Photo of the day: Scene Stealer

Isn't she gorgeous? I worked with her today at the shelter and was just amazed at how beautiful she is. Those eyes. That silky coat. That flirtatious manner. She's a total heart stealer (and a stealer of pipe cleaners as well) and as playful and loving as they come. Someone snap her up, she's a superstar.

Photo of the day: Cat on a Warm Tile Roof

I captured this little guy back in November, on election day, actually. Our polling place is a senior resident center and this appears to be one of the security guards. He was sitting up on the roof of a garden area, staring down anyone who wandered by. Maybe an undercover poll worker? Wanting to make sure everyone who came in had their voter's guide already filled out? He obviously had me pegged as being all set because he didn't ask for my ID, instead he focused his attention on a little brown bird who appeared to have come to the wrong voting place.

Photo of the day: Cobwebs and Old Wood

I tried to capture (on camera, not by hand) the spider that made this but he (or she) was shy and ran to the other side of this fence. How about that? I'm like a spider stalker.

Eavesdropping
Overheard at the shelter
Man to obviously dim woman: That black cat looks like a jaguar.
Obviously dim woman: Oh I think he's cute. You really think he looks like a car?

...
Overheard at the shelter 2
Woman on cell phone: He was just too Zen. And he likes Monopoly.

Not sure what those two things have in common. Can you be a capitalist Zen?

Photo of the day: When in Doubt, Play the Xylophone

Because, really, nothing cannot be overcome by brightly colored musical instruments meant for small children or stressed adults.

Photo of the day: Burning the Midnight Fire

The wind makes me want a fire. The insomnia makes me want sleep. I have one, but not the other. But all is not lost. I have hot cocoa, a good movie, a good book, and the knowledge that in a few hours sleep would be but a memory anyway as Cipher (The World's Most Amazing Cat, Screw You If You Don't Agree tm) starts her middle of the night rambles.

Photo of the day: Choose Your Poison

Or choose your own adventure. Your call.

I Am (Kinda) A Mom
Today is Mother's Day. And I send love to all my friends who are moms.

I am not the mother of a child. But I am one of those crazy pet people who considers her cat as her child. (OK, not really.) But for the next few months, I am going to be, kinda, a mom.

This marks the second year the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA will run their kitten nursery and I am once again signing up. Since I am blessedly unemployed, I'll be doing two afternoons a week at the nursery, plus two afternoons a week with my regular cat duty.

Mother's Day marks the unofficial start of kitten season. From now until early to mid-september, we will be overrun with adorable, but tiny and helpless abandoned kittens. They need constant feeding, care, medical attention and love. Hell, they even need to be taught how to poop. I am happy to help out and, in fact, feel incredibly lucky to be able to do so. But it's hard seeing so many tiny little furballs in need of care and homes. It's also hard to know that many people will scoop up these kittens, while ignoring the adult, or even "vintage" cats, equally in need of love and a lap.

I know from my work last year at the kitten nursery that I'm looking at a few months of hard work, getting kitten food all over me, getting peed on, and hauling around bags of trash and laundry. And I can't wait. But I urge you if you have any extra cash sitting around to consider making a donation to the animal shelter of your choice as every one will be facing the same work as we will be. You might also consider volunteering your time or even signing up to foster a litter of kittens. You'll love the work, feel good about what you're doing, and you'll feel (kinda) like a mom.

Photo of the day: Things Are Looking Up

I like looking up around buildings to see what's up there. Fire escapes. Gargoyles. Interesting windows. In this case, just an odd angle that caught my eye. The great thing about looking up, though, is that if you do it long enough people will join you just to figure out what you're looking at. Try it.