June 2022

UP IN THE AIR WITH COOPER MURPHY & TYEBE

Thoroughly Poetic Thursday

So, it’s Thursday again and time to join Angel Sammy and Teddy from Two Spoiled Cats and write a poem based on the inspiration photo they provided.

I have been altering the photos for the past several weeks by adding a cat or two, and this week is no different. I also veered drastically from the subject of the photo as well. But then it is only meant to stimulate our imaginations.

Cooper Murphy and his beautiful girlfriend Tyebe (Canadian Cats) can be found in the lower right corner of the photo. Cooper Murphy (also known as Snap to Tyebe) wrote the poem.

 

Up in the Air: A white cat and an orange tabby cat join passengers in a hot air balloon with a view of the sunrise and other balloons.

 

Up in the Air with Tyebe

Oh, what a spectacular view!
I’m delighted to be here with you.
We’ve been apart for such a long time,
I think I’d rather look at you as we climb.
To see the rising sun light up your fur
And listen to your melodic purr
Warms my heart with love and delight,
Whether on the ground or at this height.
I’m happy you could come out today,
I sincerely wish we could just fly away
And be together for all our lives.

© Cooper Murphy Blue – 06/29/2022

If you think you’re not a poet, why not give it a try. The types of poetry are almost endless, and you can find some info to help you at Shadow Poetry.

To get next week’s inspiration photo pop on over to Two Spoiled Cats by clicking on the poetry badge. While visiting, you’ll want to read Angel Sammy’s poem. He’s a poetry pro.

Thankful Thursday

Thursday also is our day to give thanks and join the blog hop hosted by Brian.

Stinky is up first. He is thankful to Periwinkle for the spectacular dinosaur-themed birthday party she threw him for this week’s adventure. If you missed it, check the post out at Friends Furever. And if you missed Periwinkle & Stinky’s T-Rex Trail dinosaur adventure, you can find it here: “The Adventures of Periwinkle & Stinky: Part CXL.”

Sawyer, Dad Tom and I are thankful that Sawyer hasn’t had a seizure in three weeks.

Kizmet is happy and thankful for her birthday gift. It is a KiTiFISH Smart Interactive Cat Toy. Her fursibs are also enjoying it. When a kitty lives in a multi-cat household, sharing is not a choice.

Finally, Astrid is grateful for the nip-filled, handmade cats toys and some squeezy treats from Sampy as her anniversary gifts. She hasn’t tried the treats yet, but the nippy goodness of the toys is attracting a lot of attention from her fursibs.

Both Kizmet and Astrid have agreed to share photos sometime in the future.

If you’d like to take part in the Thankful Thursday blog hop, enter the URL for Brian’s blog in your browser.

 

 

 

 

HAPPINESS IS A SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE

Sparks

I was looking for a Spark about gratitude, when I found this quote. Though gratitude is mentioned, this Spark says so much more.

 

happiness is an spiritual experience: tortie cat peeking out of her tunnel

 

I felt I needed a photo that made me happy to accompany the Spark. This one of Astrid peeking out of the tunnel is from 2015, and I did share it back then. I hope it makes you smile.

The quote’s author was unfamiliar to me. Here’s a bit about him. Denis E. Waitley is an 89-year-old, American motivational speaker, writer and consultant. He’s been recognized as the best-selling author of books such as “Seeds of Greatness” and “The Winner’s Edge,” as well as the audio series, The Psychology of Winning. Waitley has been inducted into the International Speakers’ Hall of Fame.

Sparks is the creation of Annie from McGuffy’s Reader. Sparks began as a blog hop, created by our friend. Annie stated when she began Sparks, “I believe we are meant to be lights in this world. If we allow our light to shine, we can see where we are going. It is then that we can begin to truly see each other clearly. Together, we can light up the entire world.”

Awww Mondays

Astrid is participating in the Awww Mondays blog hop at Comedy Plus. You can meet her there by clicking on the Awww badge.

 

The Adventures of Periwinkle & Stinky

Your favorite cartoon tabbies, Periwinkle and Stinky, will be taking their next adventure tomorrow. These two comical and fun-loving youngsters visit all types of interesting places and have oodles of fun when they’re together. One of the best things is that they enjoy taking you along with them, so please plan to meet them over at Friends Furever tomorrow!

 

 

NOW & THEN WITH SAWYER

Sunday Selfies: Week #410

NOWNow and then: serious portrait of grey, tabby, Manx cat.

THEN

now and then: PawBoost missing poster of grey, tabby Manx cat.

 

That’s right…one year ago today I left on my unauthorized walkabout. I turned my mom and dad into stressed out, crazy people. That lasted for three and a half weeks.

As you can see, I have grown up a lot since then. Manx cats are not considered adults until they turn five years old. I will have my fifth birthday in a few days. Last year I missed my birthday. This year I have no intention of letting that happen.

I have been a good boy and not tried to escape. An electronic locator has been added to my collar just in case I get any wild ideas.

I am blessed that my mom and dad never gave up on me and kept searching and spreading the word that I was missing. And I am grateful for all the prayers said for me and the support each of you gave my parents. Mom has written many times in the past ten years about how wonderful the pet blogging community is, and I totally agree with her. Thank you.

Hopping Time

I sincerely hope you will join me today and post a selfie to share with us and all your friends. Posting today is not necessary. You can participate anytime between now and Thursday. Thanks for joining me today, dear friends. Enjoy an easy Sunday!

Purrs and paw-pats, Sawyer (with love and whisker kisses for Noelle)

 



CAT WORLD DOMINATION DAY 2022

Cat World Domination Day: 10th Anniversary

I have been playing catch up most of the week, so it is probably no surprise that I am posting one day late for Cat World Domination Day. In order to recognize the special 10 year anniversary of this observance, Astrid is sitting on top of the world.

 

Cat World Domination Day: 10th Anniversary: Art rendering of a tortie cat sitting atop the world.

 

Cat World Domination Day was created by Janiss Garza in 2012 on the day her cat, Sparkle, celebrated her 10th birthday. Sparkle thought humans should acknowledge that cats were in charge. The creation of the holiday was a way to recognize that. Sparkle only got to celebrate the annual holiday three times. She passed away in August 2014, just two months after her twelfth birthday. Sparkle’s successor, Summer, from Summer’s Fabulous Cat Life as continued to celebrate and promote the holiday in Sparkle’s honor.

World Cat Domination Day: 10th Anniversary: Somali cat with paw on globe.

Caturday Art

I selected Astrid sitting on top of the world for our Caturday Art. I used the Ivy effect from Painnt to create it. She is participating in Athena Cat Goddess Wise Kitty’s Caturday Art blog hop. You can do the same by clicking on Athena’s badge.

Puzzle

Here’s you puzzle for the week.

preview120pieceWorld Cat Domination Day

Sunday Selfies Reminder

As Sawyer mentioned in yesterday’s post, he will be your host for Sunday Selfies tomorrow. I am certain you won’t want to miss the opportunity to join him. It is rather a significant occasion. All the Kitties Blue look forward to seeing you then.

 

THE LAUGHING CAT & FILL-INS BY SAWYER

Apology

Good morning friends. Please forgive the late post. It is, of course, all mom’s fault. She took Dad Tom out last night for a belated Father’s Day dinner. They went to a Peruvian restaurant and overindulged. Mom was in a food coma when they got home. On top of that she had a mango mojito, and her brain cells were scrambled.

She stared at her half-written poem, already a day late, for about two hours and finally gave up trying to finish it. In my opinion…a very wise move. As she had already made me do all the fill-ins, she suggested I write this post as well. And though she has finished the poem this morning, I will say it is not her best work.

But without any further ado, here is the inspiration photo and her poem followed by my fill-ins.

Thoroughly Poetic Thursday Friday

I really thought I should be the cat in the poem, but Mom said I had that honor last week, and I had to let someone else do it. So this week Lisbeth gets the spotlight.

 

laughing cat: two little boys have crashed their kiddy cars and a tuxedo cat sits nearby laughing

 

The Laughing Cat

I’m sorry! I swerved to miss the cat
That jumped right into my path.
Now it’s sitting and laughing.
I find his actions quite baffling.

Oh, I think he was chasing that toad
That’s now lying dead in the road.
I ran over him trying to avoid your car.
But now look where we are!

I think we’ll both need to get a tow
And a bandaid for your scraped elbow.
Plus we better go get our moms
And also pick up some tasty kitty noms.

I agree our prankster friend could use a snack,
Especially after you gave that toad a whack.
It’s time to forget our fancy wheels
And give kitty some attention and a meal!

© Janet Buickerood Blue – 6/24/2022

Thoroughly Poetic Thursday is hosted each week by Angel Sammy and Teddy over at Two Spoiled Cats. They provide the inspiration photo, and you provide the poem. If you’d like to participate, click on the poetry badge. And please read Angel Sammy’s poem. He’s a poetry pro!

Friendly Fill-Ins: Week #217

The Friday blog hop Kitties Blue try to participate in each week is Friendly Fill-Ins, hosted by Ellen (15 And Meowing) and Lorianne (Four-Legged Furballs). If you’d like to participate, you can find the four sentences to be filled in each Thursday on their blogs.

Here are this week’s fill-ins—all completed by me, Sawyer, with the usual teal italics.

1. The grossest food I ever ate was any of the stinky goodness that has my meds in it.
2. The best tasting food I ever had was Temptations.
3. I should probably eat my noms always, but I won’t.
4. If I could have an unlimited supply of one item, I would pick Temptations.

To participate, click on the fill-ins badge.

Friendship/Feline Friday

Finally, Lisbeth is participating in Create With Joy‘s Friendship Friday blog hop and Comedy Plus’ Feline Friday blog hop.

Purrs & paw-pats, Sawyer

p.s. Please make certain to join us on Sunday for a special Sunday Selfies post featuring me!

 

KITTIES CELEBRATE 2ND BIRTHDAY & 6TH ANNIVERSARY

Thankful Thursday

Today is a big day at our house with a birthday and an anniversary to celebrate. 

Sixth Anniversary

 

birthday & anniversary: collage with two heart-shaped photos, one of a tortie cat and one of a tuxie cat

 

Six years ago today Astrid and Sampy (Sampson Hall) were married at the Blog Paws Conference. You can see the wedding post at “Introducing the Newlyweds.”  In celebration, we have a card and cake (baked by Cooper Murphy) for them.

 

birthday & anniversary: sixth anniversary card with wedding cat couple, a heart and flowers

birthday & anniversary: two-tiered, square cake with lavender flowers

 

We all offer our best wishes to this sweet and adorable couple. We are thankful they found each other and that we are able to celebrate with them today.

Second Birthday

Today Kizmet turns two. She’s officially no longer a kitten; though, she is still full of kitten energy! And she continues to act like a monkey. We also have a card and another cake from Cooper Murphy for her.

 

birthday & anniversary: birth and party favorsday card with photo of grey cat

birthday & anniversary: pick and white cake with macarons and a grey fondant cat for decorations

 

We are truly thankful we adopted Kizmet. She has brought hours of laughter and love into our lives. We never know what mischief she’s going to get up to. She has a special birthday gift on its way, which we think will bring her oodles of fun and lots of entertainment for Dad Tom, me and her fursibs. I’ll make certain she tells you all about it and shares photos.

Please join us as we celebrate. Help yourselves to cake and champagne or lemonade. And stay as long as you like.

 

birthday & anniversary: collage with filled champagne glasses and pitcher of lemonade with lemons

 

As Kitties Blue and I do each week, we thank you for your support and friendship. These are the best gifts any of us can receive.

To participate in the Thankful Thursday blog hop, hosted by Brian, enter the URL for his site in your browser.

Thoroughly Poetic Thursday

With apologies to Teddy and Angel Sammy, I didn’t write a poem today. I will include one in tomorrow’s post or share it as a stand-alone post.

 

 

CATIO IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS

Wordless Wednesday

 

Tuxie cat napping in sunpuddle on catio.

 

Misty May is participating in the Wordless Wednesday blog hop at Comedy Plus.

 

Please make certain you join us tomorrow, as it is a super special day. We will be celebrating both Astrid and Sampy’s sixth anniversary and Kizmet’s second birthday!

 

THE ADVENTURES OF PERIWINKLE & STINKY: PART CXL

Explore Park: T-Rex Trail

Stinky is super excited to see Periwinkle when she arrives. He’s certain she’ll love this adventure; though, she might find it a bit scary. After some quick whisker kisses upon her arrival, Stinky takes Periwinkle’s paw and leads her right back into the teleportation tunnel.

When they arrive at their destination, Periwinkle asks Stinky if they’ve been there previously.

“Yes, we were here, Periwinkle, in December for Illuminights,” he tells her.

“Oh, I remember that. It’s one of my favorite adventures,” Periwinkle exclaims. (If you missed that adventure, check it out here: “The Adventures of Periwinkle & Stinky: Part CXIV”.) “But it’s now summertime, so what’s happening today?”

“We are going to take a dinosaur adventure.” Stinky tells her.

Periwinkle’s eyes get very large and she asks, “Aren’t they extinct?”

Stinky explains that they are, but she won’t think so after they take a tour of the T-Rex Trail. He then takes Periwinkle’s paw and leads her to the entrance.

 

Stinky tells Periwinkle they will be starting with the oldest dinosaurs.

Triassic Period Dinosaurs

The Triassic period (250 to 203 million years ago) saw the first dinosaurs and is the beginning of the dinosaur evolution ladder. Before the Triassic Era there were large reptiles. The dinosaurs of the Triassic era were much smaller than in the later periods as well.

 

 

The Lessemsaurus was present on the earth about 213 to 205 million years ago. These were slow moving, quadrupeds and herbivores. Their diet consisted of plants, leaves, shrubs and grasses. The Lessemsaurus was a fairly large creature with adults growing to 29.5 to 32.8 feet and weighing from about 6,613 pounds to 8,818 pounds. Although this size seems substantial, the largest sauropods could weigh as much as 10 times more.

“Stinky, I cannot imagine a creature 10 times bigger than this one and weighing around 80,000 pounds. It sure would have to eat a lot,” Periwinkle exclaims.

 

 

Pterosaurs means winged lizards. They were reptiles…not dinosaurs, and they hold a unique place in the history of life here on earth. Also known as pterodactyls, they existed around 225 million years ago. Pterosaurs’ brain had more advanced coordination centers as compared to other reptiles. This helped them to find their prey easily. Pterosaurs might have been of two different types: Early Pterosaurs had long tails and could not fly. Tails grew shorter over time. The later Pterosaurs had rows of sharp pointed teeth, long jaws and a flexible neck. The main similarity between these two Pterosaurs is their warm-blooded metabolism. The Pterosaurs differed in size from a few inches to over 35 to 40 feet. Some dinosaurs, which came later than Pterosaurs, were regarded as closely related to Pterosaurs.

“Stinky, I know I climbed on the Lessemdarus with you, but I think you should get down. What if that guy decides to fly away?”

Stinky giggles and reminds Periwinkle this is only an exhibition. She tells him that it’s hard to remember that, as these creatures look so real.

Jurassic Period Dinosaurs

The Jurassic period took place 203 to 135 million years ago. For the most part, the dinosaurs during that period were very large.

 

 

The Dilophosaurus was an early Jurassic dinosaur. It existed about 199 to 189 million years ago. It was a carnivorous, bipedal dinosaur, which was moderately large in size, growing to an average of 19 to 24 feet and a weight of 1,102 to 1,322 pounds. The most prominent features of the Dilophosaurus were the ridges present on its skull. Though these ridges formed a large part of the Dilophosaurus’ head, they are believed to be embellishments. They were too fragile to be used as a weapon.

“Stinky, are you going to climb on every dinosaur?”

“Maybe,” says Stinky as he winks at Periwinkle.

 

 

The Stegosaurus (roof lizard) existed during the late Jurassic period, approximately 150 million years ago. They were generally herbivorous by nature. It had a characteristic presence of two rows of large bony-like plates on their back and a tail that had spikes. The head was generally small when compared to body size. The Stegosaurus was 30 feet long, 14 feet tall and weighed up to five tons. It is surprising to realize that Stegosaurus operated itself even though its brain was the size of a walnut and weighed only 2.8 ounces. The presence of the plates are believed to be used for defensive purposes, as they were hunted by larger predators. There were several species of stegosaurus.

“See Periwinkle, isn’t it fun to climb on these dinos?”

“Yes, it is, Stinky; though, we need to be careful that this guy doesn’t knock us off when he whips that spikey tail around.”

“Come on, Periwinkle, it’s time to move on to the Cretaceous period,” Stinky says as he helps her down from the Stegosaurus.

Cretaceous Period of Dinosaurs

The Cretaceous Period was the last period of three, which made up the Mesozoic Era. It was during this time, which ended close to 65 million years ago, when dinosaurs last ruled the Earth. During this time period the look and environment of our planet began to change into the world of today. At the end of the Cretaceous period modern animals began to appear.

 

 

The Deinonychus (formidable claw) was a bipedal dinosaur present during the early Cretaceous period and lived about 118 to 108 million years ago. It belonged to the group of dinosaurs more closely related to birds. The Deinonychus was a carnivore, and its body was probably covered by feathers. It was a medium-sized theropod, with an adult length of about eight feet and weight of 100 to 150 pounds. This dinosaur stood about three feet tall. It was evidently a fast, agile predator whose large brain enabled it to perform relatively complex movements during the chase and kill. Swamps and marshes were its habitat.

“Periwinkle, if we each jumped on a different one of these guys, we could race,” Stinky says. Now it is Periwinkle’s opportunity to remind Stinky that this is only an exhibition.

 

 

Probably the best known of all dinosaurs, the Tyrannosaurus Rex (king of the tyrant lizards), lived on earth 90 to 66 million years ago. It had perhaps the largest brain of any dinosaur and a keen sense of smell. Its head & jaws were large in proportion to its body and small arms. Forward facing eyes helped T. Rex judge distances well. T. Rex was a carnivore that feasted on herbivorous dinosaurs. It had serrated teeth with the largest being a foot long. The T. Rex replaced its teeth on a regular basis, dropping old teeth, much like sharks. The largest most complete fossil find, Sue, measured 42 feet long, and 13 feet tall at the hip.They weighed 11,000 to 15,500 pounds and could sprint at up to 20 miles per hour.

“This is the biggest thing I have ever seen, Periwinkle, but look at those silly little arms,” Stinky says with a giggle.

 

 

Triceratops also existed during the late Cretaceous Period (83.5 million to 66 million years ago) and lived in herds. This dinosaur resembled a rhinoceros in some ways. It had three horns and a solid, armor-like shield around the neck. They had big cheek pouches to grab and eat mouthfuls of food. Adults were 9.5 to 9.8 feet in height, 26 to 30 feet in length and weighed 13,000 to 26,000 pounds. These were the last dinosaurs dated before extinction, making them the last species of these enormous lizards.

“Hey, Periwinkle, this guy is a hat thief. He must have a sense of humor.”

 

 

The Parasaurolophus was a herbivore from the late Cretaceous period (76 to 73 million years ago). It is from a unique family of dinosaurs, the hadrosaurid family. Dinosaurs from this group had strange shaped heads with a cranial crest, resembling a long, curved tube, projecting upwards and back from the skull. It stood 16 feet high with a length of 33 to 36 feet and weighed from 6,000 to 8,000 pounds.

“Stinky, this is the strangest creature I have ever seen. I bet it’s hard for this fellow to see around that big thing on his head.”

 

 

“Stinky, come quick. Look at the Parasaurolophus eggs and babies. They are so cute. Do you think we can each take one home and raise it?”

“Periwinkle, your mom won’t even let you keep a tiny lizard. I’m pretty certain she won’t let you have a dinosaur.”

“Shucks, you’re right. That sucks!”

 

 

The Pachycephalosaurus was a medium-sized, bipedal dinosaur, which lived on the earth from 72 to 66 million years ago. It had long hind limbs, small forelimbs and a length of 14 to 16 feet. It weighed approximately 1,102 pounds. This would make its size comparable to modern day bulls. This dinosaur is known by its extremely thick cranial bones. They were possibly flat in its growing years and formed a dome shape as it matured. The function of this adaptation is debated by scientists. It’s feeding habits are not well established. It possibly was an herbivore or an omnivore—not a meat eating dinosaur.

“Stinky, look at this guy. Now it’s my turn for my hat to be grabbed right off my head.”

“He sure looks silly, Periwinkle. I hope you can get it back.”

A Gift

“Periwinkle, I see you managed to get your hat back. Good job. I also have something for you since you cannot take one of those baby dinos home with you.”

Oh goodie, what is it, Stinky?”

 

“Wow, Stinky, my very own Triceratops. Thank you. It is so cute.”

“I’m happy you like it. Sawyer gave me some of his allowance, and I got a dino stuffy for Noelle as well. But you can’t tell her. Sawyer wants it to be a surprise when it arrives.”

“My lips are sealed. She is going to be so excited. You and Sawyer are the very bestest boyfriends.”

National Selfie Day

In addition to this being adventure day, it is National Selfie Day. With that in mind, Stinky took a special selfie to share with all of you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Oh, Stinky, you are so silly. It looks as if you were swallowed up. This certainly has been another exciting adventure. I never thought in my life that I would see dinosaurs. I think, however, we need to learn to make videos. It would have been so much fun if we could have shown our readers how these dinos moved and let them hear their vocalizations.”

“Periwinkle, that’s definitely something we’ll have to consider for the future. But now it’s time to jump back into our tunnel and head to my house for a snack and a nap.”

Stinky leads Periwinkle to the tunnel, and they are gone with the usual whoosh.

The End

Stinky & Periwinkle are joining the Happy Tuesday blog hop at Comedy Plus.

 

Note: All photos were taken by Tom Blue and used with permission.

2022 INTERNATIONAL BOX DAY “SIT-INS”

Awww Mondays

Yesterday was International Box Day. That’s a holiday Kitties Blue do not like to miss. But with it being both Sunday Selfies and Father’s Day yesterday, they had to wait until today to share their love of boxes. They did receive a new box yesterday, of which Cooper Murphy and Kizmet took advantage.

 

International Box Day sit-ins collage with photo of orange tabby in box and grey cat trying to get in and of grey cat sitting in box.

Kizmet’s second birthday is coming up in a couple of days. With this in mind, she felt entitled to the first “sit-in.” Cooper Murphy did not agree and let her know. Kizmet eventually did get her turn!

The two are participating in the Awww Mondays blog hop at Comedy Plus.

Sparks

My Spark this week has a loose connection to Kitties Blue and International Box Day. I was thinking about how comfortable cats are in boxes. That made me search for a Spark having to do with comfort. This is what I found, and it turned out to be pretty much the opposite of what I expected to post.

 

 

Having “one go-round on this planet” struck a chord with me, as I am drawing closer each day to the end of my go-round. Time is precious.

The author of today’s Spark was unfamiliar to me. Here’s a bit about her. Jen Sincero is a 56-year-old, American speaker, success coach and #1 New York Times bestselling author. She is best known for her You Are a BadAss series.

Sparks is the creation of Annie from McGuffy’s Reader. Sparks began as a blog hop, created by our friend. Annie stated when she began Sparks, “I believe we are meant to be lights in this world. If we allow our light to shine, we can see where we are going. It is then that we can begin to truly see each other clearly. Together, we can light up the entire world.”

The Adventures of Periwinkle & Stinky

Your favorite cartoon tabbies, Periwinkle and Stinky, will be taking their next adventure tomorrow, and Stinky has planned something extra special and super fun. These two enjoy taking you along with them, and I guarantee this is an adventure you do not want to miss. So, please plan to meet them right here tomorrow for an exciting time!