Under, and above, the Influence

Well, it's time to spill the beans: Fritz likes his catnip. It's never done anything for me, but then I was born in a Harlem basement and was fed chinese food scraps, if I was fed at all.

So I'm not much good when it comes to "organic". Fritz, on the other hand, has always had a weaknes for "The Nip". Anyway, we have a few scratching pad options, as indoor cats do. These traditionally are "hubs" for Nip distribution. The old floor model, seen here, wore out:



It's been replaced with a new one; it was introduced to us with a little sprinkling of cat nip, and Fritz was a happy partaker: here he is in a a happy (hippy?) state, maybe imagining the music from all those LP's (er, records; things we had before cd's) behind him?



I chose to observe from my perch in the bookcase above:



Sure enough, Fritz looked happy with "his" new scratching pad, he settled down for a (yet to be concluded ) nap:

Short-term Memory?

The Feeders camera kept telling them they had a "memory error". At least one of them just shrugged his shoulders and agreed.

And they say we cats are the only ones with short term memory.

The other Feeder, being a little more technologically adept, realized that maybe we just needed a new memory card for the camera to solve the problem. Thanks to Amazon, a new card for the camera arrived today - the Feeder is still searching Amazon for his replacement memory chip...

So, testing, testing, 123... the new chip last night was put to work. Random poses on my part; much rehearsed on Fritz's behalf.. but that's his way:



Fritz and the dragon continue to work on their relationship...



Stand-offish, I think it's still fair to say?

Of course, I didn't want them to post this... just because their camera works again: I think I look like a vampire that had dental care on the national health (U.K.) But I do like hiding behind the telly, and disturbing the horse statue:




A Chinese horse as it happens. If the Feeders choose to show you one day, the next "endangered" ornament is just around the corner. It's African. My Interest in the statuary is , how does it shatter?

Another Season

It's officially "Fall" here in New York, so we hear. The English Feeder seems uncertain if it's officially Autumn at home as well, but there has been a noticable Autumnal chill here in the early morning in the past few days.

I like it when it isn't too hot, and here it too often is. After all that humidity, it's much easier to have a good old frisk now that the "times are a'changin" again. Here's one of my action pictures when I'm full of beans in Autumn:



The old "mouse on an elastic string", cooler weather, I'm in business!



Not necessarially in his Autumn years by any means, but wise as if he were, Fritz prefers to celebrate the new season by basking in the flattering Autumnal light:



He doesn't like to expend too much energy, regardless of the season.

And so, as they say (we hear) back in England, "at the end of day", I tend to look a little more exhausted than Fritz in the cooler seasons....

Building Beasties

Our building is quite old. Fritz and I rarely get the see it from the outside, and when we do it means we on the way to or from the vets, so we're not paying too much attention to the finer architectural details.

So the feeders took some photos for us which show some of the other animals that grace the house :



Fritz, who lived on a farm for a little while, says these are sheep, and I can't really argue with him as I've never seen anything like these. Although they do seem to have handle-bars, just like the feeders bicyles. Good for climbing!

I do recognise the next one though, I've seen the Feeders cooking Fish before...hmmm tasty. This one looks too big for their pan though...



The last one is from inside, in the hallway we're told. Now this looks altogether familiar:



Fritz thinks it's there to indicate "Fritz Lives Here" or "Beware of the Cat" and he's now striking all sorts of poses to live up to his new-found reputation...



(I can tell you confidentially, he's not really any more threatening than the fish, but we'll let him enjoy his moment of attempted ferocity).

A Galloping Gourmet.

The feeders spend time in the kitchen, feeding us of course, but also cooking for themselves. I enjoy the cat feeding, obviously; indeed, I spend some considerable time ensuring that this schedule is rigourously maintained.
After that, I like to survey the territory, and plan future missions. Of course, I try not to look suspicious; successfully I feel?:



Despite my nonchalance, Fritz, sitting happily outside the kitchen. looks on. As usual, when he's looking at me when I'm planning, his expression mirrors exasperation, tolerance, annoyance, condescension....resignation?



I've planned, and therefore I act. Jump, pose, jump:, pose: that's my motto (works very well indoors).



I must say, it's somewhat dispiriting that Fritz isn't impressed. I mean, I'm scaling heights, climbing up things, etc, etc -I think he's being a stick in the mud...this is the look I get?



I'll try again, this is one of my "I may pounce at any time" poses...



...but Fritz, well, he's just not impressed with my antics and he's not taking the bait; this is really his look of weary disapproval and he's saying, "please, just have a nap...."



Eventually, Fritz wins. He can sleep? Well, then so can I, with more panache obviously; (eyes open, just to check if Fritz is sleeping with as much style as me)? ....

Rise and Shine! Coffee, Black or White?

Eventually, early each morning , with some assiduous effort on my part, a Feeder can be roused from their morning slumber (don't they know it's my Labor Day, every day)?

Once they're awakened, I have some time. Sprint to the kitchen, jump in the box atop the refrigerator, and duck. Then, await the unsuspecting prey.

Here they come, shuffling towards the kitchen, eyes squinted like a just surfaced mole (uttering some inarticulate sounds that could be mole'ish too), groping for the light switch, they find it ...and then, up we spring - "Good Morning, time for coffee - black or white, or, perhaps black and white"?




The look on thier face always tells me that just like me, they appreciate early morning humour....yet another good start to a day full of Feeder life-enhancing obligations.

Next, perhaps, the curtains...?

Occasional Guest Animals

Last weekend here was something called "Labor Day Weekend". Monday specifically was the day in question, and The Feeders, along with almost everyone else, had the day off work. Fritz and I didn't quite understand, but we don't begrudge them their day off. Anyway, by their definition then, everyday is a labor day for us, and we like the sound of that - an appropriate recognition of our rigorous daily routine....

The Feeders took advantage of a long weekend and headed up the coast to friends in Milford, Connecticut. Here they met the resident cat, Kiwi. We like the look of Kiwi, seen here:



The window-sill observation post is certainly familiar to Fritz and I.



Less familiar to us though.... Kiwi goes outside too.



This looks very exciting to us, apartment-bound as we are. For Kiwi however, apparently it's all rather old hat - seems as though she could barely keep from yawning:



Well, perhaps unbeknownst even to Kiwi, there was other outdoor excitement to be had. Perhaps a mile from Kiwi's garden, high in the tree-tops...well, here's the problem: with the Feeder's rather inadequate camera, it looked like this:



David Attenborough will obviously not be calling the Feeders for their footage, but this is a Parrots nest, wild Parrots to be exact, and the Feeders saw some flying in the treetops...although you need to look hard to see them in the pictures:



Fritz and I could just discern a green Parrot backside here...



...certainly more exotic looking than our usual city pigeon viewing.

So, all in all we were quite jealous of the Feeders excursion. It was only about an hour away from the city, but we think we could make the adjustment. I don't think we'd be yawning (well, only discretely). The pigeons here do look especially dreary and grey in the winter-time.....

In Remembrance