This is my Space!

This is Darwin's space. A guest towel on the edge of my bed. He is quite comfy sitting and sleeping there, as you can see. Of course, Shadow never gets to try it on for size!

A Good Match!

Shadow says: "I am black, your Dr. Martens are black, we make an excellent match!"

All Day!!

I can do this do this all day, Shadow thinks.......

Stop Thief!!!

This is what happens when I leave my bag unattended. I had no clue Darwin was such a scoundrel.....

Close The Door!

Darwin is just too intelligent for his own fur.

He has been bum rushing my bedroom door for months. Sometimes I shut Darwin and Shadow out because I need some "me time", and Darwin detests that!

However, lately he's been trying a new tactic. When I'm getting ready for work he dashes into my bedroom and hides. Knowing full well I can't leave for work if I can't get him out of my room.......

By accident one night I slammed the door closed and walked away. I came back five minutes later and he was sitting right on the other side of the door begging to get out!  So now when he does the last minute bum rush I know exactly what to do. Close the door!

=^^=

Something New

I think I had mentioned before that Darwin and Shadow do not like my cast. Neither do I for that matter.

However, Shadow chose to show further distain by attempting to use my cast as a scratching post! Of course, I've got proof!

National Black Cat Appreciation Day

In honor of National Black Cat Appreciation Day I present to you, my Black Cat named Shadow. Isn't he handsome? Yes, he's scowling because he detests being photographed. But, that's the deal. If you live with me you automatically agree to have your picture taken multitudinous times....

=^^=

Kitty Placemats!

Lately, feeding time for Darwin and Shadow has been like slopping the hogs.

To me cats have always been delicate and dainty eaters. Nay, not these two. Shadow started it first by using his right front paw to reach into his bowl scoop food out, put it on the floor then eat it. Of course that created a mess and attracted cocarachas......

If that wasn't bad enough Darwin started doing the same thing. What was I to do?

I just happened to have a couple of fancy place mats which I tried out. Voilà! No more feeding time mess!

P.S.  Yes, those are my loud black and pink running shoes........

=^^=

Mr. Dreadlock Back

I've been waiting for a long time to do this. You see, because Darwin has thick fur and is unable to groom his back, he had a series of dreadlock like mats on his back.

I was perfectly willing to groom him with a brush but he would take numerous swings at me (claws out) or attempt to bite both me and said brush.

So today at feeding time I took the radical step of giving him a hair cut. While he was occupied with tuna, I took a scissors and cut all of the unsightly clumps off.

Now he has this nice bald strip down his back but no more dreadlocks....

=^^=

These Are Not Toys!

Last week was a bang up week for me. Ever heard that saying: "I can get into enough trouble all by myself."?

Well, I did just that. Long story short. I tripped fell and dislocated my right pinky. This meant a trip to the Emergency Room, a battary of X-rays, a doctor popping the finger back, more X-rays, a splint on said digit and a trip home with a half ream of papers and a hurtin' hand.

I get home and Darwin and Shadow take one whiff and scat. Why? The antiseptic odor, plus said splint was scary looking.

This is like the sixth day of this ordeal and I've been trying to work my hand and bend my finger. I found the hand therapy balls I'd picked up from a neighborhood Chinese shop years ago. I took them out and guess who wanted to play with them?

The black nose should be a clue.

I tell you, life is certianlly more interesting with cats...... Especially with Darwin and Shadow.

=^^=

Cease Fire!

An anonymous general once said. "Peace is when both enemies stop to reload."

This is Shadow and Darwin reloading.

=^^=

Coconspirators!

You know your feline family members have settled in when. They start learning bad habits from one another.

Ever since Darwin settled down and began to trust and love me he stuck to me like glue and followed me everywhere. Yes, even to the "throne room"....

Sometimes my bedroom is forbidden to him because I need some privacy. Namely, to sleep in peace without having to referee a feline version of a WWF cage fight match.....

However, I've noticed lately that when he knows I'm headed up the hall to my bedroom, Darwin will dash up the hallway, sit and wait at my bedroom door. Yes, like a dog! When I open the door, up he jumps up on to his favorite corner on my bed. I'll leave the door open and Shadow will slink in a minute or so later and join him.

But, I've noticed for the past few weeks Darwin has been doing what I call "The Kitty Bum Rush". Meaning as soon as I open the door a crack, he will rush in like a defensive linebacker! This has become very annoying especially when I must leave for work, or any other outside activity, as I keep my bedroom door closed. I've learned from previous feline house mates that they will absolutely trash my bedroom, so......

Previously I thought Darwin was the only one I had to watch out for. Apparently not. This week Shadow was caught in the act of doing the very same thing! Three times he bum rushed my bedroom door like Darwin, and gained entrance because I didn't expect him to do that! Obviously Shadow learned that from Darwin....

Now, I've got TWO stinkers to watch out for......  ::sigh::

Rear View

I call this "Downward Facing Cat". Darwin has his face towards the fan. Poor things get hot, too...

Good Boy!

It's been over a year and I see marked improvement in Shadow's eating behavior.

For example I've noticed he no longer growls while he eats. He no longer snarfs down his food in less than a minute. He no longer goes after Darwin's food immediately after finishing his. In fact, when Shadow finishes his meal, he leaves the kitchen like he has been taught to do. Instead of hanging around to intimidate Darwin.

This is progress.

However I've noticed other things. Shadow hates cat food with gravy. I guess the cat food manufacturers thought some foods would be more appealing if they had sauce. Shadow no like. I've caught him using his right paw to tease out the meat chunks and eat them, leaving the sauce behind. I would've never expected this from "Sir Greedy Gut".

=^^=

Laptop Companion

Every since I've come out of the dark ages by purchasing Samsung smartphone and tablet I have not used my laptop.

This also means I have not been sitting at my desk. An act which brings back bitter sweet memories because my angel kitty Spiral would always lay across my feet when I did. It was his way of letting me know he loved me and kept me company. It also kept my feet warm during the Winter months.

However, in this age of smart phones and tablets there are still times where you must use a laptop. That was yesterday.

As soon as I sat down and booted up "Dancing Eagle" my laptop (yes, I name my devices), I discovered I had a visitor at my feet. None other than Darwin.....

I just so happened to have my cellphone handy and snapped this photo! His scowl of disapproval is priceless....

Picky, Picky, Picky!

We feline lovers know that cats are picky. Having lived with felines for going on thirty years I well aware of the fact that cats are experts at being finicky.

Here are some of the things my cats Darwin and Shadow don't like.

1.    Boxes. That's right, boxes. "But every cat loves boxes", you protest. Nope, not mine. Since I didn't have any handy boxes at home I went to my local Post Office an picked up two freebie shipping boxes. I brought them home, set them up and the things litterly began to gather dust from disuse.

2.    Shopping bags. I figured if they didn't like boxes how about their brown paper cousins? Tempting Trader Joe's shopping bags were purposely left around the living room, but like the boxes, had no takers....

3.    Tuna. Now every cat loves fish right? Yes, mine love fish but they do not like tuna. I've even tried tempting them with Human tuna, to no avail....

4.  Still water. I used to put out bowls of water and discovered they were not drinking from them. Where were Darwin and Shadow drinking from? The bathtub faucet that drips!

5.  My sneezing. All I have to do is sneeze once and Shadow gets out of Dodge! Darwin on the other hand tells me "gezuntheight" after every sneeze.

6.    Aluminum foil. Darwin has this special aversion to aluminum foil. He hates the sound of it being rolled and ripped off the roll and will flee for dear life, even if he is eatting!

7.    Brushing. Darwin still hates being touched, though he does allow me to pet him a bit. However he detests being brushed. When I try to brush Darwin he bites the brush and tries to bite and scratch moi. As a result he has a dreadlock on his back.... The last time this happened I had to cut it off with scissors. Reminding me of  "The Lion Whisperer" cutting bandages off a lions paws..... 

You've got to Google him, folks! He's amazing!

Well. There you go. Two strange cats but I love 'em to bits.

Dawn
=^^=

The Breakfast of Champions

I went grocery shopping yesterday and lo and what did I find. Breakfast for cats! That's right! So, while you eat eggs and bacon you can feed your kitties the same.

So I grabbed a couple of cans and toted them home to my slave masters. They eagerly awaited whilest verberly protesting that I was taking far too long to feed them.

How'd they like it? Shadow like that Mickey commercial eats anything. Darwin ate very little. I'm not surprised because he also hates tuna. So, Shadow won out because he scarfed his portion as well as Darwin's.

Later on after I woke up I found further evidence on the living room floor that Darwin hated the stuff. He'd hacked all up. What a mess.....

No more Kittie breakfast for Darwin. I'll just have to feed him something else. And I'll give the remaining cans to my favorite cat rescue shop.

=^^=

Don't Sneeze!

I mentioned previously that Darwin meows every time I sneeze. He lives to hang out with me and due to allergies, I have those accursed sneezing spells. And Darwin will literally meow each time I sneeze.

Shadow on the other hand, will flee the area at the first sneeze! Perhaps he doesn't want me to sneeze on him or he doesn't like the sound, but he definitely gets in the wind.

By the way, I also discovered that Shadow is terrified of the sound of aluminum foil..... No matter how I try to sneak and pull a sheet off of the roll, the second he hears the crinkle, he's gone! 

Amazing, his Shadow thinks of himself as the leader of the pack and he is afraid of everything. Except food......

=^^=

Lookit That Puss

Good grief! What kind of expression is that? 

I caught Darwin sleeping and snoring away, but as soon as I readied the camera..... well you see what happened.

Isn't This Cute?

After nearly a year, I've noticed something about my two fur babies. They are tremendously loving one minute the next they are in mortal combat.

Take Tuesday for example. I came home exhausted from work and hit the rack. As usual both Darwin (gray) and Shadow (black) sleep with me. Why do you let them you ask? Because if I don't they beg at my bedroom door. The begging sounds like this..... yeeooowwww, yeeooowwww, yeeooowwww.....  You get the picture.

So, to avoid the drama..... Like that Beatles song. "Someone's knocking on the door, someone's ringing the bell, do me a favor, open the door and let 'em in...." 

I digress...

I was awakened several times by those two duking it out on my bed while I was asleep. I finally woke up and tossed both of them out. Both went snarling and hissing down the hallway to finish the battle elsewhere. I, went back to sleep....

Yesterday, I could not believe after all of the fighting the two combatants artery caught snuggling. As proof I snapped a few pictures.

Isn't this just the sweetest thing you've ever seen?

=^^=

Dog Food?

I've had cats for over thirty years and I've never once made the mistake of feeding them the wrong food. Last week I did.

And the poor things didn't know any better. Both Shadow and Darwin are rescue cats taken from the mean streets of New York City so to them food is food.

They just done like the holistic style food I give them. They'd rather the commercial gar-bage that has tons of chemicals and ash in it......   which is not good for male cats who have been spayed. Causes what used to be called FUSS.....  urinary tract obstruction.  Which is a very serious condition because the cat cannot urinate and must be operated on.

I had that happen to one of cats in the past, since then I've been very careful of what I feed my babies.

I digress, I think someone in this store needs to learn the difference between cat and dog foods. In most of the stores I frequent. Dog and cat foods are in different sections so they don't get mixed up like this.....

I'm glad they didn't put the human tuna with the cat food tuna......

=^^=

He's Dead Jim....

Poor Darwin! He looks like he is Dead but he's actually asleep.  I'd love to scratch his tummy but he has yet to reach the stage where I can scratch him there.

He just tolerates a few pat's on his head, only if I allow him to smell my hand first like a dog! You'd think he'd learned to trust me by now. Poor damaged Kitty.

Speaking of damage, I discovered recently that the tip of Darwin's tail is broken. I dread considering how that happened. Well, he's safe now. I hope he starts to settle in soon.

=^^=

Kitty Unity

Apparently the only time Shadow and Darwin are at unity is when they are both in the land of Nod.......

=^^=

Not Ready For Prime Time

"Mommy, I told you not to take that picture!" Shadow says.

Things I've Noticed

Like a mother, I've noticed certain things about my fur babies. I've had them for nearly a year and I'm still learning about their different traits.

Shadow still will not play nice when he eats. When I feed Darwin and Shadow, I still have to monitor them both. Shadow still tries to steal food from Darwin.

I've also noticed that Shadow growls when he eats. Yes, he growls like a dog. He went through that period when I'd first brought Darwin home. Poor Dar would panic and run, which was exactly what Shadow wanted.  Now, when Shadow growls Darwin looks at him like he's nuts and goes back to eating. Progress.

I've also started training Shadow not to growl. I use a fly swattered to tap them with when they are naughty. So, when Shadow growls I gently tap him on his head and tell him "no". He's slowly getting the message.

Note this only happens when I feed them canned food. Dry food I can leave and they will be civil.

I've also discovered that Darwin doesn't like tuna. What cat doesn't like tuna? Unfortunately  poor Darwin does. He will eat a bit of it and walk away. He like sardines and macrel tho.

He tends to eat a bit then does the litter box scratch on the floor to let me know It's yucky. But lately when I tell him eat a little more, he does.

I know, I sound like a momma with two kids. Well, I do have kids. Fur kids.....

=^^=

Hear Ear...

I noticed the other day that Darwin is missing a tiny piece of his right ear. Since he was a rescue kitty, it could've been the result of a fight or an accident.

Funny they never mentioned it on his papers. Fiesty as he is, he probably never let anyone  get close enough to see. On any given day if you try to pet or touch Darwin, he acts like  "Cat Scratch Fever" is his personal theme song. He's all lightening quick claws and an occasion nip. The total opposite of Shadow who is an attention whore......

Darwin is starting to trust me a lot more now, and lets me touch him a little more.  So, like the typical human cat momma, I noticed......

An Author's Cat

Shadow shows he is a true author's cat. Here he's not playing with a catnip toy, but my pens and my reading glasses.......

A Reminder

I guess this is Shadow's way of reminding me to read my Bible........

Do Cats Need Teddy Bears?

Apparently Darwin does! And hes taken a liking to my favorite Beany Baby!  Sigh, what's a human mother of Kitty cats to do? Let him slumber with it I say.....

My, My!

My, my. What have we here? First Shadow and Darwin  detest and fight with one another, then they use each other as pillows? One never knows with cats.....

I Gotha!

Shadow reminds me of Biscuit.  He detested taking photos and would run if he had a chance to do so. Shadow is more of an eye closer or back turner. But, this time I got him!

Shadow's Turn to Watch

Apparently it's Shadow's turn to play Sentry Cat. My, what a big  and shiny butt he has......

Darwin Decides to Hang With Mum

Every time I decide to use my laptop computer at my desk instead of my tablet or phone Darwin is not far away. He reminds me so much of Spiral who used to lay ON my feet......

Sentry Cat

Every once in a while Darwin believes he must guard me. From what, I do not know....

A First For 2014!

This is the first ever photo of Shadow with him facing the camera and with one eye open. Of course, he was being his normal lazy-puss self and was taking a nap.......

1st New Years Photos

I'm starting off 2014 right by posting a few photos of my furfaces.  I caught Darwin (gray) while he was napping. I caught.... well tried to take a photo of Shadow (black). Did I mention that he hate taking photos and either closes hus eyes or turns his head.... Feh!