Speaking of Comfort

Following up on my reading comfortably post, I thought it was appropriate that I give due diligence to the one member of our family who has comfort down to a science. I'm speaking of our devil cat (daughter's name for our feline friend), the queen of comfort -- Whisper. She can be comfortable anywhere and sometimes in locations we have no idea where she is.

On the back of the sofa chair and almost
always on a blanket - especially one some-
one has made. Jeni in this case.

Her nap locations change based on the season and, I suspect, her whim. She loves the wicker love seat on the patio when it is below 100. When it's over 100 she is under the love seat on the paving tiles or on one of our outdoor chairs. There are also a couple of bushes she loves to be under. She can go to sleep anywhere, but I suspect her outdoor naps are less peaceful than her indoor naps. She is always looking for a gecko or bird she cat fetch. Just in the last few days she has started to come right up to the back door and sleep at the edge of the door. Fortunately it's a sliding glass door so we can open it and step over her.

Our peek-a-boo cat keeping an eye on us.

When she comes indoors on a hot day she walks over to make sure she still has food and then plops down on the cool tile and stays there until she has cooled off. She likes the half on - half off model also. Half on tile and half off carpet, if that makes sense. Sheets, not blankets, are her favorite this time of the year and since we moved the coffee table into the family room it too has become a place to relax. There are some other spots were not quite sure of. She will disappear in the middle of the day for a few hours and we aren't sure where she it, but when it moves her, she wanders in. Her favorite spot, hands down, are our office chairs. We can go into JoAnn's office and find her curled up in deep sleep or in my office doing the same. The sculpted contour of those chairs seems to fit her perfectly. It also makes it harder to get the hair off.

Who would have thought a coffee table would be the
place to be. She can also watch TV from here.

Given the length of this post, it would suggest I'm a little envious. I am. She can go to sleep anywhere, any time. In fact as I look out the kitchen door she is stretched out under the wicker love seat and her eyes are just closing, with paws under her chin. The ears are still moving just a little, like a radar dish just in case something exciting occurs, but no, it hasn't and the eyes artfully shut and she is out. Whisper truly is the queen of comfort.

The previous owner had a shelf above the spring tub and
kept his cacti on it. We keep our cat on it. She loves
the sun when it comes in.

Wordless Wednesday - cat under hat

Whisper Gets Comfortable

Our cat, Whisper, or affectionately known by the kids as "Devil Cat" is becoming more and more mellow around us. Of course she still likes to nip at my hands when I'm petting or my toes when I'm teasing. She likes to be where we are and if only one of us is home she likes to lay right where we are working. More than once I've had to clean a space off of my work area so she could lay down - usually right in the middle of where I need to work. I know, we could pick her up and move her, but she doesn't usually stay long. However when she falls asleep, it can be a while. Last evening I was working at the computer desk in JoAnn's quilt room when Whisper waltzed in, jumped up on the printer and promptly got comfortable. Thankfully I didn't need to print anything. When I was done I just left her there asleep.

The Cat's Attention

We have had our cat for over 8 years. She has many names, but she is mostly known as the "devil cat" by the kids and a former veterinarian. She hides when family comes. She runs if someone knocks at the door or the doorbell rings. If we walk in the door (no doorbell or knock) she is at the door. The backyard is her domain. Sometimes the wall along the backyard is her domain and we have to wait for her to come back.

She is very much her own cat. She ignores us unless she wants food, water, or to be petted. She and I have an ongoing battle, which I usually lose. I have scratches on my hands pretty regular just to prove it. Yet, we pretty much know who she is, where she is, and what to expect of her. In other words, our cat is pretty predictable. That is until this morning.

I was setting up the television to record a show for JoAnn. After I did I switched it over to local television and PBS where "Nature" was on. I got hooked pretty quickly and it wasn't long before a she wolf was howling. As I was continuing to watch I look over by the corner of the couch and there sits the cat, totally enthralled by the television. This is a behavior we have never seen from Whisper. As you can see from the photos she was totally enthralled watching the various animals, This went on for over 20 minutes until we had to leave.

Lots of help writing

I'm sitting at my desk writing. JoAnn is out for the evening and I'm fighting a cold. However, it's a great time to be working on my book. It is due to the publisher at the end of the year. However, we have this cat. You know, the devil cat to everyone else and sometimes us. She has gotten into the habit of jumping up on my desk and if she can find paper laying on it and purring. It just so happens my cut sheets are 11x17, almost the perfect size for the cat.

I was about to quit for the evening and fix myself some chicken noodle soup, compliments of Albertsons - and yes it is pretty good! When who jumps up on my desktop? Whisper of course. First she sits right in front or me. It's difficult to type when her face is just above your left hand and she wants to be petted. Failing to pet her can result in a nip or bite. I can type with one hand, but it is really slow and even slower when one hand is trying to type and the other is occupied petting the cat.

When she had enough of that she moved t0 the left side of my "L" shaped desk and took up the whole 11 x 17 inches and spread across back into my working area. It's always nice to have a little inspiration, but she purrs almost as loud as some people snore (and no, I'm not referring to anyone in our family).

She is gone and I'm ready for dinner, plus I'm flat tired of writing today.

Whisper's Water Fountain

Our cat, Whisper, is always looking for water everywhere but her water bowl. Every morning she jumps up on the bathroom counter in anticipation that I will fill the basin with water (I figure at least 1.5 gallons) so she can lap up (You know, I've never thought of the term "lap up" and cat in the same sentence. Maybe a dog, like Strider, who could empty a water bowl in 4 laps, but a cat?). If I wash my hands she knows right away there is no water to be had in the bathroom. She casually waits until the next bathroom is operational -

usually during my shower. She lounges outside the shower acting as if getting in the shower would be the best thing that could happen to her. Unfortunately she never takes me up on it, but when I get out of the shower she is on the counter either waiting for me to fill up the sink, or if she has given up, sitting in the sink so no one else can use it. We have 2 sinks so it never quite works for her.

She has finally topped herself in her quest for non-bowl water. Just off the back patio we have a number of plants. One of them I took out with the idea we wouldn't replace it, but I never got around to plugging the drip line head, or apparently digging up the root of the plant. The plant has started to grow again and last week Whisper discovered she can drink out of the water line that feeds it.

The drip head is facing up at about a 45 degree angle and the water flow comes out ever so gently. I guess, I would say, it comes out "just right" for a cat water fountain. Now she will go outside and stare at it in the morning waiting for it to come on. If I come outside she moves away, as if to say, "I'm not doing anything." But, I have watched her through the door. She is good for a full 5 minutes before she has had enough. I think the ratio of staring and waiting if about 10 to 1. I have to admire her perseverance in looking for the "perfect water." We both agree, we are thankful she is not a telephone eating cat, like an unmentioned family dog many of us know.

Urban Camouflage

With such a title I'm sure you are anticipating a blog focusing on how people camouflage themselves in an urban environment. Sorry, but I'm going to disappoint you. Read on! Camouflage is the process of hiding in plain site. Animals have all kinds of defenses to help them hide in plain site. We have a gecko out back who we can only see when it runs along the burnt umber wall by the plants. Our humming birds have minimal camouflage. Scorpions are so light colored you can't see them on the desert sand/soil, much less on a light brown carpet. Given that our cat is gray and nothing outside is gray you would think that a cat could never hide. Our cat is a master camouflager, but inside, not outside the house. We can wander around the house looking for her and not find her - even when she is in plain site. Granted she has lots of sleeping places and some are not visible, but the visible ones drive us crazy.

This afternoon as I walked into our bedroom there she was, racked out on what I call her "summer chair" and she matches it almost perfectly. She does the same thing on the front room couch. We have learned to look at the corners. But, as I walked in our bedroom I took one look and thought, this is a photo to share. Even if you are not a cat lover, you have to admit our cat knows comfort. And, you can't get to comfort if you can't camouflage yourself. She may not be the smartest cat, but she can "hide in plain site."

Some have had problems finding her head. It's on the right side.