Thursday Thirteen #2

Thirteen Things About Xmas in Florida:

1. There is no snow.

2. People compensate for that fact by putting fake snow around.

3. Fake snow at the base of palm trees looks stupid.

4. Santas dressed in surfer gear look like dirty old men.

5. The balmy weather allows for elaborate Christmas light displays. If a decoration can be
lit up and stuck on a lawn , it will be.

6. Inflatable snowmen and animated Santas are popular targets for thieves.

7. Their electrical cords are popular targets for possums and raccoons. "ZAP"

8. Baby Jesus has to be padlocked to his manger .

9. Xmas lights aren't taken down in January. Busy homeowners leave them up all year.

10. When a hurricane is coming those same homeowners forget about stocking up on
groceries and plywood. Instead, they run around removing their Xmas lights.

11. Being forced to listen to musical decorations 24 hours a day results in violence.

12. People actually give help to the less fortunate.

13. Peace, at least locally, seems possible.

Thursday Thirteen

For my first Thusday Thirteen I want to list 13 animals that my mommy has either
a figurine or a bean bag of :

1. Cats
2. Elephant
3. Frog
4. Panda
5. Penguin
6. Polar Bear
7. Duck
8. Raccoon
9. Giraffe
10. Turtle
11. Whale
12. Lion
13.Horse

Grampy used to say that her living area looked like a garage sale waiting to happen.

Purrs, Muffy

Post #50 : Muffin's Musings

Wow! My fiftieth post. It's hard to believe that it's taken me over a year to reach this point, but
here I am. In celebration of my milestone I present some random musings:

1. Mommy decorated the house for Hanukkah. She put a blue shiny garland along the counter where the menorah was. She put cardboard stars and other shapes on the wall behind my bed.She thought they looked pretty.

2. I undecorated the house for Hanukkah. I couldn't reach the garland, but the stars and stuffwere only stuck to the walls with tape. I helped them fall onto the floor.I thought they looked pretty down there.

3. Mommy and a friend went to see the Gran Folklorico Ballet de Mexico. She's a big fan of the
company. They did dances fom Aztec, Mayan, Spanish and other cultures that combined to
create Mexico. She demonstrated some of the dances for Granny. It was fun till she collided with the coffee table....

4.Should Mommy change the name of my blog? "Fat Cat" is kind of insulting......

5. Should I post more often?
Purrs, Muffy

We Saw the Goodyear Blimp!

We saw the Goodyear blimp! One of the blimps is based in Pompano Beach, about an hour south of here. It flew in figure-eights around our neighborhood for two hours, scouting locations for two televised sporting events: a golf tournament and a marathon race.
The blimp was pretty. It was silver, with a blue nameplate that said "Goodyear" in yellow letters. When Mommy heard the chutt-chutt sound she knew what it was. She grabbed Midi and I and her camera and ran outside. She took a lot of pictures but her camera isn't very good.
Midi chutt-chutted rght back at the blimp. Maybe she thought it was a gigantic guinea pig. I got bored afer a while and stated chasing lizards, so Mommy took us back inside.
She was really impressed with the blimp. At least now I know what she's talking about when she calls me "Goodyear".

Getting Ready for Winter

Hi!Mommy just found out that she can blog in different colors. Isn't that neat?Maybe next time the woman will learn how to add pictures and links.

We put away our fall decorations and now have some winter stuff up.It's hard to decorate for winter when you live in Florida. Fake snow looks ridiculous against a background of palm trees.

Mommy is back to work on her book and I'm back work on getting as many pets as I can out of her. She works on her computer on a footstool on the floor, so I keep her company all the time.
She went back to work on Saturday so I have to get all the loving I can.

We had a nice Thanksgiving. I got lots of turkey.

See you soon!

We're Back Again!

Mommy got a laptop computer so we can finally post from home. She's really enjoying getting to know her new machine. I'm enjoying our petting sessions. She is sick again, with another sinus infection. This one developed into bronchitis as well. So our post will be short.

Muffin's Rule: If there is a box on the floor and it's blocking your usual pathway, don't go around it.Instead meow angrily till one of humans gets up and moves it.

7 Things Meme

Awhile ago Tiger Lilly tagged me for the 7 Things meme. I'm to list seven things about me, then tag seven people. So here goes:
1. I demand a clean litter box. If it's not clean I'll hold it till I can't anymore. Luckily these people caught on to that pretty quickly. I now get excellent box service.
2. I'm bigger than half the dogs in our apartment complex. I like to remind them of that fact.
3. I love shoelaces.
4. I like to go outside with my mommy.
5. I'm the one who knocked over the fake ficus tree.
6. Remember that little lizard that got into the house? Well, he's never getting out. "burp"
7. I don't like to travel.

I tag anyone who wants to play. Thanks Tiger Lilly.

Go Red Sox

Hi! Thanks for all the blogoversary wishes. we feel so loved. Our system is still down, so this will be a short post. The Red Sox won the World Series last night. Mommy and Granny were jumping up and down and yelling. That was obviously a good thing. Then Mommy started to cry
because Grampy wasn't here to see that. I miss him too. I guess we'll always be a little sad at happy times because he isn't here. We love you Grampy!!!!!

Blogoversary

It's my one year blogoversary. My Mommy and I have really enjoyed getting to know
everyone. Hopefully we'll be able to post more often in the future.
Hendrix sent me a middle name meme. Since I don't have a middle name I
will use the letters of my first name to describe a quality about myself:

M= Mancat. I take good care of my womenfolk.

U= Unchained melody and Unforgettable. Two songs that Mommy insists on singing to me. Ugh.
Sigh.
F = Fat, fluffy, friendly and fastidious.

F = Fish Face. The name Grampy gave me because I'll only eat stinky goodness salmon. My
brand of choice is Fancy Feast.
I= Indoors. I like to go outside with my mother, but after being homeless I'm glad for an
indoor home.
N = NOMSS. My sisiter Midnight. Midi is a long-haired black guinea pig.

That's all.
Purrs,Muffy

I Peed on the Kitchen Floor

This is ridiculous. These humans are going out and leaving me alone way too much. First it was religious services, then it was Granny's doctor's appointment, then it was grocery shopping. Plus Mommy's been at work, out with friends or seeing Him. What am I, something to avoid?
Today they went out clothes shopping. Talk about a stupid errand. This has to stop.
So I peed on the kitchen floor.
That'll show them.

Post # 41

Hi! This is post 41 for my contests.

I was good on Mommy's birthday. She went out with friends and a couple days later with The Man.I didn't complain (much) and welcomed her back. Granny got her a music box. It plays 'You are my Sunshine'. I like to listen to it. I got her a little stuffed lion. He's orange and white striped and has a white mane. Mommy says it looks like me because instead of a mane I have a ruff and jowls.
We're having trouble with our system again. Mommy said that MSNTV is crap. She recommends that no one buy it.
I'll post again soon

Contests

I'm having two contests: the first cat to comment on my 50th post and the first cat to comment on my blogaverasry post will each receive a gift. Both postings should occur in October.

Happy New Year

My people have been celebrating their New Year. It's not like the regular new year, where people watch the ball drop and throw confetti. This new year involved going to religious services. I was left alone for hours. I didn't like that. Mommy cooked a big meal with chicken and chopped fish and I got samples. I did like that.
Mommy's birthday is Tuesday. I don't know what to get her. Granny usually gets her something from me with a cat on it. That way she's always reminded of me. She'll be going out more over the weekend. I don't want her to forget she's neglecting me. Heehee.
Since it's a new year I made a resolution. I'm going to stop using The Man's leg as a scratching post. His legs are just so huge, like tree trunks, and they're covered in denim. I love to scratch denim. I'll try to be good......
Oh, and here's my favorite proverb. It's from Garfield: Cats don't ask; cats take.
Purrs. Muffin

We're Back

Our system is up and operating again, so we'll be back visiting everyone and leaving comments.
My Gotcha Day was great. I had a little cake made out of Fancy Feast with a candle in it. I got some treats, a new scratching box and a little pillow. My people fussed over me and I really felt like the King of the Household. Of course, I'm the center of attention most days anyway. Take care.

Gotcha Day

Our system is still down but I wanted to let everyone know that Aug 30 is my Gotcha Day!! I'll have been with my people for 13 years. When I'm back on line let's celebrate.

System Trouble
Due to problems with our computer system we won't be able to blog or comment until next week. Feel free to e-mail us though. We will be back.
Muff & Mom

Nicknames & Comments

Some Dopey Nicknames That Mommy Calls Me:
1. Muff
2. Muffy
3. Muffin Man
4. Muffalota
5. Moussaka
6. The Lion King
7. Fat Boy
8. Bubbeleh
9. Orangeman
10. Pookie

Some Comments That People Make About Me:
1."He looks like Morris."
2."He looks like Garfield."
3."Is he pregnant?"
4. "That cat is bigger than my dog!"

Purrs, Muffin

Water Woes

We've been having a lot of rain lately. That's okay because Florida is experiencing a major drought and the drinking water supply is severely depleted.
I don't mind that. Water outside is good. It's when it attacks inside the house that I don't like it.
Last night we were in the human litterbox room. Mommy flushed the round white bowl and the water wouldn't stop coming up. It poured out of the bowl and all over the floor. My paws got wet. I did the only thing a kitty could do- I ran!I felt bad about leaving Mommy, so a few minutes later I peaked around the corner. She was using towels to sop up the water and swearing. Her vocabulary was impressive.
Then this morningmy water bowl was empty and Granny poured some from a bottle into my dish. Only it wasn't water. It was lemonade that myMommy had mixed together to take to work. BLECH. I meowed trying to tell granny that something was wrong,but she didn't get it. Then when Mommy got up I meowed at her, She didn't get it either. She just poured water over the lemonade. Finally i jut sat by my dish and cried. They were fussing around me , then Mommy went into the fridge, saw her bottle was missing and figured out what happened. She hugged me, apologized and gave me some water. Finally.

Meme from Hendrix #2

Muffin: Five things I would do if I had a million dollars: buy my family a house up north, start a shelter for older homeless pets; give money to find a cure for feline diabetes; buy lots of catnip and invent a better cat carrier.
Muffin: My five favorite treats are Meow Mix, Temptations, tuna, chicken & hamburger.
Mommy: Six fashion mistakes from the 80s that I won't repeat: blue eyeshadow,white socks with black shoes; cheap plastic jewelry,
novelty earrings,over-size eyeglass frames and big hair.
Muffin: Two things I refuse to wear again:
A yellow dress. Lady, I don't care if you wore it when you were a baby. I'm a boy. Stop putting it on me. Scrunchies on my tail. That is so undignified.
That's all for now.

Meme from Hendrix

Mommy and I decided to each answer part of Hendrix's meme.
I'll go first.
1. What were you doing 10 years ago?
I was sitting on the porch, chasing mice and lizards,climbing the crepe myrtle tree and sharpening my claws on the palm tree.
2. What were you doing 1 year ago?
I was sitting on the porch, chasing mice & lizards and sharpening my talons on the palm tree.
3.Name 5 songs that you know all the lyrics to;
Mommy: The Star- Spangled Banner, My Country Tis of Thee, America the Beautiful, Happy Birthday and the Meow Mix song. (I'd make a pitiful contestant n that show the Singing Bee.)
4.Name 5 Bad Habits:
Muffin: I claw the couch, track litter all over the house, and chew on Mommy.
Mommy: I am a major slob.I also collect too much junk.
5.Name 5 things you enjoy doing?
Muffin: Clawing the couch,chewing on Mommy, cuddling with Mommy.
Mommy: Cuddling with my puddy-tat, singing to my puddy-tat.
We'll finish the meme next time.

Dear Mommy,
I had a really nice Fourth of July. I liked the hamburg you brought me from that pool party you went to. I also appreciate the way you came home and watched the fireworks on TV while spending time with me. I'm also glad you let me into your bed when the neighbor's firecrackers got on my nerves/
I really am sorry about the plate with the apple pie on it.The whipped cream looked like it would be fun to play with. I didn't mean to knock the plate over. I also didn't mean to leave whipped cream pawprints all over the carpet. You shouldn't have left it on the coffee table before you went to bed. You know I make nightly patrols to make sure the house is safe.
Oh, and I'm sorry for wiping my whiskers in you hair. That whipped cream was sticky.
Love, Muffin

Happy July

Happy July to everyone. Mommy's been busy working on her book and I've been busy
eating, sleeping and working on my tan.I'll post more later.

Silly Mommy

Last night Mommy was petting me and her eyes were all leaky. She kept saying she was sorry for being such a lousy mother. When I meowed to find out what was wrong she told me: we were out of kitty litter. Sheesh, lady, I thought something was really wrong! I know I'm fussy about my litter, but I can live with having to pee on newspaper for twelve hours
till you can get to the store. Humans!

June News

The painters finally left. The patio furniture and all the plants are back outside and I'm free to work on my tan. I like my fur to be a specific shade of orange, so I need sunlight. Best of all, a big curly-tailed gecko ran by and I chased him. He ran under the door to the storage room, though.
I'm glad Ben has taken over Suz's blog. We miss her, but it's good to hear from her family.
Today was the anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill. Mommy is working on a book onthe Revolutionary War, so that anniversary was a big deal to her.

The Painters Who Won't Leave

The painters are still here. The paint part of our building, then leave, then a few days later come back and paint another part of our building. I hate it. I need to get outside to work on my tan. I'm sick of the patio furniture sitting in the middle of the living room floor. Most of all, I want to
hunt. I haven't chased anything reptilian in two weeks.
PS We're so glad that Suz is feeling better.

Under the Bed

Right now I feel like joining Suzanne under the bed. My apartment building is being prepared for painting. There are men with ladders and hoses, pressure cleaning the outside walls. Then they're using hissing
bottles to caulk cracks in the wood, hammering loose boards and spraying smelly primer all over. I hate it.Why can't they shove
on some paint and go?
Then Mommy's been working more hours. I know she needs the money,but I miss her.I'm used to constantly being petted and talked to. She says the rush at the library willend soon. I hope
so.

7 Things About Mommy

Hi! I tagged my Mommy. Here are seven things I know about her:

1. She has a serious book habit.Never mind that she works in a library. The woman is always buying books at thrift shops.This makes her living quarters rather crowded. I like to knock over the stacks. The books are fun to smell too. Sometimes they smell like dog.
2. She's always losing her keys. Yesterday she tore the house apart for an hour lookingfor them. Then I got up and off them. It sure was fun watching her search.
3.During hurricane Wilma I was braver than she was. She cringed at the banging and flying tree limbs; I sat in the window watching the show.
4. She's been near the Man. I haven't seen him but I can smell that he's back.
5.She writes stuff. She'll read me parts. I like being read to.
6.She lets the laundry pile up so I have a nice place to sleep.
7. She wuvs me.

Tagged

I've been tagged by Suzanne. Here are seven things about me:
1.) I snore. Loudly.
2.) I was dumped at a local college, then I thought I'd found a new family. But they moved and I got dumped again. Now I'm with my furrever family. It took me awhile to warm up to them. I was afraid to love them for fear I'd be dumped again. We've been together for almost 12 years now.Mommy says it's time for me to stop worrying.
3.) When I meow out the window it sounds like I'm saying hello.
4.) I'm diabetic. Mommy gives me insulin shots everyday.
5.) I love to sleep on y people's dirty laundry. I knead it with my paws and make holes in the fabric.
6.)I have a nip habit.
7.)I love to catch lizards.

I tag Mr. Hendrix, The Crew and Merlin.

Sunbathing

Today it was beautiful out. I laid on the porch, working on my tan.I visited with Boo and some birdie friends, then sharpened my claws on the palm tree. It's important to keepmy nails in tiptop condition. The Man is due back soon.....

Back to Blogging

Tracy: Muffin and I haven't felt much like blogging since the Virginia Tech carnage. My father (Grampy) was a college security officer for almost thirty years. We were all emotionally tied to the daily life of the school where he worked.
But beyond that, if high school was a circus,then college was a safe, rarefied place where people could begin to figure out who they really were, grow intellectually,and make life-long friendships. It was a world where anything seemed possible. Anything but this....
For all the Virginia Tech students the massacre was the death of their innocence.
It's just so sad....

Muffin: Mommy and I are sad about the deaths of Joaquin, Gizzy and Bear and the illness of Lily Lu.
We realize that life goes on,so we'll post again soon.

Shut up, Please

Well,I finally did it. See Mommy went to this play with music by a guy named Billy Joel. She keeps playing his music and singing along. Only she can't sing. And I don't like him. His music is all clanging and jangling. So I took my paw and rolled the silver frisbee-thing under the couch. She'll never find it there. And now I don't have to listen to them.

Why We Blog

Muffin:I blog because I want to get to know kitties from all over.

Midi: I blog because the cat does.

Tracy : I blog because I want to get to know people from all over.

Tracy's Recommendations:
Books: I lucked out and found a volume of an old Time Life series,Great Ages of Man, called "Cradle of Civilzation". It's on the Sumerians and really fascinating.
I also just finished Cindy Sheehan's book, Peace Mom. She's a very courageous lady.
I also read a fluffy mystery about a lawyer caught in an international conspiracy, called Cold as Ice by Cindy Stewart. it was good.
Television: My current guilty pleasure is "America's Next Top Model"
Music: Anyone for a little My Chemical Romance?
Take care, Tracy

Oops!

I'm still trying to work the stair thingy. Mommy is my own personal elevator. She picks me up and puts me on her bed. I like that. Only if I jump down and later want to jump back up she wants me to use the stair thingy. I like to meow pitifully near her bed till she rescues me. It would be nice to stretch out there when she's not home, though. I love her bed. So I better try to master the stair thingy.

March Madness

Well, we made it through St. Patrick's Day without any fashion humiliations. Okay, so she put a plastic hat on me and Midi wore a green bow, but compared with holidays past, we got off easy.
I'm still trying to master the stair thingy. Whenever I go down the people applaud, so it must be a good thing.I'm still working on up, though. I'm a mature gentleman and I weigh twenty pounds (don't feel bad Grr- big kitties are squishier}. It's embarrassing to try to jump on the bed and miss.

Muffin & Mom

Muffin:
Mommy bought me this stair thing so I can get into her chair and onto the beds easier. When I get off I don't have to jump down. I can just walk down. Only thing, I can"t quite get the up part. Down is fine. Up is still a little scary. I tried to jump on her bed and missed, though.

Tracy:
I'm trying to blog a little myself. I love books and recently finished two of which I'd recommend. The first was called The Brotherhood of the Holy Shroud by Julia Navarro. It was an intricate story of two secret brotherhoods, one of which had been trying for centuries to steal the Shroud of Turin, the other to defend it.
The story flashed back in time to the Knights Templar and various historical figures,then returned to the present, as Italian police tried to find the organizations and stop them.
The second book was The Orchid Shroud by Michelle Wan. It too was a mystery. She combined a dead infant found in the walls of an ancient chateau, werewolves and an unclassified species of orchid and anaged to tie them all together in a reasonable manner.
Set in the Dourdogne, Wan's book also gave me the opportunity to brush up on my French phrases.
I also watch television. Am I the only one who was glad to see Rob & Amber get bounced from the Amazing Race?
Hope to here from more humans soo.

Resting Up

I was exhausted after my labors and needed several long naps to recover. My last nap was interrupted by the Big Sucking Monster. Grampy always tells me that i won"t eat me, but I'm not so sure. It looks like one of those scary monsters in in the movie Jurassic Park. If those monsters could open wide enough to eat a human than this one could eat a cat!!
I hope Mittens is feeling better. Blogger sometimes won't let me post on her web site. Sometimes it won't let me post on my own.

Housecleaning

I helped Mommy clean today. She was glad of the help. She says I think litter is a verb. I don"t know how it gets tracked all over the house. I supervised her cleaning it up, though.
I also sat my booty on all the papers she piled up, burrowed in the dirty laundry and knocked over my bag of Meow Mix. Wasn't I helpful?

Cardinals

Hi! i just made two new birdie friends. Their names are Oliver and Olivia. They're cardinals. Oliver is bright red with a crest on his head. Olivia is a duller red with olive on her chest. She also has a crest. It took them a long time to get the courage to visit my feeder. I wanted to introduce myselfbut didn't want to scare them. Finally I waited until Boo was at the feeder and he introduced us. I told Oliver and Olivia that i was a nice kitty and would never hurt them.Now we visit all the time

Home Sweet Home

The Man finally went away. Now I have Mommy all to myself. I did put the bitey on the Man before he left. He deserved it. Mommy misses him but Im getting lots of hugs and cuddles. I don't miss him one bit.

Company

Hi! A Man is down here visiting Mommy. I don't like him. He takes Mommy away. He always brings her back, though. The first time it happened I threw up all over my bed. Granny took good care of me, though. So did my mother. I hope the Man goes away soon. I want to go bitey on him.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everyone. I hope your holiday season was happy. I had a good Christmas. I got a blue, brown and white kitty bed. It's like a gigantic pillow and I can stretch out in it. I also got a wand with green feathers on it to chase. Mommy says I need to lose weight. I'd rather chase her.