Category / Cats

Marigold Opie
by greg-in-washington

Best of both worlds

The best of both worlds is not being inside or outside, but inside and outside! We have had some very cold frosty weather. Feeling the warmth of the sun in the southern window, Marigold and Opie wish they could be outside. They look at me with asking eyes, but the answer is no to them!

Marigold Opie

Marigold and Opie

Marigold Opie

Marigold and Opie

A short while later the two big boys Zeke and Scooby are insisting the catio be opened up for them. I relent. Zeke jumps right out. I may have well just put him in the chest freezer, as it is so cold!

Zeke catio

Zeke in catio

Scooby is not so hasty to jump outside. He knows a secret–well, it is not a secret–everyone knows it, but only one cat at a time can enjoy it.

Scooby Zeke catio

Scooby Zeke and catio

Scooby knows the furnace is on, and blowing warm air up out of the vent below him, so he can sit in the window with his nose in the cold, and his body being warmed!

Scooby Zeke

Scooby and Zeke

Scooby and christmas lights
by greg-in-washington

Scooby and Twelfth Night / Fort Apache

This post features Scooby and also my Marx Rin Tin Tin Fort Apache playset. Don’t ask me why. Twelfth Night (Epiphany) and some of you thought Christmas was over! The three kings arrived to deliver their gifts to the Christ child. I keep the holiday going as long as I can. The twelfth day of Christmas according to the song is 12 drummers drumming. No wonder I woke up at 5 AM.

It has been two weeks since I last posted here. Some of you are probably tired of looking at my Christmas post–but people are still looking at it! I did visit a few blogs during my vacation. I guess I am not an internet addict after all! I enjoyed doing other things. It is a daunting thought that I must post here all year long. I thought the same thing last year, but I did not run out of steam. I may get off to a slow start. Let’s begin.

Scooby and christmas lights

Scooby reflecting upon Twelfth Night

Scooby catio

Scooby in the frosty catio

Scooby

Scooby enjoys the recliner’s “rumble or cat seat”

Fort Apache

Scooby Fort Apache

Scooby presents Fort Apache

Scooby presents “Fort Apache”. It was a John Wayne film made in 1948. In 1955 a popular TV dog named Rin Tin Tin lived in Fort Apache. When I was young back in 1957 I received a Marx Rin Tin Tin Fort Apache playset, which I had desired for a long time.

Western television shows and movies were the rage. Playing cowboys and Indians with toy cap pistols and figures like those shown below was very popular with young boys. The underlying violence was never realized or condemned by parents. Ritual violence is supposed to reduce aggression. I did not create the violent characters shown, but I am responsible for creating the bloody battle shown here. Political correctness is out the window! Additional figures were added over time. I know how film director John Ford felt, and it was good! Maybe I could do a stop action movie like Gumby?

It was like staging a movie, and frankly, still a lot of fun, bringing back fond memories. It was one of my favorite toys, and that is why I hung onto it. In my set, you may see the white figures of Rin Tin Tin, Rusty, and Lt. Rip Masters from the Fort Apache TV show standing right of the front gate. Scooby was very good in that he did not enter the fray, or do any Catzilla damage! Can you spot the rare Blue Buffalo? He makes pet food now.

Fort Apache

Overview Marx Rin Tin Tin Fort Apache play set (1957)

Fprt Apache

Fort Apache

Fort Apache

Fort Apache battle

Fort Apache

That’s it for our first post of 2016–Scooby and Fort Apache.

Opie
by greg-in-washington

Opie loves Christmas music / Vintage Christmas postcards

Opie

Opie

Opie is a cat that enjoys music. She especially likes when I put a platter on the old record player purchased in 1974. I have an older and larger console model from the 60’s which works perfectly well, but you see I now use it as a TV stand.

cat and tv

Opie likes the screensaver

I had to protect the cloth over the speakers to prevent the cats from scratching them. My eyesight is poor so I must sit very close to see properly. Opie is waiting for me in my chair. She likes to sit in my lap and watch or sleep. I have several boxes full of records. I do sit and play them now and then. The most used ones are the Christmas albums, which are played in December.

Opie and record player

Opie loves music

Vintage Christmas Cards

My father kept all the holiday cards he received until 1930. Here are a few. They are all postcards and not folding cards. Some I can exactly date and others I cannot.They are mostly from the 1920’s. Cards do not show any publishers or origin.

1916
Santa getting into sleigh

Christmas Card horse drawn wagon

1925

Christmas Card children and wagon

1923 More abuse to come baby Sis!

Christmas Card Santa sleigh

Santa on sleigh

Christmas Card child on rocking horse

(1922) Reference to Teddy Roosevelt. Nice sword–don’t poke your eye out!

Christmas Card Santa emptying sack

1925 Took me a minute to figure this one out!

Christmas Card cats

1921 Cats for Christmas!

Christmas Postcard 1922

1922

Christmas postcard 1923

1923

Christmas postcard 1918

1918 Cancer Santa smoking pipe

Christmas postcard 1920

1920

Marigold
by greg-in-washington

Reflections 2

Reflections in a golden eye 2 are more old, but not too old, photographs that were never posted or posted and not seen! During the holiday season, most people are busy shopping, traveling, and all, I am not really going to be much here either.  I just automatically scheduled this post to fire off as a flare today. Perhaps someone will see it–perhaps not!  I wonder how many swats the cats have made in the last week and a half in the previous post–a million–a billion? PHOTOS follow: Continue reading →