Warning! Guard Cats on Duty!

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Music – “Cat Town Stomp” from 10 to 15 by Scott Fugate & The Swing Cats. Released: 2015

Cats are not only our beloved pets and family members, but they also serve a very useful function as household protectors.  Tux and Shadow are always on the alert to possible dangerous conditions or intruders:

 


“I’m checking the underside of the table for spider webs”

“Still checking…”

“OK…I got bored looking for spider webs. Give me a break!”

 


“This is the roll test to see how clean the carpet is…”

“Still testing the carpet…”

“After testing, I have determined that this carpet definitely needs cleaning”

“Can I have a break now?”

“No spiders here!”

“Cabinets are secure”

Shadow at his sentinel post.

“All clear here, Tux”

“It might look like I’m guarding shoes, but I’m really on the look out for intruders”

“You never know what might be lurking behind that curtain”

“Just making sure the picture quality is OK”

“Guarding the goose”

“I’m not on guard duty today….Tux is!”

“I have determined that there are no threatening toys in our supply”

“A box from an unauthorized source needs to be examined prior to opening”

“This is my evil eye look. Scares ’em every time!”

“Sound the alarm, Tux. An intruder!”

“I can look mean when I want to!”

“Alert…..this grandmother clock might be unstable!”

“This is one of the daily tests I do to determine the integrity of the house walls”

“There might be a problem with this wall. I’ll brace it up until help arrives”

“Still checking wall integrity…”

“Whew…long day of protecting….time for a cat nap!”

The Lure of the Box

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Music – “Hiding in a Box” from Mood Music for Cats (And Cat Lovers) 2 by Cheryl Christine. Released: 2016

All photos by Sue Jimenez

Exactly what is it with cats and boxes? The smaller the box, the bigger the intrigue. Enjoy Tux and Shadow as they explore…

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In the Eyes of a Cat

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Music – “Cat’s Eye” from Rococochet by Leah Kardos. Released: 2017

(All photos by Sue Jimenez)

The stars: Amber, Casper, Kisa, Shadow and Tux

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The Life of Riley Tux and Shadow

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Music – “Cool Cat Mewsic” from Animal Songs for Children by Tim Stockman. Released: 2010

(all photos by Sue Jimenez)

There is “laid back”, and then there is “LAID BACK!” Nowhere is this more evident than in the life that Tux and Shadow live in our domicile.  Tux, especially, is truly a relaxed and cool dude. Shadow is as well, but tends to be a bit more reserved. A picture paints a thousand words…


“I’m not lazy….I’m just laid back”

 

 

 

 

 

 


“I’m snoozing…what dy’a want?”

 

 

 

 

 


“No, I am not having a spasm in my foot….this is my relaxed pose”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


“These darn curtains are cramping my cool dude style”

“Nothing like a snooze on Dad’s clean shirts…”

 


“I dreamed that I was practicing my diving for the next Summer Olympics…”

“What? I have nothing to hide!”

“Oh, I am SO cool!”

 


“Aaahhhhh…this IS the life, not of Riley, but of Tux!”

 


“To sleep, perchance, to dream….”

 


“Hey, Tux…you don’t have the market cornered on relaxation, you know?”

 


“I dreamed that I fell out of bed…”

 


“From looking at all of these photos, one would think I don’t do anything but lay around all day…”

 


“You!   Back with the camera again!?  Is there no privacy?”

 


“Hey, Shadow….you can be a pretty cool cat as well, when you want to!”

“Do you think she can ever untangle us?”

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words…

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Music – “Cool Cat Mewsic” from Animal Songs for Children by Tim Stockman. Released: 2010

All photos by Sue Jimenez

 


“This is my evil eye look…works every time”

“Hold on, Shadow….I found the treat cabinet…”

“You mean, this is not the normal way a cat sits?”

Shadow meets Little Nipper…

“He doesn’t say much, does he?”

“Shadow….come quick….I’ve cornered the thing!”

“Do we have 1982, Volume 3…The Big Cats of Africa?”

“Just cat-ching (get it?) up on our reading”

“I’m looking for ‘Cooking for Cats’ by Elisabeth Meyer zu Stieghorst-Kastrup”

“Nothing like a cool refrigerator on a hot day…”

“These houses are cute, but just a tad too small…”

“This IS my happy look!”

Shadow and Tux have an affinity for keyboard instruments…

So far, they haven’t figured out how to lift the keyboard lid…

“Ah….this is the life, Shadow…”

“Mom said you’ll suffocate if you keep sticking your head in a paper bag…”

“This is really not a very comfortable position….hmmm”

“Yes, I would agree that I’m pretty laid back”

“The royalties should be rolling in any day now…”

“If they’d just take this stupid hat off so I can see, I could grab Shadow’s tail…”

“Bah, humbug!”

“Nothing like a stuffed sock for a quick nap”

“You called?”

“I cannot see them, ergo, they cannot see me”

“Laptop, lap…who cares? It’s warm!”

“This is my “now what have I done” look”

“I’m the smartest one and don’t you forget it”

“In case of flooding, I need to be prepared”

“A cat’s castle is his home…”

“Oooh….I tot I taw a puttytat!”

“You may be wondering how I ended up here…”

“Shadow, move” ‘ I can’t…somebody tied our tails together!’

THE END

What is a Cat?

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Music – “I Love You Kitty Cat” from For the Kids!, Vol. 2 by David Thomas. Released: 2016.

For many years, authors have expounded on those mysterious creatures, cats. Here are a few pithy remarks, followed by a slide show of our cats, past and present. Enjoy! (fortunately, unlike the gentleman singing the song, I am not allergic to cats!)

‘When a man loves cats, I am his friend and comrade, without further introduction.’ – Mark Twain

When I play with my cat, who knows if I am not more of a pastime to her than she is to me?’ – Montaigne

‘Cats will amusingly tolerate humans only until someone comes up with a tin opener that can be operated with a paw.’ – Terry Pratchett

A cat has absolute emotional honesty: human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not.’ – Ernest Hemingway

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Homage to Cats

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Music – “Memory” from Andrew Lloyd Webber 60 by Elaine Paige. Released: 2008.

As of 2016, the musical “Cats” is the fourth-longest-running show in Broadway history, and was the longest running Broadway show in history from 1997 until 2006 when it was surpassed by The Phantom of the Opera. It has been performed around the world many times and has been translated into more than 20 languages. Cats is a sung-through musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot, and produced by Cameron Mackintosh. (information courtesy of Wikipedia)

Enjoy the photos below, while listening to the fabulous theme song from “Cats”. Featured are our current cats, “Tux” and “Shadow”, however, there are a few pictures of cats we have loved and lost: “Amber”, “Casper”, and “Kisa”. Unfortunately, they lived in the days before digital cameras, so we don’t have many photos of them.

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Just Being Cats

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Music – “What’s New Pussycat? (Main Title)” from What’s New Pussycat? by Tom Jones. Released: 2008


“So, I’m sitting in your mother’s favourite salad bowl. So what?”

 

 

 


“That bird is always taunting me!”

“OK, OK. I’ll pose just this once!”

“So, that camera in my face again!?”

 


“I know I have cat litter dust on my face, so lose the camera, already!”

 

 


“This is my emulation of Bastet, the Egyptian cat goddess.  Pretty good, eh?”

“Posing is SO BORING!”

“I can’t help it if my nose in the camera shot isn’t as good as the one of Tux!”

“I just love jumping on Shadow’s head as he walks by!”

“My nose shot is better than yours’ is!”

“Well, at least it’s not that stupid Roomba vacuum!”

 

 

 

 

 


“Anyone who said I’m not laid back was wrong!”

 

For the Love of Cats – The Many Moods of Tux

Tux and his brother, Shadow, reside in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  They are brothers from the same litter, born in April, 2008 (they’re celebrating the big 10 this year!) and adopted their bipedal parents in February, 2009 from High Desert Cat Rescue.  Full of shenanigans and the warm fuzzies, this site is to amuse and delight cat-lovers.  I expect lots of “oooh”s and “aw”s from the readers.

Tux enjoys reading, mostly cookbooks, and loves watching downhill skiing and the luge in the Winter Olympics.

More to follow….in the meantime, enjoy this montage of photos of Tux I’ve taken over the years.  A very dapper fellow, indeed.

 

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(all photos by Sue Jimenez – no reproducing without permission from the author)