I am SO influenced by you guys. Several of you emailed me to say that Target had some Liberty of London stuff SQUEEEEEE! and I didn’t know what Liberty of London was but it sounded GREAT! and SQUEEish! And so here I am, a few days later, the owner of a Liberty of London mug.
It is fun to think how easily we could be mug twins!
The new cat continues to be kind of a dummy. This morning one of the kids said, “Um, the new cat is eating one of his toys,” and I thought, you know, he was just chewing a catnip mouse or whatever, but NO, when I arrived on the scene there was only an inch or two left of the yard-long piece of yarn we’d tied a ball of crumpled paper to. Cat-toy extraction before 7:00 a.m.—not my favorite way to start the day.
He is intrigued by all the birds outside the window, and he has smacked into the windows several times. SEVERAL TIMES.
Yesterday I went down to do laundry and saw the cat looking down at me from a hole in the ceiling.
Come a little closer: Ceiling Cat needs to administer a paw slap.
Some current contenders for the name: Dim Bulb, Taco Short, Partial Deck, Loose Screw, Head Injury, Death Wish, Teen Boy.
Bee-tee-double-you, this cat experience has totally changed my opinion about returning non-working-out pets to a shelter. Did I mention that our kitty was a return? Well, he was. The people who adopted him first said he was out of control and a danger to young children (because of playing rough). The shelter let me read the form the owners filled out, and it was really clear the owners didn’t like him. But we LOVE him! We LOVE him! I pick him up and SQUEEZE him and kiss his soft head! And he plays GREAT with the kids!
If I’d been the one to return him to the shelter, I know I would have felt AWFUL. Like I was violating my commitment to him. Like he’d languish all his days in a cage because he was a Defective Cat and I couldn’t hack caring for him. But look! In this case, the cat was re-adopted 2 days later by a family he’s PERFECT for! The first family could have suffered through the years with him, but isn’t it nicer for the kitty to have a household that thinks he’s the best cat since cats were invented? If the first family could know what the cat’s fate would be, they’d be RUSHING him to the shelter with NO guilt at all, EAGER to send him to the household where he would be praised and loved and snuggled and where everyone would say, “Oh HI kitty!” as they passed him in the hall. If I ever adopt a cat that doesn’t work out for us, I will rush him back to the shelter, gladly forfeiting the adoption fee as a donation to a worthy cause, so that he can be with the family that will adore him!
DUDE. I bought mugs, teepots, frames, and basically anything I could with this Visa Gift card I’ve been carrying around for weeks. I was waiting to use it on something AWESOME…So Liberty? Here you go!
I also bought Ny some cute sundresses.
I don’t think I realized people returned cats to shelters…aren’t all kittens insane? (Wait ’til Christmas…that’s when the insanity of my Cats became even more FUN.) I became a cat person after owning two of the most awesome (shelter) cats on the planet. Everyone who comes over says my cats are AWESOME. BECAUSE THEY ARE.
And also they’re insane. Like me.
He looks a little long suffering there. It’s as though he’s thinking, ‘Seriously, lady? Your daughter manhandles me like this and all you can do is take pictures?’ I love cats that are expressive like that.
First up- CEILING CAT, awesome.
NEXT- we are going to be mug twins. I have a tiny bit of cash left ($10) to blow on just me and I’m making a Target run this weekend.
I’ve had dumb cats before — and now I really miss my big, dumb oaf…. The nice thing about really dumb cats is that they don’t usually push stuff off of tables to see it fall. The worst thing my dumb kitty ever did was to play in his water — The kind of dumb kitty got his paw stuck in drain in the bathroom sink…
Our apartment is very cat-proofed… thanks to the dumb one.
Sometimes I feel like weeping when you blog about Target finds. Why? Because we DON’T HAVE TARGET in Vermont. It’s the worst thing about this state. Actually, it’s the only real flaw. But it’s a major flaw. So, if you ever take pity on me, you can send me a care package of Target stuff. I’d happily return a package of Vermont stuff. We do have good stuff here, after all.
I still love that cat. Even if you end up calling him Missing Fork Tine or Pilot Light Out or some such.
He is darling.
People return animals to the shelter where I work all the time. Last week we had a dog returned after just a couple of hours. Sometimes there’s a good reason and sometimes people just don’t try hard enough. But even if the reason the animal is returned is dumb, it’s better that the animal isn’t in a home where he’s not fully wanted.
I am so glad you found a cat that fits your family. I see and hear so many bad stories, the success stories really thrill me.
Oh, I love your Liberty of London mug. I have yet to get to Target to see the LoL goodies…your mug is making me wish I was there right now!
Your new cat is STILL adorable.
Great post Swistle! I read it aloud to my sister over the phone and she laughed with me!
Omg, no yarn no dental floss, hide string like that from your cat. We had a kitten and we tied some of his toys to the drop ceiling with floss. He got it down, ate 2 ft of floss, became extremely ill and ended up with a $800 surgery. That was in 1997, I imagine dental floss & partial
intestine extraction surgery prices are higher now. Also the wee tiny rubber bands that come on Barbies and things are mighty dangerous to dumb cats.
We had to return our dog to the shelter after 18 months or so. It was awful. I hope she got the awesomest family in the whole world.
I just feel like that cat is going to be perfect for your house. I grew up in a house with 5 kids and I think it takes a special kind of pet to be able to deal with all of that. Your cat looks totally ready for that.
Don’t you kind of wish you could call up the older owner and tell them the cat is in a great place?
We took in a 6 year old basset hound from some people who had to get rid of it (they were having their first grandchild and the son-in-law didn’t think it should be around dogs). Anyway, Cleo (the dog) went from being the pampered, spoiled only thing in the house to living with 7 people (2 of which were 6) and all of the friends, etc that end up in a house like that. I was always amazed at how great she did. Turns out she loved kids and would constantly get in the middle of 6 year old slumber parties. Everyone loved her. And while she ended up being a 100% house dog (the deal was that she would be a partial outside dog), she became a part of our family like no other pet we’d had. She got sick when she was 14 (pretty old for a bassett) and the day that my mom had to put her to sleep was one of the hardest days for all of us. (And this is how much everyone loved her, my mom didn’t want her to have to go to the vet to get the shot, so the vet came out to our house-for free-to do it.)
So, I guess my long-winded story is just to tell you that I think your new cat ended up exactly where he should be :)
We have four cats at our house! 2 middle aged bitchy ones, one adolescent crazy one, and one insane kitten. We love them all! They are soooo entertaining. But really, 2 days and they returned him? It usually takes our household about a week and a half before everything gets re-settled after adding a new kitty. Your new Kitty is beautiful, too! I love the coloring!
I would say that last photo shows he is kind of okay with children! Good lord, some cats would leave blood getting out of that hold.
If you ever decide you DON’T want Mr. Cat, please send him to me! Even without seeing him in person, I love him too!
I’m going to go with Teen Boy as the perfect name.
That last photo is seriously cute! If my giant dog wasnt petrafied of cats (the size of his head), I’d so have kitties again.
Our very-tame-kitten also has questionable intelligence. I mean, is she just VERY TAME or is there some DIMNESS in there too? The older she gets, the more it seems like “tame but smart”, but then she plops herself down- purring- in front of a visiting, grabby, 1 year old and I rethink it.
I’m so glad things are working out with him! Today, when I looked at him, he reminded me of a wonderful cat I once knew named Winston. They called him “Winnie” for short.
Boxo. Short for Dumb as a Box o’ Rocks.
He’s awfully cute, though!!
Going to Target right now…I’ve never been one to fight too hard against peer pressure. I’ll be sittin’ here with a pretty mug too, very soon :-)
That picture. So sweet.
I offered up names on your name blog, but now I’ma have to suggest Dumbo. For the obvious reasons. He looks like such a love though. But please be careful with the string/floss issues. Surgery is expensive!
Do you have any idea how good this post made me feel? As someone who (tearfully) returned a cat to the shelter (and got two others a week later), you’ve reassured me that our returnee found herself a good home. I have to believe that or else I’ll tear up again.
I vote for Taco Short. That’s hilarious.
Your cat reminds me of our cat. I tell him all the time, “You’re cute, but you are not so bright.” He’s cross-eyed, a klutz, a pain in the patootie a lot of the time, but our girls love him and he loves them.
We even put up with fleas, worms, and a sinus problem because he’s got such character and a big heart. It took a few months to get him all fixed up…. he was a rescue. A lot can be found here http://3littlegirls-ohmy.blogspot.com/search/label/cat%20for%20N
or if you don’t want to read and just want to see a cute cat, go here http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_dgOxN1ZyWHQ/Ss4bNELXx4I/AAAAAAAAAeo/pkGhKaA2Rio/s1600-h/hold.jpg
Thanks for sharing.
Or, for live links….
story of the “B cat”
cute picture of a cat
Ha ha ha, Teen Boy. Maybe, “Tapioca? As in, for brains, only not quite as insulting?
I laughed so hard I could barely read your post to my husband (who knows you by name now). I needed it. we have 3 cats and one has been anxiously awaiting her spaceship’s return to take her back to her planet. (it’s been almost 9 years!) She scratches the wall near her food bowl…she doesn’t notice when you put food in her bowl but will hunt you down if you are carving up a rotisserie chicken. She stares at nothing. But she is so fluffy and sweet and we just wouldn’t want her to change-ever. Glad new kitty is a good fit for you guys! I bet my Target won’t have those mugs anymore- ‘cuz all the Swistle fans will get there before me ;^)
Ack! Don’t leave string-type things around for your cat to chew on. They can inadvertently swallow it and it can get tangled in their intestines and cause damage or even death.
Everything I wanted from the LoL line is sold out!!!!!!
Oh this is killing me, it really makes me want to get a cat. I am afraid for the cat, though, as my kids are insane.
I love this guy! Our cat did the same thing in the basement, but started scaring us b/c he was gravitating towards over the furnace (warmth?) and would walk across pipes for awhile and they’d bang around. We ended up having to cover some areas up w/ rolled screening to prevent his destruction!
And I thought of a name suggestion – Belvedere. Something about the spot on his nose makes me think it’s appropriate.
My mom’s dog that she LOVVVES was a shelter return too. It’s funny how one pet can be so wrong for some people and so right for others. They didn’t like her, thought she was roamy and distant, not the pet they were looking for. Which is so weird b/c she is the biggest snuggler in the world. She’s a little too big for lap dog, but doesn’t care, she hops right up and curls up. Also SHARES the pillow w/ my mom at night, right next to her. I guess pets have their own quirks too, huh!?
He is a GREAT cat!!!! I love him and want to hold him myself! Sasha puts up with that stuff, too, and it’s so nice not to have to worry that they’ll ever scratch someone. Have you seen her idiot photos hanging off our heater? Cats are hysterical BECAUSE they seem so aloof, and yet are just as cheeseball as the dogs!
Hmmm… I love the swirly-on-the-sides first pair of glasses you got, the snowflakes ones, and the green ones with the black earpieces. The green-on-top ones are OK, too – I think I just really like green on you. The pink ones look like my first pair ever, back in third grade!!!
I love the Liberty of London stuff. I want one of the dresses to wear to a wedding. But it’s a shore wedding and I’m thinking, Brrrr.
Love the cat. Glad you got to bring him home.
Isn’t it amazing how a pet can be so wrong for one family and so right for another one?! I’m so glad that the return worked out so well for New Kitty.
And I think Taco Short is the best cat name I’ve heard in a long time!
I vote for Taco Short, too. That’s one of the funniest names I’ve ever heard…and I’ve heard a whole lotta pet names!
Cute CUTE.
My dog was a return, TOO. I went one day and liked him but he had an “Already Adopted” sign up and then I went back and he was gone and then I went back and he was THERE AGAIN.
The reason for the return was ‘Did not get along with cat’ but once I got him home, I found that the sign should have read, ‘HE’S ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY CRAAAAAZY.’
Good thing it didn’t say that. After about 3 years he calmed down and he’s been the BEST DOG EVER since then.
:)
Oh, I love your new family member–but have to tell you none of that behavior is dumb–it’s just cat behavior.
Please, please, please keep yarn and string away from your kitty. They will eat it (especially if it is wool). My sister’s cat had to be put down due to eating wool yarn. As for the other other behavior–cats will always go to the highest spot (hunting) and as for the window–hey that’s just kitty TV. Both my cat and dog spend all day on the window seat watching the bird feeder.
It sounds like you have a great cat–enjoy his “catness.”