Tag: black-and-white cat

In Memory of Harper Lee

Our black-and-white cat Boo perches atop my bookcase

My wife texted me at work this morning to let me know Harper Lee died. I had mixed feelings, given her reported health it seemed like it was her time, but I was still sad at the loss of someone who gave me something so beautiful. Her novel To Kill a Mockingbird is my favorite book, and my wife loves it too, so when we adopted a little black-and-white kitten in 2001 we decided to keep with the literary names that started with our cat Templeton and named our new kitten after the wonderful Scout Finch. An amazing bond formed between my beloved Scout and I for the next twelve years until cancer took her life. We then adopted another black-and-white kitten, a terrified little thing who shook with fear when we met him, and named him after another character from the book, Boo Radley (this is Boo perched on top of my bookcase).

When we adopted a kitten last year after Emma died, while casting about for a name we considered naming her Finch, both as a nod to the Finches in Mockingbird and to my love of birds, before settling on Trixie. Hopefully we won’t need to name a new pet for a long time to come.

Goodbye Harper, and thank you.

What’s Old Is New Again

Our cat Trixie sleeps above a heating vent

As the weather has gotten colder, Trixie has discovered the joys of this spot beneath the big picture window. Underneath the wooden grate is a heating vent, blowing warm air onto your belly as you sleep. When we moved to this house in 2002, our two cats were Templeton and Scout. Scout (the black-and-white cat) was the first to discover the vent, but Templeton (the gray tuxedo cat) soon discovered Scout’s secret and began sleeping here as well.

I’ve photographed most of the cats on this vent over the years, although it didn’t get as much use once we bought them heated beds. For some reason they haven’t used the beds as much since Scout died a few years ago (she adored hers and insisted it be kept beside me in my office), although they do sleep in Ellie’s beds quite frequently.

The Heating Vent: Scout Edition

The Great White Belly

Trixie Meets the Christmas Tree

We adopted Trixie early in the year so this is her first Christmas with us. We weren’t sure how she’d do with the Christmas tree so when I put it up this weekend I left it without ornaments, just in case she knocked it over.

We have prior experience.

Not only is the tree still upright but so far she hasn’t tried to climb it.

I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel putting up the tree, I last took it down right after Emma died in January, and she so loved the tree that I can’t help but think of her when I see it. It reminds me too of Templeton, as the day we put it up in 2007 was the day he died. He loved the box the tree was stored in as much as the tree itself. It reminds me of Scout too, when she was young she used to like to climb up into it and sleep near the top. She learned we didn’t want her in it since we kept chasing her out of it, so she’d slink up near the center of the tree as she could then climb without disturbing the branches or ornaments, and she’d sleep in a spot facing the wall where we couldn’t see her. I only discovered her secret spot when I found the flattened branches when I took the tree down.

But nobody loved the tree like our sweet Em.

In the end it made me happy to put it up and see the three cats hanging out peacefully below its branches, and to remember the three cats who are no longer with us. It’s the tree that we bought when we got married and it’s gotten battered by the love our cats have shown it over the years, so we’ll replace it at some point but decided to give it at least another year until we see how Trixie does.

So far so good.

Boo the Pillow

Our cat Trixie resting on our cat Boo

Trixie using Boo as a pillow. It took a long while to get Boo to accept Trixie, but our two youngest cats are now friends and can frequently be seen (and heard) running and playing throughout the house. Even so I was a little surprised that Boo let Trixie climb on top of him as they took a nap.

Birth of the Cool

Our black-and-white cat Boo leans his face into the cool air coming out of the air conditioner

We bought a portable air conditioner to get us through a miserable record-breaking summer and tide us over until we could see if we could get central air conditioning installed in our old house. Boo loved to stick his face into the stream of cool air flowing out of the vents, although I’d guess he was drawn more by curiosity than a need to cool down. We spent so much time in our little bedroom that I almost came to view the air conditioner as a member of our family. While not a large room, it did a fine job keeping the room cool even when it broke 100 degrees outside and despite the body heat from two adults, our black lab, and three cats.

I tried all summer to get this picture of Boo and this was the best result, although it isn’t sharp. I had to move quickly and in the low light my camera usually couldn’t focus fast enough, and if it did because I had to hold the camera out to get the framing I wanted, camera shake made the picture blurry (which is what happened here). Plus the sickly light from the fluorescent bulb in the lamp isn’t that pleasing.

That said, I love the picture and it makes me smile.

Today’s title is a reference to Miles Davis’ groundbreaking album Birth of the Cool.

In Which Boolie Destroys the World

Our cats Boo and Trixie play with an old leather shoelace
It was a major effort to get Boo to accept Trixie, but eventually he not only grew to tolerate her but now even enjoys playing with her. Here they’re goofing around with an old leather shoelace.

A few weeks back I had the worst nightmare I’ve ever had. The earth was going to be destroyed if I didn’t kill Boo and Trixie. They didn’t just have to die, they had to die at my hands. I learned from my mentor that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few — or the one — and since their young lives were forfeit no matter what I did, I agreed to do it. I picked them up and held them in my hands. They gave no resistance.

But I couldn’t do it. I would give my life but I wouldn’t take theirs.

I don’t remember anything else, so presumably the earth was destroyed by whatever malevolent force threatened it. Sorry about that.

A couple of weeks later I had the gentlest nightmare I’ve ever had, consisting of me walking around with my pants pockets overstuffed with pennies. That was the entirety of the horror of the dream, me walking around with jingly-jangly pockets weighed down with worthless currency. As much as I hate pennies, that’s a pretty easy cross to bear.

The Angel & The Stained Glass

Our black-and-white cat Boo gazes out the window

I loved Boo’s angelic look as he watched birds outside our picture window, with stained glass windows hanging behind him. I believe the windows may be homemade, they were there when we bought the house, I like the flair they add to the room.