Mancat Monday

MARLEY: Today I am being Mancatly by doin some HUNTING!  Im waiting fer the frogs to come up out of the pond again.  I sneak up on the pond carefully, but I missed the first one I pounced at and they all dove inta the water.  It takes some getting-used-to ta grab things that jump randomly and then can hide in water.

So I sit next ta the pond quietly fer a few minnits til they have ta come up ta breathe.  It helps ta sit on soft weeds and then have a nice quiet rock ta step onto when they do show up again.

I'd rather catch a mousie, but they just dont come out in midday even when I sing my mousie song to them.

Easy Like Sunday

AYLA:  I had a VERY good Sunday today.  After Marley came in for lunch, he decided to stay in fer a couple hours and take it Easy with me.

I allus like it when he spends time relaxin with me.  

He may be my little brother by age, but hes my big brother by size (and warmth)!

Photobomb

MARLEY:  Well, I finally did it again.  I dont often do it.  I dint even MEAN to this time.  But I did.

At least it was a really impressive one...

I had an excuse (what intelligent cat doesnt fer annything an evrything).  I smelled chicken on TBTs food table an hadda go investigate.

But it was just napkin grease!  Grrr...  Besides, he had some fruit up there too.  And wine, which is practicly the same stuff.  So I left.

I gotta get up there earlier next time!

Garden Tour Thursday

IZA:  Thanks fer comin to our garden tour this week.  I have good things ta show.

The Asters and Sedums are bloomin.  The asters get a bit flobby.  I KEEP tellin TBT they need a fence ta support them.  Each year he agrees but fergets.

There is a lot of those Asters.  An they really ARE pretty.

The Mums were late to start, but are really startin to show off.  

 The PINK asters are bloomin too. 

Ya gotta admire those Zinnias, they been bloomin since June!  More of those next year.

Im pretty sure this is a weed, but I kinna like it.  I told TBT to leave it be there.  Iffen it spreads, he will have to pull it up, but I hope it doesnt.

The Hydrangea are fading.   They are neat though.  They opened white, turned pinkish, then green.

Well, lets do something a bit different this week.  Lets all sit on the top of the deck rails where we can see all the garden.  TBT says he will bring out a constant offerring of dry treats an evrykitty will have their own small bowl of freash crushed Nip leafs from our yard!

Almost Werdless Wensday

IZA:  Occupied, Marley!!!

Out With The Old!

IZA:  I am SO thrilled!  The old Ess was SO ripped up, I could hardly get a grip on it anymore...  Obviously, I only use the top curve.

I dont know about you, but I like the UP part of the top and the UP part of the bottom. I ripped up that bottom pretty good too.

The low parts dont innerest me at all.  Well, OK, sometimes I sit on the low parts.

So LOOK what showed up...  A BRAND NEW ESS!!!

Oh bootiful new Ess, I love you so...  I will rip you apart with care and love.

There is even a brand new toy unnerneath that looks like it MIGHT stay attached (the old one came loose evry time I tried to play with it).

Here they are side-by-side.  Quite a difference, huh?

I like the sleek new bloo look, too!  

Naturally, I went right to werk on the new one...

Sorry iffen Im a bit blurry there, but I was pretty active.

Nothin like somethin new ta get the workout goin...

I did stop an take a look at the old one fer a minnit.  Lots of great memories there, and it deserved some thanks fer all the good times.  So "thank you old Ess", but goodbye. 

OK, enough of THAT, back to the new one!

TBT says he is gonna try to remove the old carpet an cut new carpet ta glue to the old ESS.  Good luck on THAT!  Bet THAT wont last a week with ME.

Oh, um, yeah, Thanks TBT fer it.  I better tell him that.

Mancat Monday

MARLEY:  Most times, I stay out in the rooms with TBT or on the big waterbed with Ayla to keep her company.  But sometimes I curl up in the cat tree cubbys cuz I can watch TBT and several rooms. 

An when Iza is on the waterybed with Ayla (which does happen),  its the best place to snoopervise TBT knowin Ayla has catpanionship...

I just keep my special Mancat Watch over the house from here for a while.  

I'm not nappin!  I just try ta watch when no one thinks I am.  Notice that my ears are forward-listenin.  I can see TBT in his chair at the TV, the deck door, the kitchen, an the top of the stairs from here.

See how a the tiny sound of a moth at the deck door brought me to full alertness?   I am allus watchful!

Easy Like Sunday

MARLEY:  We have decided ta take turns showing off our Easy Like Sunday.  TBT took these pictures mid-morning after I had come in from my early morning outside trip (which is a pretty rare event cuz TBT considers annything before noon as "late night").  But I enjoyed seeing the sunlight and shadows being in differnt places and ran around a lot.  So I was a bit worn out by noon this time.

I WAS movin around a bit, and that may not seem like "Easy", but I remember chasing froggies an they are pretty active ta catch.  Mebbe I should call this "Pleasant Like Sunday", but TBT said not ta mess with "tradition".  OK, Im an agreeable type.

Hope ya all have a great Easy an happy dreamins...

A Little Nice Speech

TBT:  The Cat Blogosphere is international.  Sometimes "we" get comments in languages "we" (sadly) do not understand, sometimes we get translated comments into English that take some thought to understand.  Any failure of understanding is on my part, of course.  More people can read and speak "English" than I can other languages. 

So I thought this a good time to say thank you to them...

Dankie -Afrikaans
Ke a leboga -Sepedi
Danke - Dutch
ngyabonga -zulu
Merci -french
Gracias-Spanish
Obrigado-Portugese
grazi- Italian
Spasibo- Russian
doumo arigatou- Japanese

There were more, but it was either 10 languages or 1,000 and I thought 1,000 too many to post.  I do apologize for those not mentioned, but trust us here at Mark's Mews that we appreciate the comments and do our best to see the care in your words...

Flashback Friday

AYLA:   Since TBT been runnin around a lot the past few days, we dont have anny pictures ta show.  So I did him a favor and looked at what we had last year at this time.  Naturally, I mainly looked for pictures of ME!

These 2 seemed real nice..

I really LOVE nappin, especially with a good fevver toy.

Talk Like A Pirate Day

OLD ONE-EYE IZA HERE:

Avast, ya scuppers, be One-Eye Iza here representin fer the crew.  Ye be bothering to show yer blades ta us an ye'll pay.  Iffen ya see a ship with our flag...

ya best let it be left alone.  Fer we have the heads of huge owls an giants rats who have tried their luck against us linin our fos'cle an bowsprits and their bodies hangin down the rudder!

Me eye, ya dare ask?  Well, that could get yer claws clipped matey, but Im in a good mood with the Nip being handed round so easly tonite.  Yes, ah, its good ta be in port again...

Oh, I was sayin...  It were a hard fight with the weasels aboard the their flagship, 'The Lying Words', and they were screamin at us ta beat the battens.  But we knew we could take them in spite of all their weaselly werds. 

We boarded them afore they were ready and met them claw to claw!  As Captain, I found theirs and we clawed it out up an down the riggins.  He got a claw in me eye as I got mine in his belly an pulled up wif all me might.  It was over when he fell like a chewed kibble, and his crew caved like mousies trapped in a bafftub!!!

I felt kindlier to the weasel crew.  They be chicken-farmer scuppers drugged and forced inta ship labor.  All they ever wanted ta be was home.  And I LOVE chicken!  But there be a law of the sea.  Ya crew an fight, there be the judgement of the WATER!

I made them lubbers walk the plank, my sword poking their butts sharply.  But I made sure there was a raft below an I knew the waves we all trust would take them to the shore soon enough.

But now we be off in questin fer another ship of the giant rats, and we feel no mercy of Neptune ta THEM!  I be keepin my one good eye at the 'scope watchin fer the Cheese Flag...

Be there calm seas an frightened crews on the vessels ye board!!!

Wordless Wensday

Not Tummy Tuesday (or yes)

IZA:  We found this gorgeous flutterby in the garden today an I decided we could pass up my usual Tuesday Tummy shot to show it.

It was on the Autumn Joy Sedums.  An (amazingly) TBT was holdin the camera just in his hands.  Sometimes he gets lucky.

I can pass up my weekly tummy shot for THAT.

But heres an older tummy shot of Ayla with her Plague Rat so I hope that will hold you til next week.

You sure dont see HER tummy often...  Can she BEND or WHAT?

Mancat Monday - Froggy Handling

MARLEY:  I mentioned handling frogs recently, but I dint show it well.  Well, today I am doing that.

First, see the head grab?  Thats impawtant.  

 Frogs do a nasty at the other end. Ya want to shake that out of them. 

So always carry them by the head!

Dont worry, it seems they dont have teeth...

The neck is OK, especially when ya want ta get them in the house.  They slightly don't show to the Beins as much that way. But mine is good at spotting me carryin them.  I hope yours is worse.

But ya gotta let them go iffen ya wanna play with them.  Here, ya see me lookin away ta get the froggie ta jump thinkin Im not watchin.

 It never werks fer the froggie.  I'm tappin it ta remind it Im there.

 Sometimes it takes several taps...

OK, its playing dead (an it ISNT).  They DO that.  Moles and mousies squeek and run.  Froggies pretend they are dead.  DONT be fooled.

And BTW the legs are the only really good parts ta eat...