An update

I am giving my blog a rest for a few days.

Stay tuned on 2 January.

Keiser

Saint Gertrude of Nivelles

The (Catholic) patron saint of cats is Gertrude of Nivelles. Most people know about the patron saint of all animals, St Francis of Assisi (after whom San Francisco is so named).

St Gertrude was born in 626 in Landen and died in 659 in Nivelles (Belgium).

When some cats wander and lose their way home, their human say a prayer to St Gertrude for their safe return.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Sadness

Today I watched (on the news on television) as thousands of people lost their homes to the devastating Tsunami throughout South East Asia. I mentioned this in my entry yesterday, but only today have we seen the true extent of the disaster. All of us should do what we can to assist and I have personally committed a few of my hard earned pocket money to the many aid agencies providing supporting those made homeless. Nature is truly ruthless and we should do all we can to help those in this hour of need. If you can, please help.

Suzanne and Greg came to dinner tonight. They had, to start; smoked salmon wrapped in cucumber, provence olives, maggie beer pate, and caper berries. Then slow cooked pork in coriander seed, fennel seed, fresh rosemary, garlic and red wine vinegar, served with mashed sweet potato and desiree potato and steamed asparagus. And finished with King Island Brie and King Island blue Brie, with rockmelon (canteloupe) and grapes.

I enjoyed sitting on Greg's lap and also being stroked/patted by Suzanne.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Boxing Day

Today is Boxing Day, which is celebrated in English-speaking Commonwealth countries such as Australia, Canada, and Britain.

An explanation of Boxing Day is provided by Wikipedia.
There is much dispute over the true origins of Boxing Day, but one common story of the holiday's origins is that servants used to receive Christmas gifts from their employers on the first weekday after Christmas, usually December 26, after the family celebrations. These were generally called their Christmas boxes. Another story is that this is the day that priests broke open the collection boxes and distributed the money to the poor.

Today a terrible disaster happened in Indonesia, an earthquake which measured 8.9 on the Richter scale which also resulted in tsunamis across parts of Thailand, India, and Sri Lanka. Many loss of human lives resulted.

I can't speak for the other places, but my human informed me that in Phuket, an island in the Andaman Sea which is part of Thailand, many stray cats and dogs live in the resort towns such as Patong by the beach. Most of the animals who sensed the quake before the tsunami will have fled further inland, but many will have died along with humans who were swept off to sea by the tidal wave.

Thailand is also a Buddhist country (euthanising stray cats and dogs is contrary to Buddhism). Hopefully the poor cats and dogs will return in a better life.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Merry Catmas

Merry Catmas everybody.

Christmas Eve dedication

I would like to dedicate this entry to the pets (not just cats) which perished on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning in Darwin (Australia) in 1974 (30 years ago). More details from Wikipedia.

At that time, a major cyclone (hurricane or typhoon) - Cyclone Tracy - hit Darwin. It is still the biggest natural disaster in Australian history.

Some 65 people died and countless numbers of pets.

Most of the population (at that time 48,000) was made homeless resulting in the biggest peace-time evacuation in Australian history. 70% of homes were destroyed or rendered unlivable.

Many who lived through 300km+ winds and watched their homes collapse around them never returned, the trauma being so great.

The rest of Australia was greeted on Christmas day with news of this disaster. They were generous in their assistance.

May we remember with love the many pets who died and who are sadly missed by their humans through natural disaster. The trauma of surviving a disaster where your home and all your possessions are destroyed are great. The loss of a loved animal even more so in these circumstances.

I went to the vet this morning, and have a clean bill of health for another year. Hooray!

My other human arrived home last night for the holidays. He is now working in Port Moresby for two years. I am so glad he is back (for now). He is the best cuddler.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

This is Maggie the Cat

Maggie was not really a cat. She was a character in a play by Tennessee Williams play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

In the 1958 film version directed by Richard Brooks, Elizabeth Taylor played Maggie "The Cat" Pollitt and Paul Newman played Brick Pollitt.



The play and the slightly modified film version is a very complex tale of equally complex characters. The 'cat' here refers to femininity and feminine desire.

If you enjoy really fine acting, the art of which has been lost through modern special effects and soundtracks, check out Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

My handful of words does not do justice to such a fine play and film.

I have a vet appointment tomorrow morning for my annual check up and vaccinations. The cage appeared, so it must be true.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Some of my friends

A special hello to Sparkle, a 3 year old short hair from Hanover, Pennsylvania, USA who catmailed me in response to my "cat got my tongue" joke yesterday. It was funny wasn't it?

And a hello to Deej, a 1 year old (and her human Holly) from Adams Centre, Watertown in New York state who appreciate my taste in brushing music.

Today I want to talk about some of my powerful friends in high places.

Everyone has heard of Socks, who helped his humans, the Clintons to govern the United States. Well Socks was a very wise (and attractive) cat when he lived at the White House, even though his human President Clinton did not always listen to his counsel. After the Clintons adopted a dog (hissssssss) called Buddy, Socks moved out with Betty Curry to a house out in Virginia. But Socks was still very influential.


President Clinton with the real Commander-in-Chief, Socks

There is now another cat who lives at the White House called India. India has more patience with the Bush's dogs (they are not as boisterous as Buddy was). Like Socks before her, India also offers wise counsel. Unfortunately, President Bush cannot understand her at all. Such a woeful situation. You may draw your own conclusions.


Current Commander-in-Chief, India (unfortunately her power is undermined)

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

cat got my tongue

I haven't got much to say today really. I think the cat got my tongue... ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha...

I was brushed last night.

My human went to visit that Nina, I can smell her. She isn't a friendly cat at all. And he didn't bring back any food from that work Christmas party at Nina's house either.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Music to be brushed by

Today's entry is addressed to my fellow cats.

If your human regularly brushes you, as mine does, you might consider asking for music to help lull your human into a rhythm and thus a longer grooming session. I love the early pop from the 1960s and 1970s.

Some suggestions are:
Downtown (Petula Clark) - 3 min 06
Up, Up & Away (The Fifth Dimension) - 2 min 38
Can't Take My Eyes Off You (various) - 3 min 11
The Look of Love (Dusty Springfield) - 3 min 33
Anyone Who Had a Heart (Dionne Warwick or Dusty Springfield) - 3 min 09
It's Getting Better (Mama Cass Elliot) - 2 min 59
Welcome to the World (Mama Cass Elliot) - 2 min 17

Some 1980s stuff are pretty cool too:
Bette Davis Eyes (Kim Carnes) - 3 min 41
Slow Hand (Pointer Sisters) - 3 min 51
Brass in Pocket (Pretenders) - 3 min 05
Love is a Battlefield (Pat Benatar) - 4 min 06
Drive (The Cars) - 3 min 55
Classic (Adrian Gurwitz) - 3 min 40
Take On Me (a-Ha) - 3 min 44
Echo Beach (Martha and the Muffins) - 3 min 55

If they sing along and replace some of the lyrics with your name, that is a sign they adore and worship you, as they should.

On the other hand, if your human has really bad taste in music, then I think you better move out and adopt another one (but the most important criteria of course is FOOD)...

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Trim the cat

Trim was a very famous cat. He adopted the human, Matthew Flinders - a very famous British explorer, after he was born at sea on HMS Reliance in 1797 during a voyage to Capetown (in what is now South Africa), to obtain livestock for the new settlement of Sydney.

Trim sailed with Flinders on his early surveying voyages, and also on his return to England in 1800. Trim helped Flinders to circumnavigate Australia in HMS Investigator and survived the shipwreck of the Porpoise on Wreck Reef in 1803. Trim was with Flinders on the Cumberland when it was detained in Mauritius by the French.

During his captivity, Flinders wrote a memoir of Captain Trim. You may be able to find this book or order it from your bookshop. Trim by Matthew Flinders (Angus & Robertson: 1997, $14.95, 51pp. ISBN: 0091814618)

You can see a statue of Trim on a window ledge of the Mitchell Library (State Library of New South Wales) facing Macquarie Street.


Statue of Trim

Nina's human, Hugh came to do some more gardening, and then he gave me some pats.

I also spent some time outside today after dinner, supervising some repotting of pot plants and even had a nap on the lawn before it got dark.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Schrödinger's cat

If you studied or know a little about quantum physics, you may have heard about Schrödinger's cat.

In fact, this cat was not a pet of Erwin Schrödinger. In 1935, he proposed this to illustrate the quantum theory of superposition. If you read German, you can read his original article 'Die gegenwartige Situation in der Quantenmechanik', in "Naturwissenschaftern" 23: pp. 807-812; 823-823, 844-849. (1935).

According to the principle of superposition, while we do not know what the state of any object is, it is actually in all possible states simultaneously, as long as we don't look to check. The act of the measurement itself causes the object to be limited to a single possibility.

To illustrate this point, Schrödinger suggested that:
A living cat is placed in a thick lead box - there is no question that the cat is alive.
Then throw in a vial of cyanide and seal the box - we do not know if:
(1) the cat is alive; or
(2) if it has broken the cyanide capsule and died.
As we do not know, then the cat is BOTH dead and alive, according to quantum law - in a superposition of states.
When the box is opened to see what condition the cat is in, then the superposition is lost - and the cat must be either alive or dead (one or the other, but not BOTH).

This superposition occurs at the sub-atomic level. The observable effects of interference show that a single particle can be in multiple locations simultaneously.

Hence, Schrödinger's cat is not about a REAL cat. He was using it as an analogy. A cruel one if you ask me. But hey, cats are now immortalised in the field of quantum physics.

Nina's human, Deborah came over in the afternoon to say hello to me, and her offspring Hugh came to mow the lawn. Nina is a Russian Blue and I understand very pretty, but not charming like MOI! Deborah complimented me on my charming manner (thank you Deborah).

Devi came later for dinner. They had roast rolled turkey thigh with cranberry and chestnut stuffing, roast potatoes, pumpkin and beetroot, with peas.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

My Bach is better than my bite...

This morning, I listened to Concerto No. 4 in G major of Johann Sebastian Bach's Brandenburg concertos. It is one of the most brilliant pieces of music ever written. If you listen very carefully, you can almost hear the mathematical patterns underlying this piece. The Brandenburg concertos are an example of Baroque music, which is steadily rhythmic, and features polyphony, which is a melodic structure where melodies and counter melodies play off each other in unison. Another feature is the music changes from being either loud and strong, or soft and subtle at precise moments without the usual gradual transition of crescendo or diminuendo. If you were to assign numerical values to the music, a pattern would certainly emerge.

The six Brandenburg concertos were presented by Bach to the Margrave (Christian Ludwig) of Brandenburg in 1721.

Indeed, to any extra-terrestrial life-form intercepting the Voyager spacecrafts (which were launched in 1977), the first piece of music they will hear (from its Golden Record) is the first movement of Concerto No. 2 in F major. Certainly an excellent example of the creativity of humanity as an introduction to intelligent life on Earth.

The Voyager spacecrafts flew beyond the path of Pluto some time ago and are now leaving our solar system. Let us hope that the invitation to visit planet Earth will be in peace.

Merlin's human, Kim came over for dinner. They had weisswurst (which is a German sausage) with mashed Pontiac potatoes, and zuchini (courgette) and asparagus. I very much enjoyed her visit again, and I hope Merlin did not miss her too much while she was out. Merlin's other humans, Jordan and Liam, also stopped by very briefly (they are the offspring of Kim). Now that they are older, I do not mind them as much, but still prefer my peace and quiet.

I have been a bit more aloof today. Must be the weather.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Eye of the tiger

The first stanza of William Blake's 'The Tiger' from "Songs of Experience" is:
TIGER, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

I won't talk about what Blake may have meant by those words, but I will talk about the plight of our poor big cousins.

There are now only 5,000 to 7,000 tigers (estimated) to live in the wild. It will not be long before the only tigers on Earth are those that are kept in zoos. Greater effort is required to ensure that population numbers increase, lest they go the same way as the giant panda (estimated numbers are now only some 1,600). Poaching of tigers, and the trade in tiger body parts must stop.

The humans of my cat friends Jack and Bad Cat came over for dinner tonight. They had pasta - penne with porcini in three types of tomato (quick fried cherry tomatoes and sundried tomatoes in homemade tomato passata) with truffle oil, egg and parmesan.

I kept on jumping on to Jess' lap so that I could mark her, as Jack is a boy cat and I know that would piss him off... hee hee hee... Plus Jess' has a comfy lap. I neglected Mans, but I don't think she was upset.

I showed them my 'towel trick' which is sitting on a towel while it is dragged along a floor. It is like going for a ride, which is fun. But I prefer to lie on my towels as they are soft and have my scent on them.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Taking leave our our senses

Of the senses, the olfactory (or sense of smell) is perhaps the most under-rated.

Our sense of smell is fourteen time stronger than a human's and which we rely on greater than sight or hearing. We use it to identify food. I can tell something delicious has come out of the fridge without being told what it is, especially ham.

We also use our scent to identify our territory. Fatty used to mark our territory with urine and I used to follow this scent, reassured that he was protecting our territory.

We also use pheromones from glands in our face and feet to mark our 'possessions' including furniture, walls, and especially our humans (and any visitors who stop by).

We also love to sleep next to our humans, or where they sleep, as this is very reassuring. Some of us love to sleep ON our humans, usually on a lap. We also love to hear humans talking and for them to talk to us. Most of us also love music.

Contrary to popular believe, we cannot see well in the dark. If furniture is moved around in the dark before we take note of the layout, we will usually bump into it. We do use our whiskers to judge narrow spaces.

Today was a rather boring day.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

10 days till Christmas...

According to the song, The Twelve Days of Christmas, today is the fourth day with the last culminating on Christmas day itself. The strict interpretation, however, is that the first day of Christmas occurs on Christmas day, with the twelfth on Epiphany which is the time the three Wise Men or Magi arrived to present gifts to the young Jesus. So you should really give your presents on January 6!

But seeing that most of the Western world (apart from the Orthodox tradition) give presents on December 25, I will use the other interpretation.

Whichever way you look at it, the fourth day is still the best day!

According to the song, on the fourth day, the recipient receives
Four calling birds (American, or four colly* birds, British)
Three French hens
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree

It is said that the song was written to convey the tenets of the Catholic faith during the persecution of Catholics in England from 1558 to 1829.

*colly is a dialect word meaning black and refers to the European blackbird, Turdus merula. That is a funny Latin name isn't it? But Turdus in Latin means thrush (a type of bird), contrary to what it sounds like.

As a cat, I would like to reword this in the following manner:
Four black birds (baked in a pie)
Three French hens (marinaded and slow roasted)
Two turtle doves (spatchcocked and grilled)
And a partridge (roasted, never mind the pear tree)

There was a story today on the radio, by Maeve Binchy as part of the London Transports anthology set in the suburbs of London around the Tube or London Underground.

Even though there would be a lot of laps to sit on, I think I would be scared as the Tube can be very crowded with much jostling. Besides, I might fall down THE GAP. Otherwise, why would they say "Mind the Gap" as the doors open and close?

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

I can see the woods for the trees...

One of my favourite trees is the Liquid Amber (Liquidambar styraciflua) in the backyard which is about 10 metres tall. I love to run up the trunk of the tree to the branches about 3 metres off the ground, survey my territory and scamper down again.

Another of my favourite trees is the Magnolia grandiflora which we have in a pot in the back deck. It is a dwarf variety. At my old house we had a Magnolia grandiflora which was about 4 metres tall (after 5 years as a sapling).

I love lying on the grass and chewing it as well (it helps to bring up fur balls) when I go outside.

I am not so much of a flower cat even though I am a girl cat. My brother Fatty on the other hand was a flower cat. He used to love lying under the plum tree hidden within the daffodils. Once he even had dandelions tucked under his collar! My human still misses Fatty very much.

Today I listened to radio ABC Classic FM - there was a lot of Bach on including Suite 1 of the Cello Suites.

Clive Robertson was not on today (he usually hosts ABC Classic FM from 5.30 am to 9.05am). I also heard that Clive Robertson will be leaving. What a shame, I always did enjoy Clive's acerbic remarks. Good luck Clive.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Summertime and the livin' is easy

Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Summertime opens one of George Gershwin's greatest masterpieces, Porgy and Bess. Porgy and Bess tells the tale of a crippled beggar who roams the streets of Charleston, South Carolina in a goat-cart, and his love Bess.

Cats also love lullabies that humans sing to them. It is like when a mother cat purrs to her kittens.

Today I supervised some gardening work outside such as replanting of bearded irises.

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

Yawnnnnnnnn.....

I had so much fun today that I nearly forgot to write my blog and I am so tired now. After I finished my blog last night I was brushed for 15 minutes. Bliss pure bliss.

Lewis Carroll wrote Alice's Adventures in Wonderland which begins with Alice noticing a rabbit looking at his pocket watch and saying 'Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be late!'

She follows the rabbit down a hole and her adventures begin. Alice's adventures end with her actually waking up from a dream. But was it really?

Nell and Declan came to visit today for lunch. They had scrambled (duck and chicken) eggs cooked with thinly sliced spanish onions, rocket leaves, dill and smoked salmon, served with blanched asparagus, and sauteed button mushrooms in truffle oil, and cabiatta bread, with fruit mince pies to finish
I tried some of the egg but didn't like it. I also sat on Nell's lap, sat on Declan's lap, sat on Nell's lap, sat on Declan's lap... and so on

If you enjoyed reading this, let me know. You can email me at keisercat@wildmail.com

climbing stairs

My last house was on two storeys and I used to enjoy scampering up the stairs. It was always fun to see how fast I could get from the bottom to the top of the stairs. My house now is only on one storey so has no stairs.

Thinking about stairs makes me think of the Guggenheim museum in New York which has a spiral ramp. This was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in the 1950s just before he died.


Inside the Guggenheim Museum

One of Frank Lloyd Wright's greatest designs is the house he built for Edgar Kaufmann called Falling Water, which is in Bear Run, Pennsylvania. You can read more about Falling Water
here.


Falling Water

Talk to me...

It is hard for cats to read. If a newspaper is on the floor, we will lie on top of it, even when you are reading. This way, we absorb the information in the paper through our fur. Occasionally, you may just catch us reading the print.

Most of all, cats love being read to. I have been hearing about Elizabeth David, the pioneer of French and Italian cooking in England. She studied in Paris at the Sorbonne and her exposure to French food was a revelation of just how good food could be, in comparison to what she was being served at home.

I have also been listening to the English translation of Homer's Iliad from time to time. Cat in the Hat? Save that for the human kiddies and kittens.

Most of all, cats love recipes being read to them. One of my favourites is hearing about slow cooked lamb leg.

Breakfast at Tiffany's

In Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's which was made into a wonderful film (1961) with Audrey Hepburn (as Holly Golightly), our famous feline actor Orangey plays 'Cat'.


Orangey waking up Holly/Audrey

'Cat' was a symbolic representation of Holly. In the taxi, 'Fred' Paul Varjak accused Holly of not really knowing what she wanted. This was when she had let the cat go. When she finally worked out what she herself was about, she decided to go and find 'Cat'. In other words, in finding 'Cat' she found herself.



There was another whopper of a storm today. It made me think of Orangey being out in the rain before Holly rescued him.

Big Ideas

Today was quite a stimulating day. I listened to ABC Radio National instead of ABC Radio Classic FM.

I listened to part three of the Boyer Lectures which was on at 1pm. It was about changing attitudes of Australians to the United Kingdom. It was quite interesting to hear about Antipodean sojourns to the 'homeland'. You can read more about that here - LINK

There was also a whopping thunderstorm. Dark clouds rolled over enveloping us in near darkness. Flashes of lightning danced with the explosion of thunder, together with pelting rain. Cats love thunderstorms, we understand the rhythm of nature. Dogs on the other hand.... I need not say more.

I pondered the random yet rhythmic nature of a thunderstorm. Hmmm (meow) I am sure Chaos Theory features somewhere there. According to Chaos Theory, small variations in the initial conditions of a dynamical system can produce large variations in the results. In other words, a small change can have a tremendous effect.

Something to sleep on. And as many cats nap for 18 hours a day or even more, this can be quite productive

I feel pretty oh so pretty...

Cats, the musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber was not terribly representive of alley cats according to my sources. T S Elliot would also turn in his grave at the prospect of his Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats transforming into a musical of singing humans in cat costumes. Mind you, Elliot's poems were cute and meant for children, but also inaccurate.

I thought about it all day, and have decided that an adaptation of West Side Story would be far more accurate. We would call it Cat Side Story and it would feature songs like...

When you're a Cat,
You're a Cat all the way
From your first mouse or bird
To your last dyin' day.

When you're a Cat,
If the milk hits the fan,
You got others to clean it up,
You're so much in demand!

And...

The most beautiful sound I ever heard:
Meow(ow), Meow(ow), Meow(ow), Meow(ow), . . .
All the beautiful sounds of the world in a single word . .
Meow(ow), Meow(ow), Meow(ow), Meow(ow), . . .

Of course, there is no need to adapt this one too much...

I feel pretty,
Oh, so pretty,
I feel pretty and witty and bright!
And I pity
Any Cat who isn't me tonight.

I had hoped to go outside this morning, but missed my opportunity. Tomorrow I hope, I need to check on the grass.

Watching grass grow

Today I had my human all day, even though most of that was in the study as he had a deadline for work. I did however have a nap on his lap on the couch for a little while which was great.

Being a Sunday, I will give my philosophical musings a well deserved break.

I also listened to the entire recording of La Traviata.

Susan came for lunch (they had congee with rare beef, salted duck eggs, hundred year old - black - duck eggs, and condiments such as preserved tofu)

I went outside for a few minutes to check that my grass is still growing. And I managed to sit on Susan's lap too. She doesn't have a cat, I can tell by her scent, but she still loves me.

After some cooked chicken and steak yesterday, today's meals were very disappointing. The vet said that I may have a protein allergy which might explain why I don't get beef much anymore.

It's all about.... ME!

Saturday's are the best days. Today I had my human with me nearly all day, apart from a brief sojourn to acquire newspapers.

Saturday's are also a bit sad, as my brother Fatty went to visit the vet (28 August 2004, and never came home). It is still difficult without his presence. But he is in our hearts.

I even had a nap on the couch with my human, which I immensely enjoyed. Some cats are aloof and solitary creatures. Others, like me prefer the company of people who provide interesting intellectual stimulation. We actually follow human conversations and occasionally interject. The meow you hear might actually be a useful contribution.

I hope tomorrow will be more of the same.

Friday means the weekend is here

It was cooler tonight with a slight breeze. A breeze is just a moderate wind, which is caused by air flow from high pressure to low pressure.

In the doldrums, which lies 5 degrees north and 5 degrees south of the equator, no wind occurs. If you were sailing in this area, there could be no movement for days on end, until you drift out of the area. In this Intertropical Convergence Zone, the hot air rises vertically.

Many cats convince their sailor humans to take them when they go to sea. I could not think of anything worse except for the nearly endless opportunity to sample very fresh fish.

Kim came over for dinner (of baked chicken breast with dijon wrapped in procuitto served with broccoli and cauliflower)

I very much enjoyed Kim's visit which provided me with another lap to sit on. From the scent marking on her, I believe she is owned by Merlin (a very young male) cat. But she was here, so I have marked her sufficiently as one of my temporary possessions which will no doubt upset Merlin the cat.

I am very much looking forward to the weekend and expect an opportunity to inspect my outside environment.

Impressionists

My favourite piece of art is a painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. In 1867 he painted a picture of Édouard Manet's niece, Julie Manet with her cat.


Renoir - Julie Manet and her cat

I also enjoy looking at other paintings from the French impressionists, particular Claude Monet who was only one year younger than Renoir. His water lilies are quite spectacular. There is a print of Monet's Japanese Footbridge (1899 which hangs at the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC) in my house and I take delight in staring at it for hours. Framed behind glass, I am unable to inspect it more closely with my claws... I do wonder whether I can remove one of the lilies.


Our Monet at home (just a print, not the original!)