We love to go on walks, as evidenced by the
posts dedicated to neighborhood gardens. Our dark secret is that we really go on walks to visit neighborhood cats, not just gardens. In fact, we know the names of many of our furry friends. So, in the spirit of something different and fun for Halloween we would like to show you around the hood and introduce some of them.
First up is Little Blackie, a resident of the famous
Eyebrow House. I think she has a few siblings, such as this one:
Don't know her name either, but we'll call her Rollie.
Not technically on our walk around the hood, these cats live in Oaxaca, Mexico, at the home of the fabulous Linda Hanna, owner of
Casa Linda and Folk Art Fantasy. She had to feed them on the roof so the dogs wouldn't eat their food. Yes, these are the Roof Cats.
Meet the one and only Connie Carter. She's a sweet girl who lives several blocks away and is often a destination in and of herself. She's ALWAYS good for a thorough rubbin'.
David says "white color-based" cats remind him of his first kitty, Miss Pickles.
Connie, on the go!
Here are the Creamy Kitties; they live very close to Mt. Tabor. What a couple of love bugs!
Who farted?
Here's Wally.
Waaleeee...say it with me now...he's our neighborhood Badger Cat. Honestly, he hops down the steps to get some lovin' - like a rabbit-badger-cat. He is not 100% kitty, and we love him for it. Wally will lay his head on my lap indefinitely for some purrs, pets and love - I would still be there now if David hadn't dragged me away.
Jumping down the steps to follow us home.
This cutie is around the corner from us, her nickname is Noisy Cat. She runs at us meowing in delight. And she likes to rub on a hot, dry sidewalk, talking to us the whole time.
This is our honorary kitty, Miss Lila the Pug of
Danger Garden fame. We'll visit her garden next week.
This little odd stuffed kitty lives in our dining room. Last year we brought her home from the
Pretty Kitty Holiday Bazaar that benefits the
House of Dreams No-Kill Cat Shelter. No name, but she is a keeper. If you're in Portland, the holiday bazaar is coming up Saturday November 8th.
No, this was not Photoshopped. Meet Orca, the biggest, best cat ever. R.I.P., Orca - we discovered he passed away and his real name was Tux. You can see why we called him Orca. Some say he is larger than I am, and they might be right!
After the required 2.8 minutes of petting Orca, as we would begin to continue on our walk, we would often feel paws wrapping around our calves in protest. They guy liked people and didn't ever want us to leave. And yes, he was as heavy as he looked.
His head is a big as mine. I don't know if that's an insult to me or to him.
Meet Wally's neighbor girl, Hazel. Her nickname is Shoulder Kitty, her other nickname is Droolie, can you see why? She's a very petite four pounds despite looking huge here, and she's a
super love bug. While I rub Wally, David finds Hazel for a good wet-shoulder treatment.
Hazel!
Scary Halloween-ish stuff.
This is Miss Fluffington. She lives either with Connie or next to Connie. Connie kind of has a whole posse, so Miss Fluffington could be a Connie Carter gang member.
Again, not technically on our walk, this is our nephew cat who lives up in Mt. Vernon. What a love.
And here's Bob. That's his real name. Check out the tail.
I met Bob a few years ago around the corner from our home. He came running at me like a land seal on a mission to kill. It's the only time I have ever been afraid of a cat. He's actually very sweet, but he has a reputation in the hood for being a thug. He'll lure you in to rub his belly then CLAMP you in his paws in a death grip until you scream for mercy. I think he also bullies other kitties, but we think he may have had "the" operation recently resulting in a mellower thug.
We still love him.
His tail wags like a dog's.
Scary.
Of course, here's our resident muffin-head, Mr. Hobbes.
Miss Lucy, too!
It's a Bengal Bonanza at our house.
The third cat of Casa de los Tres Gatos is Lolita, who once rode in the engine compartment of David's car to Jantzen Beach and back! She earned a ripple in her side fur from that adventure. She keeps watch on the driveway when not napping. Doin', Lo!
The kitty door knocker on our front door.
The best for last, Quincy, a.k.a. Wide Mouth Kitty. He might look mean but he was a lover.
Quincy was a love story. We would deliberately go by his house to greet him, hear his gravelly voice scratch out an ancient meow as sincere as any cat can be. His owners had to move and leave him behind. Fortunately, we were around to find this out and scoop him up and bring him home. He spent his final two or so years living in cat paradise with my mother. He passed away at the ripe old age of 15. To this day we call his street Quincy Avenue.
We miss you, Wide Mouth!
Orange pumpkin shapes - kind of like Quincy!
Not pictured on this tour, but could be included in a future post: Inside-Out Kitty, Oreo, Halloween the Kitty, The Twins, Billie, Admiral, Pirate and many, many others. On a side note, we love the dogs too, we just don't see many hanging out like we do the kitties. What do you think, a dog post for the future?
Next week we'll get back to some real gardening, for now: Happy Halloween, everybody!
Boo!
Oh my cats galore and they all look so cute! Happy Halloween!
ReplyDeleteKitties are the BEST! :)
DeleteMIdwest cats are not so mellow it seems. We might see 2 or 3 cats on our walks that didn't immediately run away from us, and our own cats are rarely seen by strangers. Ring our bell or knock on the door and listen carefully: you'll hear the sound of cats stampeding to the basement. :)
ReplyDeleteHmmm…I wonder why? Interesting…this is Portland, maybe it's the water that makes them friendlier! :)
DeleteWhat a great post on cats, I love them. You have a lot of cats walking around in your neighbourhood and they all are so cute. We used to have five....., the last one died 3 years ago and we decided to have a time off before taking a new kitten. Fortunately we have Snarf yet.
ReplyDeleteThank you Janneke….I love them too, and dogs. Yes, it's a good thing to take a break if you lose a pet, they are part of the family and it takes me years to move on. Snarf is a love, I really enjoy your pics of him.
DeleteI very much enjoyed this post about cats in the hood. We have plenty here too, but I only know the name of one of them. Our next door neighbor's cat is named Lucy, short for Lucifer. She has a personality that seems very similar to Bob. She lures you in with sweetness, but if you pet her a split second longer than she wants, you risk losing your hand. I should give all the others that frequent my garden names like you have.
ReplyDeleteHee her…thanks Alison! Oh, that sweet twinkle in Bob's eye is very deceptive. His nickname should also be Lucifer, indeed. We find it quite fun to nickname that cats whose names we don't know…it's an exercise is creativity. Maybe.
DeleteOh my, you startled me sneaking that Lila picture in there! What a collection of cute faces! Orca's paw looked as big as your hand, and poor Quincy! Just abandoned and left behind? He was so lucky you rescued him. Your kitties are beautiful, such exotic markings.
ReplyDeleteMiss Lila! Oh, she's a sweetie. I'll have another pic of her for next week's post. I know, poor Quincy. Don't get me stared on people abandoning their pets. Grrrr...
DeleteWe have 2 cats who live in the garden at Sissinghurst. They are brothers and they're called Finbar and Figaro. We got them from an animal rescue centre and their job is to catch mice and rabbits which they do with enthusiasm! They have their own private quarters within the garden; a shed known as Fluffbum's shed in honour of a previous cat and they turn up for their food and a stroke every day before going off on their adventures. Helen
ReplyDeleteHi Helen, that's so cool you have garden kitties at Sissinghurst, and what clever names. They have a dream job it seems to me….working at Sissinghurst! So nice to know they are well looked after, thanks for sharing! :)
DeleteWe cat people rejoice at a blog post like this. The white-based kitties are so photogenic. Our black Sami has loads of personality but shows up as just a black shape in most photos so you'll just have to take my word for it (until you visit, anyway).
ReplyDeleteDid Orca's family have the foresight to know he would reach that size, or did they wait for him to come into his own before naming him? I've had a few pets that earned quite different names than those given them as kittens or pups.
Yay! I'm glad you enjoyed it, I know not everyone enjoys cats but those of us that do, it's a fun break from the every day kind of garden post. I will visit and see Sami in person….for sure! Orca's family named him Tux, we just called him Orca (for obvious reasons!) Yes, sometimes a name change for a family pet would be a grand idea, however it's hard to go through the paperwork at the courthouse to make it legal.
DeleteI loved this post! I seldom see cats out and about in my neighborhood. We have coyotes in the area and they've been known to pick off small animals even during the daytime so most of the local cats stay indoors. However, when my Ming was in the final stages of the disease that took him this past March, I used to take him out on supervised walks because he enjoyed it so much - I think it extended his life. Since Ming's departure, my remaining cat, Pipig, has developed an interest in the great outdoors too. She's taken to darting out the door. She's usually quickly collected; however, she spent an entire night outside recently because we missed one of her escapes (nearly causing me to have a heart attack). I may have to take her on some supervised walks too so the wanderlust doesn't take hold.
ReplyDeleteThank you for commenting and for your kind words and your stories of your kitty Ming…Supervised walks are the best if they kitty will put up with it. Our cats are indoor only party due to the coyotes in our neighborhood too (up near Mt. Tabor in Portland, we've seen them walking down the street at night), and they are outdoor in the backyard which is fenced in and we go out with them supervised too. Good luck with your escape artist! She sounds like she has a bad case of the wanderlust! Have you seen those crazy cat strollers? I may end up being a crazy cat lady and getting one when my kitties are too old to do any walking. Maybe your Pipig would like one!
DeleteHahaha, too cute! You probably missed our Rodney during the tour. He's pretty social, but the strange dog most likely sent him into hiding. He's a big old lug, too, but not as big as that hummer you were holding!!!
ReplyDeleteOh, I did miss your Rodney! Maybe I'll see him someday :) You did have a few doggies running around, I assumed they were yours. Yeah, how about that hummer of a cat? Hahah…that's a good one!
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