got your ears on?

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

31 January 2014 - Pause and listen.  I am attempting to implant my thoughts into your head...is it working?  More conventional means of communication have been tried and discarded.  My peeps mangle meows, and would be shocked to know what they are actually saying as they beam like idiots.  My vocal cords and voice box just won't bark out peep noises...so unless my mental experiment works, we are at something of an impasse.  Occasionally I have reason to hope that my message has been received, but it could all be coincidental.  For this exchange to work I have to get their undivided attention, and peep brains are messy, cluttered, scattered, distracted...I could go on, but I have work to do.

 

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Listening is more than
registering sound.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - transfurrence, the largely unsuccessful attempt at interspecies communication

share and share alike

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

30 January 2014 - No one should be forced to beg.  It is a humiliating experience for the have-not individual, and for the possessor either an embarrassing moment or, worse, an affirmation of the pecking order.  One's place in the pecking order has its ups and downs:  you can lord your dominance over the lowly, but are subject to the whims of the superiors...unless of course you are the bottom rung or top-dollar.  And we all want to be at the top of the pecking order, don't we?  Actually all I want is whatever the taller peep is having.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Saying "please" is good manners

but not always sufficient.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - impurrtune, to humbly request, repeatedly and without diminution, as only a cat can

chilling news

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

29 January 2014 - What happened to yesterday?  Did someone not pay the electric bill?  A thirty-degree drop doesn't break any meteorological records;  nonetheless it is rough on the body and the psyche.  But what can one do except talk about the weather...and endure the unpleasant stretches.  Misery has always loved to commiserate, so the shorter peep and I are best buds this morning.  Which is my recommendation to you:  find someone who is willing (or unwitting) to block the wind and to generate a bit of thermal heat.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

In hard economic times

lumps of coal in one's stocking

are appreciated.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - suffuring, a heart-tugging instance of a cat undergoing distress and hardship

book'em, Danno

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

28 January 2014 - Although not as obvious a pairing as cheese and macaroni, cats and libraries go well together.  Book stores, especially the intimate and independent variety, often are the repository for several sage members of my species.  One can spot them reposing on dusty tomes, snoozing next to coffee-table editions.  Our in-born curiosity makes us unapologetic philomaths, and where better to seek answers than among eclectic collections of books.  I am not a troglodyte, so admit the electronic forms of knowledge as well.  But for sheer tactile comfort one can't best the heft and texture of a hard binding.  "Curl up with a good book"...what a great idea.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

 Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

A book is a gift that

can be opened many times.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - acatemic, the furry variety of one who seeks answers

king of the jungle

Me-ow-my-oh!

 

 

Me-usings and Me-emories

26 January 2014 - Surely you have seen those lion statues that flank driveways or front entries.  They seem a bit ostentatious to me, meant for a grander role and a larger stage than the one given.  And always in pairs!  Peeps are so uncomfortable with asymmetry.  But with me you get the real deal.  Of course one can't reasonably expect me to sit there forever, to be faded by sunlight and speckled with beep poop.  But as a piece of performance art I am pleased to contribute.  Life after all is ephemeral.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Don't get comfortable

wearing a crown.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - supurriority, a cat's innate authority

a long and drawn-out story

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

25 January 2014 - Yesterday's picture may have left you with a warm and fuzzy feeling,  which compels me to set the record straight:  there are five shredding claws hidden among the fur.  The resting state is for them to be retracted.  We must consciously engage the muscles in that region to unsheath them.  The use of that verb, rather than ho-hum "extend", should suggest parallels between it and drawing a sword from its scabbard.  Any one who has had, let us say, contact with our claws will second the aptness.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Slice and dice, and

ask questions later.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - cattack, to physically assault with talons

twinkle toes

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

24 January 2014 - Just like the top side, the bottoms of my paws are two-toned, a delicate pink and black.  Those spongy areas are my digital pads, and there are those peeps that believe that my allotment of luck,  intelligence, love, and appetite can be quantified here.  I am not convinced that they are anything but my sole, but do find the paw a handy means of bringing water to the mouth.  There is a pad further up my leg which corresponds to my "heel" although my species are actually digitigrade walkers. These pads are also one of those rare bare spots where my internal temperature can be gauged.  When over-heated or feverish or anxious, I too can have sweaty palms.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

A measure of reaching adulthood

is the ability to stand

on one's own feet.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - prestidigication, the magical feline ability to walk without making a sound

who's the fairest of them all?

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

23 January 2014 - The vanity counter is one of my favorite spots:  not only does it feature running water but also offers numerous viewing angles.  My first encounter with a mirror, almost a decade ago, confused me:  what was I seeing?  But after a few inquisitive swipes at the adversary, I realized it was friendly (and good-looking).  Not having eyes in the back of my head, I now use it to confirm effective grooming and to affirm that I am ageless.  I chalk up this enviable trait to clean (even behind the ears) living.

 

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

"Vain" and "vanity" have a

common Latin ancestor:

"vanus" meaning "empty".

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - catceit, a (domestic) lion's pride, the state of being comfortable in one's pelt

a snowball's chance

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

22 January 2014 - We have been experiencing very chilly weather of late, so I can't imagine (and am not interested in finding out) how folks to our north are faring.  The talking weather-heads like to remind pet owners that they should think of the welfare of their furry family members and provide them a warm shelter.  So I have been a bit concerned about our goldfish.  At least the pond hasn't grown a layer of ice, but the water temperature would make any Walrus Club swimmer bellow in delight.  I realize that fish are cold-blooded creatures, but at what point do they turn into fish sticks?

 

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Dante's Hell is where 

the sun is silent, where 

Satan is waist-deep in ice.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - unfeline, lacking affection and warmth, unfriendly

sitting tight

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

21 January 2014 - When the taller peep elects to eat breakfast, he usually does so in front of his computer screen.  Since the dining room table, where the shorter peep takes her meals, is strictly off-limits, I look forward to these one-on-one opportunities.   His choice of foods, some variation on wan carbohydrates, isn't to my liking, but my curiosity gets the better of me every time.  My bubbly optimism just knows that one morning it will be offered a sausage link.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

A long wait prepares you

for retirement.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - meowatorium, a prohibition that can be shortened by cuteness and obstinancy

perchance to dream

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

 

20 January 2014 - There must be a first day of the week.  Monday drew that short stick and has been reviled ever since.  Personally I know that unpleasant things are best handled by making oneself horizontal with the floor.  One stays in that position until the black cloud passes...and it will, eventually.  Why the week begins with a "day of the moon" I can't say, and the picture gets even murkier when one realizes that it follows the "day of the sun".  Day/night, light/dark, masculine/feminine:  something is going on here, but without a degree in philosophy it will remain unplumbed by me.  But such considerations quickly numb the brain and bring sleep that much quicker.  After all, my species does excel in the art of naps.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Rest isn't just for the weary.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

book of the day - Bruneschelli's Dome, by Ross King, a vicarious visit to the wonderful city of Florence

brighten up my day

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

19 January 2014 - The winter sun's lower position in the sky weakens its light and lessens the ambient heat, but that makes me appreciate all the more a patch of its radiance.  You probably have noticed that hot air rises, and this fact is quite noticeable as one ascends the many stairs in our house.  This perch on the top floor railing is as high as I can reach without daring the barn ladder, and on cloudless mornings it is a prime location. A delicate balance between resting and alertness must be maintained, for to roll off this spot would mean a drop of twelve feet and the loss of dibbs.  Let this be the record of my staked claim.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Don't confuse rights with demands.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - mewnificent, big-hearted and generous with affection as only a cat can be

quod erat demonstrandum

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

18 January 2014 - Today's word is "misology".  Like all those other "miso-" words, it involves that destructive emotion, hate.  The target for misology is rational thought or reasoning.  I find it very difficult to comprehend (but there I go again, attempting to "understand") the root cause.  Were you not tapped for the debate team, bullied by the high school valedictorian (yeah, there is a brain stretcher)?  What happened to your innate curiosity, a thing near and dear to me?  Doesn't "why?"  constantly niggle in your brain?  Is "If it rains tomorrow, I am not going on a bike ride" really that difficult to grasp?  How easy it is to manipulate an individual or a society when cause is disconnected from effect.  I have to stop now, overcome by the weight of depression.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

When in doubt, ask or look it up.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

adage of the day - "What goes up must come down"...unless gravity is beyond you