"C" is for cats

By now you've probably guessed......I'm a CAT person. Cats have wandered in and out of my life in different forms over the years. This is some fabric I bought to make one of my beanbag cat dolls, but the finished product was disappointing. Too busy. My best-looking cat dolls have usually worn a checkered outfit with a big bow tie. Well, except for this one. He came out OK. I named him Henry, after Henry the neighbor cat, and the lady who purchased him on eBay was quite pleased.

Here's another one. I did this during my needlepoint phase. I never really got in the mood to sew it together though. The needlepoint is the fun part; the assembling not so much. I should really look in the classifieds for someone I can hire to clean bathrooms, do windows, and assemble pesky craft projects.Here's one that might make a nice Christmas tree ornament.

And there's this one, which doesn't really please me, although I was enticed by the pattern.

He might be more lovable with some new whiskers and an embroidered nose and mouth. That would give him a more friendly demeanor. It's worth a try, and so much better than the alternative.....a trip to the cat adoption center.

This is a ceramic cat that belonged to my mother. I saw lots of cats like this in China; I think they bring good luck. I vaguely remember my mother telling me this cat had been buried in her backyard when she was a child. I have no idea why or by who, but it would be wonderful to know the whole story. I wish I had asked more questions when I had the chance, especially about how she made the pickled peaches at Thanksgiving. And finally, here's Sparkle. She was our family pet while TG and BCG were growing up. BCG named her. She was three when Sparkle joined our family, and she thought she looked sparkly. Sparkle wasn't much of a lap cat, which is what we had hoped for. But cats are kinda like kids....they're pretty much potluck. Just like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates.

Sparkle followed the kids everywhere....out to the swingset, around the neighborhood, and down to the bus stop. She was a three-legged cat, the result of a mysterious mishap early in her life. But she bucked up and carried on, and lived happily for many more years in spite of her disability. In later years, when she began to slow down, I fixed her up with a little step stool so she could get up on her favorite chair. I even shoveled a special path on the deck so she didn't have to walk in the snow. Mr. Gadget liked to tease me about how much I spoiled her, but he was known to feed her bits of deli turkey when he thought I wasn't looking......

So now we're catless. But someday, when our cruising days are over, Mr. G and I will have another cat. He wants a Siamese. I'd like a big ol' tabby. I can already hear the hissing......