a pretty sever case of dandruff. Therefore, Salem is subject to baths. Here she is again on the edge of the bed, little does she know she is about to spend some quality time in the bathtub. Although the pictures of Salem getting a bath would have been most entertaining, I decided not to post them so that Salem might maintain her dignity. (That, and it's impossible to keep a pissed off, 24 pound cat in a tub of water and take pictures of the event all at the same time.) This is what a wet 24 pond cat looks like. Surprisingly she looks no thinner dripping wet than when she is perfectly dry. It is also quite tough to get her soaking wet. Her fur repels water like a duck's back. It's a lot of work, but once it's done Salem is a happy kitty.

And that's all we have this week. Check in next week for a new chapter in The Adventures of Angel and Jacqueline. And don't forget to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and a very special, centennial edition of the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Let's Find the Pets

Today I thought we might do something new, something that might involve most all of our pets rather than just Jackie and Angel. So today we are going to play...

Let's Find the Pets!

First, let's look for Thalia.

Thalia isn't a very good hider. She has so much energy that it is difficult for her to stay put for very long. She also isn't very bright, so she thinks just because she saw an ostrich do it once on some nature show on the Discovery Channel, that it works for cats as well. Of course I am talking about...

...hiding one's head in the sand. Or sheepskin throw, as the case may be. (And Thalia is actually very smart. I just said she wasn't for the sake of this little story. I'm sorry mama.)

People have asked before how she might breath what with her face stuck in the fleece like that. The answer is, I don't know. But she must be able to because she stays that way for hours. Or until some schmuck with a camera comes along.

Next is my boy Angel.

Angel is pretty good at hiding. He learned early that if he doesn't want to take a bath, he better hide well. However, when he takes a nap he puts minimal effort into his hiding. It looks like this time he adopted Thalia's idea of hiding the head, and the body will follow...

This lump of white fur is Papa. He needs to see his groomer, but if he finds THAT out I'll never find him!

Here's the rest of Angel. He does this often; rests his body on that small pillow, and hangs his head off the edge. He looks so lazy in this picture.

Next is the baby of the house, Jackie.

Jacqueline doesn't really need to hide. She is so little that she is pretty much hidden all of the time. But here she is in her crate.

We keep it up in our room because sometimes at night she likes to sleep in it. Here she is taking a nap while daddy reads Stephen King's, The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass.

Like I said, Jacqueline is hiding even when she isn't hiding. Sometimes people leave her on the couch, and if you don't look first you might just sit on her!

Now we will go looking for Salem, the matriarch of the house.

Salem hides from no one.

Salem rules the roost, and she puts down any darned place she pleases.

Finally we look for the best hider of all, Ebby.

Ebby is a loner in a house full of activity, and it wears on her nerves. She longs for solitude, and will search it out at all costs. Once she finds it, she clings to it like lichen to a rock. But, where is my sweet Ebby today? It took me a while, but I found her...

After searching the house in vain for Ebby, I decided to take a break by looking for worthless stuff to buy on eBay.

Suddenly, my screen moved all by itself, so I decided to investigate. No, nothing back here... but wait... There's Ebby!

And that's all we have this week. Check in next week for a new chapter in The Adventures of Angel and Jacqueline. And don't forget to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Thalia and the Pillow Built for Two

Thalia took over the pillow built for two last night, and I thought some people might enjoy seeing her pictures. I admit I have favored the dogs for quite a while now, and I really have no excuse as to why. Maybe it's because they are such attention whores, and they follow me around as if I were their mother duck. Whatever the case, it is just the way it works out, so, there ya have it...

Thalia had already taken control of the pillow by the time I got there, and once she knew there would be no challenge to her claim, she settled in for a wee bath. She takes a moment to ensure her place is secure... She throws Jackie a threatening look... Convinced she will not be disturbed, she takes a quick nap... Only to have her private space infiltrated from the rear.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark, and at the Carnival of the Cats.

Lazy Boy Thalia

I haven't had much of a chance to take great shots of great cats doing great things, but I did happen upon Thalia this morning, and took this picture...

Thalia has been resting in this chair more and more. I don't think it will ever take the place of her beloved sheepskin throw, but it might be a close second.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia Loves Survivor

Thalia loves watching Survivor. She was touched a couple of weeks ago when Survivor Cirie Fields was able to visit with her husband.

This was the only picture I was able to get. Thalia gets grumpy if you interrupt her while she watches Survivor.

By the way, Thalia wants to see Cirie get the million bucks.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Spectator Thalia

That wrestling match between Jackie and Pedie took place this morning before I left for work. Before that, Thalia had found a place on her favorite sheepskin from which to watch the morning's activities.

Here she is watching the rest of the animals from her perch...

And here is what she was watching...

It was sort of the warm-up act before the main event.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia Face Down... Again

We've seen it before, Thalia loves to bury her face in the sheepskin we have in our living room. Below we see her in her favorite position, on her favorite spot to rest.

Where IS Thalia? There she is! Face down in her sheepskin. She almost looks like a sculpture. I envy her. I really do. She has a great life lying around most of the day in a sheepskin. Who wouldn't?

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia and the Pillow

Whenever I find myself watching television, or otherwise relaxing while sitting up in my bed, Thalia and Jacqueline often vie for a position in their daddy's lap. (That would be me.) Often, when I get up for one reason or the other, whoever was on my lap will continue to stake out the spot by curling up in the warm spot where... um... where I was sitting.

Like I would assume many of you do, I use pillows to rest my back on while sitting in bed, and this day was like every other in that respect. But, I am a tall daddy, and so I stack my pillows precariously for relaxing purposes. As a result, they topple when I leave. Sometimes that toppling is delayed, as Thalia has discovered...

It doesn't seem to faze her, in fact I guess it's just another sort of blanket as far as she is concerned.

Different angle, same sleepy cat.

It's been pretty dry here at Athenamama cat-blogging-wise, so I grabbed the camera and looked for a cat doing something interesting. As you can tell, I got bupkis.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Tres Hermanas (Three Sisters)

Two weeks ago I wrote a post entitled Tres Gatas (Three Kittys), a whimsical photo-post about our resident cats. This week is sort of along the same lines, but it's a little more somber. At least it is for me.

I haven't taken any pictures lately of the cats, so this week I thought I would look through some old photographs to see if I could come up with a decent cat-blogging topic. My heart stopped when I happened across this one...

Salem is the one on the seat of the couch. Athena and Ebby are the two at the top. Athena and Ebby were very close, but Salem has always been a loner. It was very rare to find them all together like this.

I really like that picture.

Usually I post several pictures, but this is the only one in existence that relates to this topic.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Tres Gatas (Three Kittys)

Last night the three cats of the house were all congregated in the living room. Albeit in different places, and spread out quite far from one another. Still, it made for a photo-op that would result in today's entry...

Ebby guards the stairs, and the Haunted Mansion. Salem relaxes for a while on Jacqueline and Angel's pillow. She can get away with it because the two dogs have respect for her age. Finally Thalia enjoys her time on the sheepskin throw without being facedown in it.

That was pretty much all they would allow as far as picture taking went that night. They are all Divas, after all.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Thalia's Breakfast?

Thalia was hovering around this morning's breakfast activities, but she usually does anyway so I didn't think much of it. She tried to steal a bit of Angel's food as well, but there again that isn't all that unusual. But when I waved her off Angel's bowl, she leaped onto my shoulders, and then above the kitchen cabinets...

She looks down on me with a bit of contempt, but I still don't really know why she is acting so strangely. Thalia maneuvers around a few rolls of paper towels, but where could she be heading? It was a bit of a perilous trip, but she seems focused on what she is doing. So that's it; kitty food and tequila. The breakfast of champions.

Don't worry, Thalia really hasn't got a drinking problem. The whole scene was contrived because I had nothing else to post about involving Thalia. Sorry.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Breakfast with Angel and Jacqueline

This morning I was all stressed out because I didn't have a topic for today's entry for the Adventures of Angel and Jacqueline, and then it hit me. I will write about our morning routine! (Hey, Jackie and Angel were there, I was there, and the camera was there, it seemed like a good idea at the time.)

A typical workday morning usually starts out with daddy, (me,) getting up just before 5am. When I return from the shower, dressed and ready for my day, I take Angel downstairs first with me. While he waits I get the coffee going, brush my hair, and then go back upstairs to kiss my wife goodbye, and retrieve Jacqueline.

Once we are all downstairs, we head outside so Angel and Jackie can go potty, and daddy can get the morning paper from the vending machine on the corner. When we return home, it's time for breakfast...

The crew waiting for their breakfast. Thalia has her own food, but likes the whole breakfast production. Breakfast is served. Angel's bowl is the light brown one. That's his skin meds there towards the bottom of the picture. Jackie's is the black bowl. The coffee is mine. Thalia tries to sneak a piece of Angel's food. Lucky for her he can't get up on the counter. Come to think of it, she's not supposed to be up there either. Angel's style of eating is much like that of a backhoe, on steroids. The boy inhales is food almost as if he thinks he will never get to eat ever again, and someone is right there ready to steal what he has. Jackie is more lady like, and has her breakfast next to her papa while he reads the paper and drinks his coffee. Otherwise Angel shows up and tries to persuade her the food is his. Silly dogs.

And so that is breakfast with Angel and Jacqueline. Join us next week for more thrilling adventures with Angel and Jacqueline. Until then be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Thalia Sinks to a New Low

I never receive e-mail related to Athenamama save for the usual comment or trackback notifications. But last week when I failed to post an entry about any of the cats, (Thalia in particular,) well, the e-mail floodgates opened, and the vitriol flowed like water.

The truth is I just haven’t taken any decent pictures lately of Thalia, or even of the other cats for that matter. Combine that with the business of the holidays and you have one damn fine excuse for not posting. Unfortunately it wasn’t good enough.

In an effort to rectify this slothfulness, I grabbed the first pictures of Thalia I could find in the archives and tossed this hasty, yet adequate post together to satisfy the blogworld paparazzi. I hope you will now leave me alone…

Thalia looks as if she’s guarding her sink. For a moment I wondered if she were trying to figure out if the sink would be a good fit for her; possibly as a bed. Then it occurred to me she might have other plans for the sink. It is in the bathroom after all, yes?

Ultimately Thalia decided the sink was not to her liking. A relief to all of us I am sure.

However she is still fascinated by the bathtub.

And I promise, I will try to get new and improved pictures by next week.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Walking in the Rain with the Ones I Love

Almost a full year ago I wrote this entry about a walk I had with Angel and Jacqueline that was briefly interrupted by a rain shower. We ended up taking refuge from the rain under the branches of a small tree. (By the way, it's actually one of my favorite posts, and I do hope you read it.)

Well, last Monday it happened again.

We had a violent little storm tear through our town on Monday, and for while it looked like Angel and Jacqueline wouldn't get to go on their walk. The rain fell hard, and the wind blew strong knocking every loose pine needle, pinecone, leaf and branch from the trees. It really made a mess of things outside.

As luck would have it the clouds cleared a bit and let the sun shine through later that afternoon. I decided I might as well take advantage of the break and at least take Jackie and Angel out so they could do what they needed to do. Once outside, the sky looked even better than I had anticipated, and so we ventured off on the old "long walk" path that runs along a stream, (we call it a barranca,) near our house. This is the walk we used to take before the new park opened, but since the park opened we haven’t gone the old way much. I thought it would be interesting to take the old route because I wanted to see how swollen the stream had become.

The old walk runs about a mile or so around a section of the barranca, and the tree I wrote about last year is at approximately the half way mark. As we approached the tree this time I thought about the events of last year because it was basically the same scenario; it had been raining earlier, the rain had stopped and looked like it would remained stopped, then all of a sudden, it got dark.

This time as we drew closer to the tree, however, it got really dark, and just as we passed it, all hell broke loose. The wind kicked up and howled through the trees, and a light sprinkling turned into a torrent in less than fifteen seconds. I quickly scooped up Jacqueline, and tugged on Angel's leash coaxing him to follow me a little faster. We made a dash for a grouping of Eucalyptus trees that offered minimal shelter from the rain, but it was at least something.

I put Jackie down and tried to clean off my glasses so that I could assess our situation. It didn't take long for me to see it was pretty bleak. It was very dark, and the rain was coming down hard, propelled by 30 mile an hour winds.

We eventually made it to the safety of our warm, dry home, but not before we ran from one inadequate shelter to the next in our quest to get home. While it was a grand adventure for us, Angel and I ended up fairly well watered down. I think that bothered me more than it did Angel, though. Jacqueline made the trip with in her papa’s arms, and therefore remained relatively dry and warm.

Once home, Angel and Jacqueline filled their bellies with premium dog food before they took a well-deserved nap. I changed into some dry clothes, and played HALO by candlelight.

Unfortunately I failed to bring along the camera and document our harrowing day in the rain, but I do have some photos taken along the path where it occurred. I present those now for your ocular entertainment…

The tree just right of center in this picture is the one we stood under the first time. This is just after that tree, and near the spot where we took cover from the nasty storm we encountered this last Monday. Angel scoping out the surroundings watching for those pesky squirrels we run into every now and again. Have I ever mentioned that Jacqueline LOVES a good dandelion? Imagine this shot with a lot of water on the ground, and with drops hitting puddles of that water. Then imagine Jacqueline warm and semi-dry in my arms. The resulting image should give you some idea the urgency with which Angel was finding his way home. (Albeit more motivated by his tummy than anything else.)

Tune in next week for the continuing adventures of Angel and Jacqueline, and be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Angel's Story

I first wrote this back in the beginning of 2004, but since today is the forth anniversary of Angel's adoption, I thought I would post it again today...

When my wife and I married she brought with her three kids, one cat and a dog. The dog, Mariah, belongs to her oldest boy, Rodrigo. The cat, Salem, belongs to her daughter, Jazmine. What follows is the story of how we brought my wife's dog, Angel into our lives.

There is a small tourist stop along the 101 highway in California near Carpinteria known as Santa Clause Lane. Until 2001, the most recognizable icon of that nifty little beach town was a large statue of Santa himself. That year Santa was removed from the top of the building of which he had been perched after more than fifty years. Having lived in the area since 1965 or so, I told my wife that before Santa came down from the roof-top for the last time, I would like to go down and take a few pictures of him. It was a drizzly day just four days after Christmas, and my wife was not in the happiest of moods, but she agreed to go nonetheless.

During the latter part of that year my wife had been toying with the idea of acquiring a dog for herself, and on the way to see Santa she brought up the subject of adopting a small lap dog. Usually this particular topic came up whenever she was feeling a little down, and although I really didn't want to share my home with a yappy, jealous little dog, I always tried to be positive about the idea without actually committing to it. This day, however, my wife was REALLY down, and so I suggested that after I took the pictures we might visit a couple of pet stores in the area and see if they had the breed she was looking for. Just so she could see first hand what she would be getting herself into, or so was my plan anyway.

Her first choice had been a toy variety of the poodle breed called a "teacup" poodle. Obviously so named because of their diminutive size. After much consideration and research, my wife decided that a Maltese would be a better choice.

She wanted a small dog she could take with her whenever she wanted, but she also wanted one that was well behaved, full of love, and of course very cute. She found during her research that Maltese generally meet these criteria. I called a number of pet stores in Carpinteria and Santa Barbara, but none had any Maltese pups available. I told my wife that we could go and look at the puppies anyway, but she declined. She wanted to see a Maltese, and that was all she was interested in. So we started to drive home.

As we headed north on the 101 Freeway I remembered that there was a pet store in a mall in Thousand Oaks, and so I suggested that we go look at the puppies there. I told her rather than calling ahead perhaps we should just drive up to T.O., take a quick look in the pet store, and maybe get a little something to eat since it was getting late. She acquiesced.

Now like I said before, my position on my wife's wish to get a little dog was to appear positive. Even during the short amount of time I had been married back then I had already learned to let her think she was getting her way. It makes for a much easier life. My master plan also counted on my wife's sense of practicality, which I thought would eventually lead her to the conclusion that had so firmly imbedded itself in my mind, which was that a dog would just be impractical for us at this point in our married life. I also thought that even if we DID find a Maltese at a pet store, which I believed to be highly unlikely, and even if my wife DID fall in love with one, I would be able to talk some sense into her and avoid the big purchase.

How wrong I can be.

By the time we got to the mall, my wife's mood had brightened considerably. I am not sure how or why, and you could've asked her at the time and I am sure she wouldn't have been able to tell you why either, but she really was much happier than when we were in Carpinteria. Upon our arrival to the Oaks Mall we made a beeline to the pet store on the second floor. My wife headed straight to the back of the store where they kept the puppies, and there, in a small glass booth in which to seclude you and a small, furry mammal from the rest of the store, (and perfectly engineered for the sole purpose of causing you to bond, fall in love with, and purchase said furry mammal,) was a lady holding the cutest Maltese pup you have ever seen. My wife pressed herself up against that glass booth like a lizard in a jar, and then turned to me and said, "There she is!" As those words left my wife's lips, I imagined cartoon bags with dollar signs and wings flying out of the window of my mind.

My wife's enthusiasm was not lost on the woman in the booth, nor on the surrounding crowd of shoppers and salespeople. When she emerged from the booth the lady asked my wife if she would like to hold "him". Of course my wife was delighted, and held the little fluffy powder puff close to her heart. She then held him up, looked at him, and with her head against his said in her almost baby talk, "You were supposed to be a girl, but you're a boy!"

My wife, realizing that the woman was considering buying the pup turned to her and said, "Oh, I'm sorry. Are you going to buy him?" The lady, who obviously could tell love at first sight when she saw it said, "Well, he is going to be bigger than I would like. I have two females at home, and wanted a male to breed with them, but they are small, and he will be a little too big. Besides, you deserve him." With that, the lady turned to the sales person who still had the contract in his hand and said, "I don't think I want to buy him after all."

To the sales person's credit, he said with a smile that it was no problem, and left to re-file the empty contract. After he left, the lady whispered to us that they offered her the dog for $1000.00, but that we could probably get them down to $800.00 or $900.00.

$1000.00? For a dog? I was mortified!

I was also sold.

I just couldn't help it. Here was this cuddly little dog living in what is basically a wooden box with one plexi-glass wall, and shredded, urine soaked newspaper on the floor. More than that, my wife kept looking at me with her big brown eyes… ah to the hell with it, "How much is he?" I asked when the sales person returned. "Well," he started, "how about we go in the booth and you guys can get some time alone with him."

It was over before it started, and I knew it. I think the sales guy did too. He was just a kid, but he knew a sucker when he saw one. He held out on telling me the price. He let my wife sit with that dog in the booth for a long time, making sure she bonded with him more and more. He went on and on about what a great breed the Maltese is; how friendly, fun loving, easy to care for, and quiet they are. He said the store's owner only buys from reputable breeders, and that all the puppies were guaranteed for three weeks, and how if he were to ever die, we could get a twenty percent discount on a new dog. My wife asked questions; how big would he get, is he sick, is he house trained, how do you house train him, etc.

All this was superfluous. I knew the real questions, and I wanted answers. So, again, I asked, "How much is he?" "$1100.00" came the reply.

This kid was smarter than I thought. He sat there all friendly and helpful, lulling me into a trusting relationship with him, selling me and my wife on the idea of a wonderful life with this little dog, and then socks it to me with an inflated price $100.00 more than it had been just fifteen minutes ago.

"$800.00." I said. "The owner won't let him go for less than $1000.00." the stone faced kid replied. "Alright, $900.00" I said, knowing the kid could never out deal me and my years of negotiating skills. "Looking at my wife and the dog, who were both looking at me by this point, the kid said, "Mmmm… $1000.00 is the lowest we can go."

Bastard.

More of those winged bags of money flew out of my mind's window as I agreed to the little privateer's conditions. I paid him for the dog and a small kennel to transport him in. We were given a small amount of some supplement to give him because he had "kennel cough", and there was a slight danger he might not want to eat.

I have never seen my wife happier, or more at peace than just after we bought him. She carried him through the mall, and held him on her lap all the way home. I was convinced that regardless of the money, getting that little dog was the right thing. I am glad I did, and still do think it was the right thing to do. I can't imagine life without him now. My wife named him Angel, and he is aptly named.

As of today Angel has been with us for four years. It's apparent that he may not be a true, full-blood Maltese; he weighs in at around twenty pounds, has wavy hair, and is hardly the "quiet breed" the sales-kid inferred, but he's our little boy and we love him to death. Our little man, my little papa, Angel.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Sister to the End Part II: Athena and Ebby

My post about Athena reminded me I hadn't had an entry featuring her for a while. I then remembered I hadn't had one featuring Ebby, either, so why not do one with both?

Athena and Ebby were very close. Ebby came to our house one night as a stray. She was only a few months old, and had evidently spent most of that time in the streets. Even though Ebby was semi-feral, Athena bonded with her right away, and more or less made her her baby. I put Ebby up for adoption for a while, but she would literally cry all the way to the adoption site, all day at the site, and would still cry with what was left of her spent voice during the ride home. Athena would also go bananas while Ebby was away. It became clear rather quickly they were meant to be together.

There isn't a cat alive that could get this close to Ebby anymore. I had forgotten that Athena held the ear washing position before Jacqueline came along. Too bad they never met, it would've been a riot to see each trying to clean the other's ears. Athena was forever starting a play fight with anyone who would tolerate it. Ebby bares her teeth and cries, but she'll play to be sure. One of the very last pictures taken of the two sisters together.

I have mentioned this in other posts, but it bears repeating. Ebby has never been the same since Athena died. She has never truly bonded with Salem or Thalia. Thalia is young and has a lot of energy that forces it's way out of her in the form of play, but Ebby rarely will play with her. She usually bats Thalia away, growls, and runs off.

Ebby does still have some affection for her people, though. She sleeps with my stepson, and comes to be with me when she wants to. I feel sorry for her, and we share the same sense of loss, at least I think we do. I really do think Ebby still misses Athena. I suppose that could just be the anthropromorphisist in me, but from the way I have seen her act before Athena died, and since she died, it sure looks like mourning to me.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Another Walk in the Park

I think I may have mentioned that Angel and Jacqueline's favorite part of the day is their afternoon walk with their daddy. (That would be me.) So it may come as no big surprise that that will once again be this week's topic in the further adventures of Jacqueline and Angel.

It was early evening when I finally got home to take our two favorite doggies on their walk. They were anxious to go when I walked through the door, and Angel even admonished me by barking and chasing at my heels. So I outfitted Angel and Jacqueline in their appropriate walking accoutrements, and we were off.

Like I said, it was early evening, so it was a bit dark when we started our walk. Angel, the little boy that he is, likes to look amongst the dirt-clods for hidden treasures. He also likes to exercise his freedom of speech, and once again express himself. Jacqueline, on the other hand, is a girly sort, and loves to stop and eat the flowers. Notice her new sweater. Daddy lost her old sweater the other evening, and so he had to buy her a new one. I stopped off at Pet Smart after work yesterday and this was the best sweater I could find. The other's were the most hideous conglomeration of colors I have seen since Andy Warhol was still alive. Towards the end of our walk we stopped at the grass so that we could romp and play a bit before we went home. Jacqueline was careful not to get any grass stains on her new sweater, and Angel was, well, Angel got a little rough with her so I had to intervene and cut the grass-time short. We'll make up for it tonight I am sure.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Sisters to the End

Thalia has been a little under the weather this week; she and Ebby have been sharing a cold. Because she feels she isn't looking her best, she refused any attempts to photograph her this week, even if it meant disappointing her fans. Therefore, I have dug up a few old pictures of Thalia and her favorite sister of a different species, Jacqueline...

Thalia is very patient with Jacqueline, and will allow her to snuggle up even in a very small area. They get on so well that they even share their daddy. Jacqueline cannot resist cleaning ears. Thalia actually LOVES it when Jackie cleans hers. But Thalia does enjoy her time alone, and catches a small nap with daddy while Jacqueline busies herself somewhere else. I don't know what was up with her tail, but I liked the shot so I threw it in for the heck of it.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday

New Walk Part Deux

Angel and Jacqueline like the new walk route so much, they wanted me to post a new set of pictures. These were taken two days ago. It was a wee bit chilly, and Jacqueline used it as an excuse to wear her pretty little sweater. Angel, on the other hand, toughed it out, and decided he didn't need his sweater. I guess he was right, because he didn't complain once....

As we begin our walk, we run across a patch of freshly laid turf. Grass of this quality is to dogs what swimming pools are to children, so we had to stop and lay around in it for a while. Angel likes to take the lead. But Jacqueline likes to stick close to her daddy. The city recently installed these doggie stations around the one and a quarter mile path. They really are quite convenient. But Angel has a bit of a rebellious streak in him, and expresses his feelings about the doggie stations. Even the moon was getting cold, and wrapped itself in some clouds to stay warm, so we stepped it up a bit so we could get home, get fed, and watch a little TV before mommy got home.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Face Down... Again

Not long ago I wrote about how much Thalia loves to plant her face in our sheepskin throw. Well, she was doing it again the other day, so I snapped a few for your enjoyment...

There she is, face down in the throw. To be honest, I envy her. After a few shots she turned her head away from me. I guess to avoid the flash. I didn't have the heart to disturb her any more, so I left her alone, all comfy in her favorite throw

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

The New Walk

The city has built a new park just one street over from where we live. It will one day grow up to be a sports park complete with baseball and (wretch) soccer fields. For now though, it's pretty much empty except for a pool and water park in the center, and a 1-¼ mile path around the perimeter.

Starting a few weeks ago, this has been the new walk for Angel, Jacqueline, and myself. I like it much better than the old path because you have an uninhibited view of where we live, and because for some odd reason I just find it a more relaxing place to be. I am so enamored with it in fact, that I am going to share a couple of pictures of it you today, mixed in with photo's of everyone's favorite small dog duo, of course. Unfortunately it was quite difficult trying to manage a camera and two rambunctious little dogs, so I didn't get any shots of the nice green grass they just installed. I will try to get some better pictures at a later date.

This is a portion of the walkway. It was a rather dreary day, and drizzled for most of the walk. Fortunately, I LOVE this kind of weather! This view is looking across the park towards our house. The structure to the right is the pool area. I guess they are preparing the ground for grass. That green stuff you see appeared to be wood chips that evidently are treated with something that gave them that greenish color. This is the tunnel that runs under an adjacent road. Jacqueline and Angel were curious the first time we came across it, but they were hesitant to enter. Like I said, it was difficult handling the dogs and the camera, so this is the best shot I took of Jacqueline. Note what a good doggy daddy I am; Jacqueline is wearing her favorite winter sweater.

Papa's picture came out a bit better. Although he tolerates his blue sweater, he fancy's himself as a "junkyard dog", so any chance to walk in the dirt amongst junk is quite welcomed indeed.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Special Baby

Meet Un-named Baby, a six-week-old female Chihuahua rescued by my mother-in-law. Evidently my mother-in-law's neighbors are animal haters, and were poised to toss this poor critter into the trash. As luck would have it, the adults that live next door to my mother-in-law have not yet completed the brainwashing of their offspring into the next generation of cold-hearted murderers. The kids brought the puppy to my mother-in-law, who promptly gave the baby a new home.

"Are you possessed with the kind of heart that would have you throw me away?" Jacqueline wasn't quite sure what to make of this puppy, but she knew she liked her.

Words can't describe how I feel about people that would toss an innocent, defenseless life into the trash. But there are laws that describe the punishment afforded them for doing so. (Not to mention the laws I would violate if I witnessed such a cruel act.)

But at least there are still people like my mother-in-law to stop them.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Three's Not A Crowd

I haven't been feeling well this week, and that's why I haven't posted much. However, I feel some responsibility when it comes to Friday Pet Blogging, and so I whipped up a quick entry for that occasion.

I may take a bit of flack from both camps, but I am combining my cat and dog entries this week. (Sue me.) The reason is because I had a grand photo op that included the three main characters around here, Angel, Jacqueline, and her highness Thalia, and I was so proud of the three of them I figured I'd toss it up here and see how it floats. Or whatever.

So, here they are, the three animals most likely to usher in the apocalypse...

Jacqueline is the official ear cleaner. She started with Angel. And finished with Thalia. After the ear cleansing, all three settled in for the evening nap.

By the way, that's me acting as the pet pillow. I guess I put out a lot of body heat.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Jacqueline and the Sheepskin Throw

I usually write about Jacqueline and Angel, which is logical because they are very close. They live in the house whereas Mariah lives in the backyard. Being house dogs, Angel and Jacqueline spend all their time together. Therefore any adventure one may have invariably involves the other, so I am almost obliged to write about both.

But today I feel rebellious, and I am going to more or less showcase each. (except Angel will have to share a little noteriaty with his sister Mariah.) We'll start of with Jacqueline, who as it turns out also has an attraction to the sheepskin throw. The following photographs were taken a while back. In fact, they were taken back when Jacqueline was still a puppy. Consider it an extra treat. (Afterall, everyone loves puppies!)

You can see she is already dozing off. Jackie isn't able, or doesn't know how, to execute the face plant manuver made famous by her lovely sister Thalia, so she simply rests her head. Jacqueline gets instruction from Thalia on face plant tecnique, but when you are as little as Jacqueline was, you kinda just get lost in the throw like a cricket in tall grass. Inevitably, something always ruins your quiet time.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Thalia and the Sheepskin Throw

Few things in life give Thalia as much comfort as the sheepskin throw that adorns the futon in our living room.

This is Thalia's favorite position for sheepskin lounging. I am planning a post built entirely around various pictures of her doing just this. The post will most likely be entitled, Thalia, the Face Plant Years. Complete relaxation. It must suck to be a cat. (Or in this case, a princess.) The sheepskin is so comfortable that Thalia fell asleep before she even got all the way on. The sheepskin is so comfortable that Thalia fell asleep before she even got all the way on.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Clean Angel

Angel is a Maltese that got caught in some evil nuclear accident. He outweighs any normal specimen of his breed by a good twelve pounds. However he does exihbit the playfullness of the breed, and is seemingly always happy. He is most happy when he is on his walk. Get him outdoors with a big mud puddle to splash around in, or some cool grass to roll on, and he is in doggie heaven. He acts just like a little boy should, and gets equally dirty. If you look back on some of the earlier posts that involve Angel here at Athenamama, you might notice that his coat is, well, a bit on the shabby side.

Part of the reason for this is because Angel is allergic to fleas, and one bite sends him into a biting and scratching tizzy that has the awful effect of leaving him with no fur, and raw skin. (Luckly a little antihystamine seems to clear up his skin entirely.) Another reason Angel looks like a tramp is because he IS a little boy, and he LOVE getting dirty. In fact, we should've named him Pig Pen, because just like the Peanut's character, two seconds after his bath Angel attracts dirt like Angelina Jolie attracts other people's husbands.

So, I though I would dig up some pictures of Angel when he was a nicely groomed, adorable little dog. The next few shots are of Angel romping around the backyard with our lessor known pooch, Mariah. Notice how WHITE Angel's coat is, and how well grommed it looks. He's absolutely dashing.

Nary a smudge on him with the exception of some tear staining around his muzzle. Angel loves Mariah, and is whispering sweet nothings into her ear. This shot shows how Angel's coat SHOULD look. It's clean, and of uniform length. Now that we have a defense against the fleas, I will get him groomed soon, and hopefully he will look like this again. Contrary to the look on her face, Mariah is very gentle with Angel. In fact, she is gentle with Jacqueline and the cats as well.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Action Shots

Jacqueline and Angel often engage in a few bouts of play-fighting whenever they are allowed up on our bed. We have hardwood floors throughout the house, and of course that sort of surface isn't very conducive to horseplay.

Below are a few pictures I took during one of these doggie wrestling matches. I hope you find them entertaining.

Jacqueline gives Angel "The Eye". This of course initiates the match. Soon they are engaged in mock mortal combat. Here they lock jaws in a desperate struggle. This picture looks almost as if it were a classic pose from an Audubon Print.

Be sure to check out the Carnival of the Dogs at Mickey's Musings, and the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more interesting animals.

Bad Cat Pictures

I decided to try something different this week, and post of the worst of this week's pictures of Thalia. Below are three pictures I took of her as she rested on my lap. I just held the camera at arms length, pointed it in her general direction, and pressed the shutter.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Two Years and Counting

I forgot to mention that today marks Thalia's second anniversary as my baby. It was two years ago today that I drove out to the breeder's house and picked Thalia up at the tender age of three months. She was such a tiny thing back then, but was full of energy and mischief.

Now she is a beautiful young lady.

Happy anniversary, Thalia!

I Vant To Be Alone

Salem graciously posed for the camera earlier this week, and I was able to capture some great shots that really show off her poise and personality. But much like her favorite movie star, Greta Garbo, Salem most often wishes to be alone.

Here was the final shot of the session. She has had enough, and is letting the cameraman know so.

"Enough pictures please, darling."

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.

Adventures While Walking

Angel and Jacqueline go for a walk...

Angel and Jacqueline check who else has been on a walk...

Angel looks for hidden treasures during his walk...

And Jacqueline dines on dandelions...

Check out the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more fine examples of the pet world.

Doggie Blogging

This is a cute picture of Jacqueline peeeking out of the corner of here eyes. She looks as if she is thinking, "What is with you and that camera?"

On the other side of the room, Angel forgets how to use a pillow.

Check out the Friday Ark at The Modulator for more fine examples of the pet world.

Thalia's Beautiful Eyes

Thalia has beautiful blue eyes the likes of which are beyond the capabilities of my camera.

Last night she was resting on the blue comforter, and it really brought out those eyes. Even though the camera doesn't do them justice, I think you might be able to get an idea of what those eyes are like in the next three pictures.

More cats can be found at the Friday Ark at The Modulator, and the Carnival of the Cats this Sunday.