better infrared than dead

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

31 August 2016 - A southern exposure is a good thing on a sunny day.  When my other favorite nap spots are too chilly, I know out there with the potted plants will be the warmest place in the house.  As you can see, there is room for me to stretch out, on a raised platform, a definite plus.  The taller peep's garden is quite simplistic:  no overhead sprinklers, no piped-in music, no visiting school groups... in other words a perfect retreat.  Although "retreat" can imply fleeing from something undesirable, I prefer to focus on the "treat" part of the word.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Shadows require light.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - me-ouch, the discomfort of being cold with nowhere warm to curl up

the phases of the moan

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

30 August 2016 - I hope that I am imagining things:  the mornings of late feel nippy.  How could the hottest summer on record be wimping out on me in late August??  That wouldn't be the case if I were back in Florida.  Am I willing to travel in order to bake my bones?  I don't like that kind of question.  The easiest thing for me to do is gripe and pull unhappy faces at the peeps.  They will make the decision for me, and I can blame them for all my suffering.  Meanwhile, I'll ignore the facts (after all, that seems to be the current trend in thinking).

methodology of the meow-stro

  

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Don't underestimate

the leverage of a prolonged whine.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - downcat, unhappy and despondent, as gloomy as the forecast

impulse drive

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

29 August 2016 - Sometimes I think I'm running an obstacle course, although my peeps aren't sympathetic.  It is their opinion that a shut door causes me to strongly desire to be on the other side.  I resent the implication that I am a drooler pushed about by Pavlovian responses.  There is cause-and-effect, toward which they lean, and coincidence.  I offer this counterexample to the former:  once I am allowed to pass through and the door is closed behind me, I do not immediately u-turn and wish to reenter.  At least five minutes, often more, passes....

methodology of the meow-stro

  

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Try sauntering
to conclusions.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - mecatical, habitual, unthinking (to which I would ask, "and how do you know my thoughts?")

by extension

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

28 August 2016 - One's metabolism naturally slows down after surviving the young adult frenzy.  Typically one's appetite doesn't do the same, so exercise is the only recourse if one wishes to keep jumping.  We cats definitely have our share of fast-twitch muscle tissue, crucial whether predator or prey.  But slow and mindful yoga is also favored, especially when first rising from a nap.  No need to startle the still groggy body.  It really is quite surprising how many animals have loaned their names to asanas.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Stretch the mind,

stretch the body.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - eloncat, to lengthen, to push the boundary of one's skin

fur sighted

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

27 August 2016 - Yesterday kept us guessing, but today has been magnificent since the sun popped above the treeline.  And have you noticed that its rising time has slipped considerably since earlier in the summer?  I am a morning creature, typically wandering the property before dawn.  Moonlit nights I may not even make it to bed, catching up on my sleep once the peeps are awake (someone needs to keep an eye on the place).  But the view, and I've seen them all, from our deck, overlooking the lake is the best.  The breeze, whether gentle or heavy-handed, writes upon the water's surface.  Its cat's-paw script is indecipherable, but I still keep trying.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

The quiet ones hear more.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - purrceptive, observant (it's always good to know which way the wind blows)

at ease, soldier

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

26 August 2016 - The ears are still at attention, but otherwise I have given it up.  There are times of the day when this spot on the sofa gets a warm patch of sunshine through the roof window.  That plus is what drew me here initially, but as demonstrated, even when not illuminated, I find it a great sleeping place.  Sometimes when one ages, insomnia becomes an unwelcome visitor.  What a curse that would be!  I am pleased to say that my biorhythms remain eternally young.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

   

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Many things are doable
when one is well-rested.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

movie of the day - Sleeper, 1973 comic film directed by Woody Allen (but I already knew carrots were bad for you)

un-we

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

25 August 2016 - I don't possess a green thumb, so cultivating patience tries what little I have.  The only sense of time relevant to me is the measurable distance between wanting and getting... and at that my peeps are far from prompt.  Often I find it necessary to prod them from their reverie, to nudge them back on course, to hurry the tortoises along.  Any gray hairs that I might have I owe to their stress-inducing indifference to my needs.  Time is money, according to the peep-sayers, and my meter is running.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

When dealing with others,
pack a snack and a book.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - enpurrvation, drained of energy, running on empty (no thanks to the peeps)

hey, u-ey

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

24 August 2016 - Evidently I have had second thoughts about walking the plank... probably after seeing what lay beyond.  Who thought a diving board into the shallows was a good idea?  Modern-day usage of the phrase refers to the resignation of a disgraced official (although I am questioning the possibility of that adjective).  Thankfully I am not acquainted with that sort of peep, mine being the average private-sector sort.  But Calvin the Explorer needed to know where that wooden highway led:  been there, done that.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Don't be a lemming.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - purrfer,  to like more, to favor (and it's always better to be on the receiving end)

desiccatted

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

23 August 2016 - It may look undrinkable to you, but barrels of tannic water were actually taken aboard during the tall-ships era.  The slight acidity, the result of decomposing needles and leaves of native pines, cedars, and red oaks (which also explains the color), is sufficient to discourage the growth of unhealthy microbes.  On a long voyage, surrounded by brine, the stagnation of one’s potable liquids would be the onset of sickness.  For those accustomed to doing laps in transparent water hinting of chlorine, our lake isn’t very inviting.  But after many summers of drinking the brown stuff, I can attest that it is easy on the stomach.  I have no idea what it would do to your swimsuit.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

  

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

"You're all wet" isn't totally accurate since about half of one's weight is from water.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - purrched, feeling a need to drink, often in conflict with the desire to remain curled up

quiet on the settee

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

22 August 2016 - My peeps really enjoy movies, even driving sixty miles for the nearest big screen.  Many times this summer I have missed them, only to discover they are in the barn, watching an old film on the television.  Sometimes I join them, just to be companionable, but frankly after the MGM lion roars, I don’t see much point in hanging around.  My kind are not featured in such productions (even Puss ’n Boots is fanciful animation), nor offered a bit part… would they claim we are difficult to work with??  And it is a malicious rumor that Leo mauled his "trainer".

methodology of the meow-stro

 

   

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Know the difference
between real and pretend.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

movie of the day - That Darn Cat!, 1965 film starring Hayley Mills and Dean Jones and Siamese D.C.

au contraire

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

20 August 2016 - Black-and-white photography becomes me, don't you think, but the rest of the world shines in Kodachrome.  Seeing through a yes-no lens simplifies the situation, but most consider the spectrum stretching between those two opposites as the more "mature" viewpoint.  I would agree, but am compelled to add that one's questions are too complex, one's lifestyle too convoluted, if nuances are required.  Two choices suffice if you keep things very basic.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Light - its presence or absence -
shapes everything.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - dicatomy, the contrast between opposites, such as good kitty and bad kitty

of "me too" minds

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

19 August 2016 - Well, Calvin the Explorer won't be taking a ride in this thing.  I do not like getting my feet wet, but the thought of dry feet a fraction of an inch away from deep water is equally disturbing.  It is entirely possible that I can swim, if absolutely necessary, but it shall remain an unanswered question.  I am quite content to sit on a convenient rock and contemplate the lake and its eels and fish and bullfrogs and turtles.  If any of these decide to haul themselves ashore, I will introduce myself.  Otherwise we will go our separate ways.

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Not everything must be experienced.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

word of the day - unpurrtain, hesitant to act (with purrobably good reason)

a heated discussion

Me-ow-my-oh!

Me-usings and Me-emories

18 August 2016 -  The area has been under a fire ban for the past several weeks, so the chiminea is acting as a large doorstop.  I know that we cats are supposed to curl up on hearths, but quite frankly I don't care for such close proximity to licking flames.  Snoozing at a respectable distance still permits me to enjoy the residual heat with minimal risk to me.  Yesterday brought us a virtual deluge of wetness, noticeably raising the lake level.  Does that mean I should be on the lookout for smoke?

methodology of the meow-stro

 

 

 

Today's Catechism 

(for the self-taught)

Steer clear of fiery tempers.

Bring back Bastet

Bastet beckons

Catty Corner

movie of the day - Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, no worries, it won't be me