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Haiku: An Unlikely Friendship Emerges

A sweet peck on the cheeks, a nose to nose greeting, perhaps a game of chase a bit later. One of them is twice the size of the other but in recent months, Charlie and Sarabi have formed a friendship that is quite odd, yet endearing to watch.

At 20 pounds, with a large set head, cheeks and jaw line that resembles an unneutered Tom’s, this large lad could easily rule the Chirpy roost. Instead, Charlie is a huge cuddle bug and chief biscuit maker, always bowing his head in submission to the Chief Social Facilitator, Mr. Jack, asking for head boops and grooms. His physique bears testimony to the much-touted phrase “he’s not fat, he’s just big-boned, because, well, he truly is big boned!

The cats are sleeping, the house is quiet. Oh, I forgot, it’s noon and it’s sleepy kitty time, that explains the absence of paws over my keyboard. Either that or perhaps the Chirpies are sleeping off the effects of the impromptu catnip pawty that happened upon my return from the BlogPaws conference in Myrtle Beach yesterday. As soon as I unzipped my suitcase, cats came rushing from all corners to investigate.

Mr. Jack, (CCSF) Chief Chirpy Social Facilitator, was the first to grab hold of the catnip banana and catnip ball still in the packaging. This catnip candy was the bee’s knees and all the cats got into something or other, seemingly forgiving me for leaving them for a few days.

“If this is what you bring home Lady Cat, then you have our approval to attend in the future!”

It’s time to pack for BlogPaws!

The Lady Cat is off to the BlogPaws Conference and we had fun while she was scurrying around like a mad hatter; sorting, packing, rearranging, re-sorting and repacking her suitcase. Through it all, we had lots of places to hide, sniff, gallop and stare in amusement. There was nothing odd about this situation, except that she kept shooshing us out of the suitcase, muttering words like “no cat hair please!” and “not on these clothes!”

“Hello girlfriend, you’re the queen of cat hair, so what’s up?”

Celebrate a little verse of nonsense, Happy National Limerick Day!

There is nothing like reading a good bit of nonsense verse to take you away from the swirling vortex of insanity in which our busy lives have us entrapped! Just like watching a YouTube cat video or a funny cat meme gives you the chuckles, a funny limerick always lightens the mood. Today is National Limerick Day which honors the birthday of English artist, author, poet and illustrator, Edward Lear, born in 1812. Limericks were popularized in his “Book of Nonsense” in 1846 and in it, “The Owl and the Pussy Cat” stands out as one of the more memorable verses from my childhood. Why would a carnivore and a bird want to marry and sail away in a pea green boat? Were they eloping? Were they just free-spirited bohemians who defied society’s conventions? The ambiguity and quirkiness of these poems make it all the more silly and has prompted me to write a few of my own. The protagonist for my limericks is none other than our resident class clown, Mr. Jack. Why him? Because if he were sitting in that pea green boat, they would never have “sailed away for a year and a day”. No, he would have blown the five-pound note on catnip and partied all night long with his friends.

earth day cat cartoon save the planet — Jimmy wants to remind you that the earth is fragile and we all need to do our bit and use our natural resources wisely.

“What did those last grains of rice do to you?”

To this day I hear my mother’s voice in my head, reprimanding us kids for leaving the last few morsels of food on our plates. She used to make frozen food parcels for the homeless from good leftovers. The parcels were even personalized for those whom she knew had dogs and would be labeled, “for Terrance and McGuyver (his dog)”. This duo was one of our regulars and they used to sit on the curb enjoying whatever it was, that was once a family meal. In our home, food and water wastage were a big no-no.

As a teenager, I used to roll my eyes and think what a nuisance they are, these vagabonds, who kept coming back like a colony of stray cats. Grumbling under my breath, I would be ordered to make them peanut butter sandwiches when there were no leftovers to give. How selfish was I, who thought that only my little bubble was all that mattered?

How not to grow catnip, this kitty has it all wrong!

Hello, friends! It’s me Sly Pie. You might be wondering why I’m sitting here in the catnip basket. Well, my friend Ollie told me that if I sit in the basket long enough, I will incubate the catnip seeds so that it will germinate quickly! I’m not quite sure about that but it’s worth a try. I’ll do anything for catnip!

Easter time is exciting for us because we know that very soon we will have our colorful kitty jungle in the catio. The Big Lady Cat always talks about how catnip can enrich your cat’s life and let me tell you, I couldn’t agree more! In my cat thesaurus, cat environment enrichment is two beautiful words: Nepeta Cataria. Catnip lifts me up into a euphoric frenzy that’s hard to explain, it feels so good! I wish you could try it but I heard that catnip has a more sedative and calming effect on humans. Catnip tea anyone?

Birthday Sunday Selfie, Earl Grey turns 16!

He goes by many names, each suited to his build and demeanor. In the early days, he was Ninhsy, Fat Boy Slim, then just Slim. His confidence earned him the nicknames ‘Lion King’ and ‘Puma Boy’ for his gorgeous silver ‘eyeliner’. These days he is Earl Grey. The latter, not just because of coat coloring, but because if he could, he would be sipping tea, reading the Catnip Times through thick-rimmed spectacles. And he would even call it that.

But today is his 16th Birthday and the cat with many names wears his crown with pride.

What is Your Cat Really Thinking?

Instead of our Marvelous Monday Haiku, we present something a little different on this marvelous Monday morning. We know humans are always wondering what us cats are thinking. You write books about “thinking like a cat,” you Google things like “Why does my cat do this or that?” But to tell you the honest to whiskers truth, there is no secret to know what we want. We’re constantly demonstrating our needs. We drop hints and signs everywhere, and if that’s not enough, many of us vocal cats (myself included) speak our minds! For the most part, you get us. There is no mystery to why we chase the red dot… it’s red, it moves randomly and we like to chase things.

We’re not very different you and I. Both curious by nature; perhaps that is why you are attracted to our species, Felis Catus, in the first place.

I think the human-cat relationship is something special because you have come to understand that one most vital thing about us; that we have never been fully domesticated and we are still very much in tune with our wild roots. We know you like that about us. So in honor of our special bond, here is a poem which summarizes my kitty thoughts …. just in case you were still wondering.

2017 BlogPaws finalists – that’s something to chirp about!

We are delighted that Chirpy Cats has made it as one of the finalists in the 2017 BlogPaws Nose-to-Nose Pet Blogging and Social Media Awards. It’s such an honor to be rubbing paws with some very talented bloggers in this wonderful community of pet bloggers.

I came to know about BlogPaws in early 2016 through their Social Learning Community and I have met so many like-minded pet people that “just get it”. We have virtually met and made friends with pet bloggers from around the world. From the most wonderfully wacky, incredibly cute, to the zaniest and adventurous, haughtily snarky, and just plain hilarious; we have crossed paths and paws, and befriended many. To know that we are not alone in this fun pet blogging journey and that there is a supportive platform from which to learn, to grow and to collaborate, makes it all worthwhile.

Marvelous Monday Haiku: Someday my Spring will come!

It’s the first day of Spring and we are marking this fresh new beginning with some Marvelous Monday Haiku to get you started on the right footing. If you’re anything like The Big Lady Cat, you are still recovering from the Daylight Savings Time clock change debacle and your Mondays will still be tinged with “meh”. There is nothing worse than a blue-tinged Monday, except I think when your catio is still paw-deep in snow and you have to wade through it because the humans won’t shovel it. But never mind, we are positive and looking on the bright side; we will soon be seeing the buds on the vine and saying goodbye to our white-tinged catio.

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