Since my job is that of a movement instructor I don’t get up and get ready with showering and make-up. When I first started teaching I tried that because I didn’t like to face people without make-up but it just ended up smudged all over my face and so I had to give that up. It made it quick to get ready in the morning. I could basically get up twenty minutes before I had to leave. But I feel that I have an additional job that requires I wake up at least an hour before I need to start getting ready (even though I (currently) teach from home via Zoom, there is still some getting ready that is required). The hour before I need to start getting ready is used for playing with our cats. For those of you that know cats, you know that the entire time playing with cats isn’t necessarily spent actually PLAYING, but I try.
I have learned that sometimes it is not about the action or the toy. I believe that sometimes they just like to do the waiting game together. You know the one where someone just swings the flyer back and forth (or up and down) and they just sit there watching and waiting? They seem content to just let me play with the toy. And while I sometimes get bored and frustrated I really do believe that is part of the play for them and they enjoy it. We are together.
Recently it occurred to me that I am dang fortunate that waiving a toy around or using one to poke under the Ripple Rug is entertainment to them. I remember thinking one morning how funny it was that something so simple brings them so much joy. Then my “oh, how funny” turned into “Thank God!” What if they required something more complicated? What if I had to come up with challenging things above and beyond a change of toy or an occasional “adventure” here or there? Egads I would be in trouble.
I do feel that indoor cats can become bored and that is why I get up every day with the sole purpose of playing with them, and I do think they need a change of pace every once in a while, but I grateful for the most part that they find so much joy in the simple things.
If you were to ask me I would say that Teagan doesn’t go up on the tower that much. But then as I was editing this photo to post it I noticed I just posted a picture of her on the tower. This is from years ago. I think it is cute . . . but I am the mom so . . .
I am using Teagan on the tower AGAIN as a Friday Photo. I hope you had a nice week.
Wow, Friday are already. The first Friday in February. As a reminder Teagan means beautiful and that is why she is named so. Here is my beautiful Teagan (beautiful Beautiful) for today’s Friday Photo.
Hundreds of pictures of the cats. Here they are under the Christmas tree again. I have found that a tree on a table seems to work well for all of us. It is off the ground out of the cats on-all-fours-eyesight, it allows them their treasured spot in the sun, it allows room for a lot of presents, it just works for us.
They will be happy tomorrow when the tree is gone and their tower is back in its place.
While I am excited to leave the Christmas tree and decorations up for another week, I don’t think our cats are. But maybe. The tree is in the spot that their cat tower normally resides, but it is on a table so that they can still have access to the spot where the sun shines. Here is Teagan and Nessa for the first Friday Photo of 2021.
I have never seen this before. I thought it was unusual and cute. Nessa often sits on the lower portion. It is a great sun spot. I have never seen Teagan sit on the shelf above. I am not sure, but I think it was Teagan wanting to be close to be able to take advantage once Nessa moved because shortly after this was taken Teagan was on the lower portion in the sun and Nessa was a little put out.
Here are my beautiful girls to today’s Friday Photo!
Don’t you think it is funny when pets do things different than normal?
This is Teagan in a box. Originally this box was slated for another purpose, but Nessa took it over. It was primarily her box for a while, but then Teagan started using it. They have several boxes around the house that they share. Teagan for a Friday Photo.
Back in November of 2017, I was sitting on my couch and noticed this. I took the pictures and videos with the intent of posting about it. Well, three years later here ya go. I noticed him then watched him for about 10 minutes. It was odd. Hawks are very big birds and the funny thing is this is a small hawk. This guy had upset the blue jays. You can hear them in the videos squawking. It took our cats a bit to notice. I believe when I wasn’t recording the bird I was talking to my cats trying to get them to notice. I didn’t want to get up because I didn’t want to disturb the bird. The birdbath is not that far away and often times we frighten birds off of it by moving to get a better look. I didn’t want to move. I was in awe.
The pictures and the videos are not great. I was using my iPhone 5. But, to me, they are still cool. I have two videos of Teagan that me laugh because they remind me that she was walking toward the window then saw the bird and froze. I have never seen her so still. She was in midstride and STOPPED, her head low, and she just froze with only her tail moving back and forth. She was like that for at least 5 mins. I didn’t post them because I was laughing and talking while filming and the best I can figure is I had my fingers over the mic and then I moved them and the sound is too inconsistent and annoying. Plus it is just a recording of a cat standing completely still, I do pan over to the bird who seems to be watching the cat, but only the mom (or dad) wants to watch a (their) cat standing still for a minute and a half.
The hawk doesn’t do anything, but move his head, drink some water, and fluffy up a bit. I just wanted to say that so you weren’t disappointed if you watch the videos. And . . . I am not best videographer and I can bet you that I was trying to move while not moving a lot to get closer so they are not the smoothest of recordings. They, along with the pictures are just to document that THERE WAS A HAWK IN OUR YARD!
I believe this is a Cooper’s hawk. As he was large, but not very large.
This one hates the camera . . . especially when I have it up in her face like that. It probably wouldn’t surprise you that I took about 20 picture and most of them were blurry and her trying to move away from me. Poor girl. I really wanted to get her gorgeous eyes and share them with you for today’s Friday Photo.
I have learned that sometimes it is not about the action or the toy. I believe that sometimes they just like to do the waiting game together. You know the one where someone just swings the flyer back and forth (or up and down) and they just sit there watching and waiting? They seem content to just let me play with the toy. And while I sometimes get bored and frustrated I really do believe that is part of the play for them and they enjoy it. We are together.
Terre Pruitt's Blog 