Weekend Open Thread

It’s been a tiring week, and here’s a tired kitty from reader Katey V., who writes: “Here is rescue cat Henry. He forgot to put his tongue back in his mouth and you can clearly see the perfectly circular goatee on his chin. The paw position is awesome, too.”

Fetch my fainting couch, I do believe I have the vapors!

 

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87 thoughts on “Weekend Open Thread

  1. Syd October 21, 2017 / 8:34 am

    Oooooooohhhh what a perfect kitty!!!

  2. allein ? October 21, 2017 / 10:29 am

    Happy Saturday!

    Here’s something for all you symphony and Sir Mix-A-Lot fans. 🙂

    • N. Fritz October 21, 2017 / 11:19 am

      Those women are the definition of uninhibited… I’m interested to know which of the Cutetropolis community would be on that stage with them if the opportunity presented itself. Allein? You first!

      • Murray C October 21, 2017 / 11:44 am

        Ooooh, I’d be very tempted – that one woman is black is pretty good, tho’ I think the twerking move isn’t that great – there are better ways to do that without looking so ungraceful. I do love to dance!

        and as far as that kitty goes – methinks that faint is a feint!

        • N. Fritz October 21, 2017 / 12:06 pm

          I don’t know… on the one hand my boyfriend is a terrific dancer, and I’m pretty sure that next to him I look like Elaine Benis from Seinfeld. In a moment of weakness I bought a pair of professional dancing shoes so I could keep up with him. I have yet to try them out….

          On the other hand, the “dance like no one is watching” philosophy also strikes a chord with me. I don’t know if I could get up there on stage, but to be taken away by music is one of life’s most ecstatic pleasures!

    • SoccerSue October 21, 2017 / 12:10 pm

      I work at a doctor’s office in the Seattle area. One of our nurses is a huge Sir Mix A Lot fan, and he actually came into our office one day (he wasn’t the patient, so I’m not breaking any HIPAA laws by telling you about this). Of course she couldn’t let him leave without getting a picture with him. It is absolutely the most hilarious photo I’ve ever seen- Christi is pretty much the whitest girl on the planet (and I say this as the second whitest girl on the planet, haha), and she’s standing next to Sir Mix A Lot, wearing, I kid you not, Strawberry Shortcake scrubs. 😀 She’s kind of an office legend now.

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 1:21 pm

        Good story!

  3. Faye October 21, 2017 / 10:39 am

    Hi All! Millie has her first ever Winter coat. She wanted you all to see the “perfect” fit.

    • Faye October 21, 2017 / 10:40 am

      Now go out and play!

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 10:42 am

        Thank you Mike!

    • 6rabbits October 21, 2017 / 10:42 am

      She’s adorable in anything she wears!?

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 10:58 am

        And funny!

        • Smartypants October 21, 2017 / 5:21 pm

          She looks so stylish! Really like the linens too.

          • Faye October 21, 2017 / 6:43 pm

            Thank you Smartypants!

    • allein ? October 21, 2017 / 10:43 am

      ohmygod.

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 10:57 am

        She just had me pinned down for a half hour sleeping on her back diagonally from my jaw to my hip.

        Heavy, warm, soft deliciousness. No complaints from me.

    • Murray C October 21, 2017 / 11:46 am

      ? She looks adorable.

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 1:22 pm

        ?

    • dubravkamcvmd October 21, 2017 / 11:54 am

      OMG! She should model pup clothes! Definitely runway potential!

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 1:23 pm

        She’s happiest nakey.

        • fkaWaldenPond October 21, 2017 / 5:26 pm

          😀 She does look very ‘strike a pose’ ish. I quite like the pattern too!

          • Faye October 21, 2017 / 6:44 pm

            Thank you FKA. She has many poses.

    • N. Fritz October 21, 2017 / 12:10 pm

      What a diva Millie is in her new coat! Thanks for sharing the adorable pix, Faye!

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 1:24 pm

        She’s really telling me to: get it off! Get it off!

        • allein ? October 21, 2017 / 1:39 pm

          Pablo used to take off his sweater himself as soon as he got back in the house.

          • Faye October 21, 2017 / 2:18 pm

            Awwww!

        • Rachel October 21, 2017 / 5:47 pm

          Wait until she gets outside wearing it when it’s really cold! I bet she’ll change her mind then.

          I’m having a lazy day. I love fall here in the mountains until the leaves are gone, and they’re going fast. Then it’s all just brown until we get snow that stays around. I love snow. Yes, it can be a pain, but there’s just something magical about it!

          • allein ? October 21, 2017 / 6:10 pm

            Haha! Yeah, Pablo was fine wearing his sweater when we were outside in the cold (just couldn’t put it on him until just before we went out). It was only once we were settled back inside that he wriggled right out of it (and usually found a blanket to snuggle under).

          • allein ? October 21, 2017 / 6:18 pm

            I love fall. The only downside is my parking spot happens to be under a tree so my car is always covered in leaves.

            • allein ? October 21, 2017 / 7:41 pm

              (I say, while my air conditioner runs…)

          • Faye October 21, 2017 / 6:47 pm

            Rachel Millie has no ideas about winter yet.

            • Rachel October 21, 2017 / 7:10 pm

              She’ll learn. Our animal friends may be inexperienced in some things but are not stupid at all. Mostly, anyway. Some are all love but floof for brains. 🙂

    • tara October 21, 2017 / 5:10 pm

      Oh she is super cute! Yes she is!

      • Faye October 21, 2017 / 6:48 pm

        Thank you Tara.

    • Jendeyan October 22, 2017 / 6:24 pm

      Too adorable!

      • Faye October 22, 2017 / 7:52 pm

        She is! Thank you.

  4. 6rabbits October 21, 2017 / 10:40 am

    That is the cutest kitteh! I LOVE that pic! Perfect fainting couch picture.?
    My sister’s bday is tomorrow so I’m going to spend the day with her and my nieces. Have a great day, y’all!☀️?☀️

    • Alice Shortcake October 21, 2017 / 11:38 am

      Kitty’s paw position reminded me of the following story from my forthcoming book “Crocodiles in the Green Room”. It appeared on 4th April 1908 in the theatrical newspaper “The Era”:

      A LAUGHABLE unrehearsed incident for which the theatre cat – a big black one, which has lost half its tail – was responsible, occurred, says the Evening News, at the Kennington one night this week during the performance of His House in Order. At the dramatic moment when Hilary Jesson and Nina were reading the compromising letters found in Annabel’s boudoir, Tom jumped from the auditorium on to the stage, and plumping himself down before the actor and actress stared solemnly at them. The latter managed to keep straight faces, but the audience was convulsed. The limelight operator made his machine hiss loudly, but the cat only turned on him an indignant gaze and refused to budge. The merriment was increased when, at the most moving part of the scene, Tom lifted his paw and passed it over his eyes. To the delight of the audience he sat out the scene, and at the finish turned and nimbly sprang back into the auditorium.

      • Murray C October 21, 2017 / 11:49 am

        Fabulous. I’m on the verge of buying a couple of copies of your first book, Alice – I have a couple of people in mind to give them to – and one for myself as well, natch.

        • Alice Shortcake October 21, 2017 / 12:43 pm

          Thanks! Print and e-book versions of both titles should be available on Amazon in a couple of weeks.

          • Smartypants October 21, 2017 / 5:26 pm

            Yay!

            Coincidentally, I just found out that another of my fave books also has a sequel – the first was “The Elements” by Theodore Gray – I just got “Molecules” on Amazon (thru Mike’s portal, of course)…and now it turns out he’s written a third! I’m waiting till I finish ‘molecules,’ though. I don’t have a physics background, so they’re challenging, but totally worth it.

            • allein ? October 21, 2017 / 5:46 pm

              I had the Elements wall calendar two years in a row. I still have the periodic table that came with the first one on my cubicle wall (gave the second one to my then-boss’s son). The next year I acquired a free Cute Overload wall calendar and, well, that was that.

              • Smartypants October 22, 2017 / 12:29 pm

                Very cool – I saw a post from a teacher who repurposed each year’s calendar pages and used them to label cabinets in his classroom – e.g. “the beakers are in the ‘Hydrogen’ cabinet”, etc.

  5. Faye October 21, 2017 / 10:54 am

    Hi All! Besides buying Millie dog clothes that are more stylish than my clothes, I have achieved the first stage of my big reorganization project. All clothes hung, shoes sorted in closets or in easily accessed storage bins. All furniture placed.

    Now organization of contents and drawers. That’s a biggie. I don’t know where everything is right now except that nothing is buried under other things.

    And my desk is cleared for bill paying today. Once that is done I can get back to webpage and drawing. I’m full of art that needs to get out.

    I am looking forward to being able to go through bins in basement one at a time through the winter.

  6. Duckie ? October 21, 2017 / 11:43 am

    Good morning, all.
    Things are a little better in the Duckie household today. Hubby got word yesterday that his contract has been extended until the end of the year. That will give us two more months to plan and save, and by then, there should be more contracts coming, or more options open.
    The horrible week of rain is almost over, and we are supposed to have sunshine next week! I plan to use one day of it to spend on me. Not necessarily buy anything, but just look and see and compare and touch and just relax.
    I will finish the last of my sewing next week, and can therefore (don’t hate me) finish wrapping all my Christmas presents.
    Grampa fell on Wednesday and badly cut his hand. He needed stitches. When they got back from the hospital, the nurses were going around administering flu shots. Grampa asked for the shot to be in the already injured arm, so that all his pain would be in one arm, but the nurse didn’t want to hurt it anymore. So he got shot in his good arm, and spent the rest of the day holding both arms stiffly before him. He got the last laugh, though. Since he couldn’t use either arm, the same nurse had to help him all evening.
    I am starting to go through all my fabric. I’m pulling out a huge pile, and beginning to make some basic quilts, adult sized as well as kids. I will donate them to the Food Bank, and they will make sure that those in need get them. I can’t do much, but I can do this.
    A friend of mine was helping her parents clean out their basement. She found several rolls of fabric and a whole bag of stuffing, which will be coming to me.

    I love fainting kitty, with the tongue and the spot. I would love to have kitty faint on me. I would look after him/her very carefully.
    Faye, Millie looks adorable in her winter coat.
    Have a good weekend, everyone.

    • Murray C October 21, 2017 / 11:47 am

      Happy news, that things are on an upswing for you Duckie!

    • dubravkamcvmd October 21, 2017 / 11:57 am

      So glad you’ve gotten a bit of a reprieve.

    • Faye October 21, 2017 / 1:27 pm

      Thank you Duckie!
      Good news in the contract department!

    • Amyliz October 21, 2017 / 3:28 pm

      Glad to hear that things are looking up for you, Duckie! I hope that continues.

      Henry is so adorable with his circular goatee and protruding tongue; if I fell asleep like that it would definitely not be that cute! 😀

    • Smartypants October 21, 2017 / 5:18 pm

      How great that you’re doing quilts for the food bank – that’s a terrific gift. Not only warm, but a reminder that someone cares.

  7. Smartypants October 21, 2017 / 2:09 pm

    Hello NTMteam! So, I’ve started actively looking for a new apartment. It’s a long story. The short version: this has been my home for 24 years. Owned by the same (wealthy, nice) family. 3 years ago they signed a deal to sell it to a new person. It’s gone straight to hell ever since. If the sale is finalized this month, as planned, I’m going to move.

    I go back and forth between seeing the possible upside of a move, and feeling enraged that I’m being robbed of my home by this creep. Today, it’s the latter.

    So this week I contacted my investment company and they’re sending me some money, and I read and circled a bunch of possibilities in the local free paper. Next week I plan to find out about signing up for affordable housing in this town and the next one over, and contact two potential references.

    Ok that was long, but I wanted to let you guys know what is happening. This move could happen soon or could take months. My goal is the end of November. That may be totally unrealistic, but I’m willing to try. Thankfully I have enough $$ to hire a professional mover, so I’m not stuck trying to round up friends with a pickup truck on their day off, or stuffing a mattress into a Honda. It’s definitely going to be an adventure!

    • dubravkamcvmd October 21, 2017 / 5:07 pm

      I’m so sorry. Being, to all intents and purposes, forced to move from your home of 24 years must be really upsetting. I hope you can find something affordable and pleasant. I know that can be hard. There was list in the New York Times maybe last week of the most expensive cities in the world to rent and New York City and London were tied for first place. I live in New York and if I hadn’t bought a place the last time the real estate market was down (26 years ago!) I would not be able to afford the rent on a studio apartment. So good luck!

      • Smartypants October 21, 2017 / 5:11 pm

        Thank you very much – I appreciate it!

        At the very least, it’s a chance to clear out unneeded stuff 😀

        • Murray C October 22, 2017 / 12:30 am

          Best of luck with all of what you’re about to undertake – I have an inkling of what you’re feeling, tho’ we are choosing to leave our house of 21 years – and it may be a few years before we actually get it done. But parting with some things will be difficult – I have so much that I grew up with surrounding me, some lovely things. But we’re up to the challenge, right, Smartypants????

          • Smartypants October 22, 2017 / 12:18 pm

            Thank you Murray! Yes, today I’m pretty motivated. I’ve been clearing out things as I come across them – extra houseplants to share at the transfer station; books to the book swap, etc. And thankfully there’s a self-storage place right up the road where I could park some things if needed.

            Coincidentally, someone broke the new landlord’s storefront window overnight (no, it wasn’t me! Stop giggling! 😀 ).

            • allein ? October 22, 2017 / 12:23 pm

              Maybe I need to pretend I’m going to be moving soon (not that I can afford to do that) and need to get rid of some stuff. Think I can convince myself?

              • Smartypants October 22, 2017 / 8:00 pm

                Oh, absolutely – you’ll probably find things you didn’t know you had!

            • fkaWaldenPond October 22, 2017 / 8:30 pm

              Smartypants, I am sorry about your moving predicament– I imagine it will be at times a stressful slog but better to get away from such an awful landlord. For me, safe home is sooo incredibly important and I would move too.
              Hey! 😀 We are now all spook BOO- Tropolis! with a canine scholarly sleuth and well shit, um? Edgar Allan Poe and a one of his raven subjects. (So far, no tell tale beating hearts…yet.)

              • allein ? October 22, 2017 / 8:46 pm

                One of my neighbors across the street set up one of those projectors the other night so now there are ghosts flying around the front of their unit. 🙂

                Also, because you said Poe:

                • allein ? October 22, 2017 / 8:48 pm

                  Also, also, this Poe lives on my cubicle wall at work (currently with a baby pumpkin next to him):

    • Emsthemonster October 23, 2017 / 2:41 am

      I remember you mentioned last December or so that you have plans of moving. I hope you are going to find a very nice place to live and it becomes a cosy Smartyhome soon!

  8. tara October 21, 2017 / 5:17 pm

    Hi All and happy weekend. We are having a lovely day here in Philadelphia, around 80°F and sunny. I am in the middle of a crazy project I designed for myself, could have made it much easier – but you know, where is the fun in that? If you are interested, I have to document it and so I’ve set up a little blog here: https://tarasstitchilloproject2017.blogspot.com
    The project is due at the end of October so that will be that. I hope I make it!

    Duckie – so glad to hear your good news!
    Smartypants – I’m sorry you have to move. Finger’s crossed you find another great place.
    Everyone else – hope your weekend plans are fabulous.
    xotara

    • dubravkamcvmd October 21, 2017 / 8:41 pm

      I went to the blog you set up and I’m not sure I understand what you’re doing, There’s a picture of a book jacket that looks like it was knitted?

      • tara October 21, 2017 / 10:26 pm

        Thanks for checking out the blog Dubravkamcvdm! Yes, Uppercase Magazine published the book Stitchillo. A friend who knows the publisher asked for several copies unbound so that bookbinders could bind it as a unique project. I was invited to bind one. If you click on each image you get an expanded explanation of where I am in the project. 🙂

        • Murray C October 22, 2017 / 12:32 am

          Yes, it’s very beautiful what you’re doing, Tara – will you show us the final piece when you’re done?

          I so admire miniature knitting, crocheting and tatting. Do you ever get to the Miniature Show in Cherry Hill? There are people there who do the most extraordinary needle work in dollhouse scale.

          • tara October 22, 2017 / 12:38 pm

            Thanks Murray C! Yes absolutely I’ll post an image of the final product.

            I didn’t know about the Miniature Show. Maybe I should go. My mother was a miniature doll house enthusiast. She started a 1/4″ doll house out of a cigar box. It is quite something.

              • 6rabbits October 22, 2017 / 9:33 pm

                Aww, man! ☹️ I do not live close enough to attend this! *humpf* ? This is probably soooo awesome! I used to do miniatures when I was a kid–have a 4ft tall victorian, 1″=1′, dollhouse that my step-grandpa made for me when I was 10. My mom and I spent more than a decade modeling and remodeling it!

    • fkaWaldenPond October 22, 2017 / 12:01 am

      Tara, your work is fascinating and I am enthralled. History meets craftsmanship meets restoration meets detailed woman’s journals??!! Freakin cool beans ! Thank you for sharing.

      • tara October 22, 2017 / 12:39 pm

        Thanks Fkawaldenpond!

    • 6rabbits October 22, 2017 / 9:50 am

      ??????
      OMG, Tara!!!!!!!!! The tininess of the stitches!! You are a goddess! ? I have suscribed so I can keep up with the project. I crochet, needlepoint and crosstitch–and embroider if I have too?–but nothing THAT tiny! I am in true awe of your skills!

      • tara October 22, 2017 / 12:41 pm

        Aw, gorsh 6 Rabbits… I’m blushing… Thanks for the compliments. 🙂 And thanks for subscribing!

    • Smartypants October 22, 2017 / 12:23 pm

      Tara, thanks so much for the encouragement. You guys really lighten my burden.

      Your blog is awesome! I love the teensy-weensy pincushion. And Swee’Pea looks like a very capable assistant.

      • tara October 22, 2017 / 12:44 pm

        Thanks Smartypants! Yes, Swee’Pea is very supportive until he is distracted.

        • dubravkamcvmd October 22, 2017 / 2:39 pm

          What is the house panther’s name?

          • tara October 22, 2017 / 8:40 pm

            The house panther is Jacques. Named for Jacques Pepin and Jacques Torres because he is a foodie. Cheap yellow cheddar? no thank you – very ripe Brie? Yes please! Raw meat – blech! Paté? Don’t mind if I do eat all of your very expensive paté.

  9. Blue Footed Booby October 21, 2017 / 10:18 pm

    It’s weird. The drunker I get, the more Celtic my musical tastes become. I’m twelve ounces of rum into the night, so have a song: https://youtu.be/PuQX7z2gERc

    • Blue Footed Booby October 21, 2017 / 10:20 pm

      And for those of you more into black metal, https://youtu.be/LaaOpQpfRFA

      That album got me through some of the darker days of my college experience.

    • Murray C October 22, 2017 / 12:34 am

      Ouch, that’s a lot of run, BFB! It’s a really nice person of McPherson’s Farewell – I do admit to having trouble understanding all of it – I have a Scottish friend who will translate for me! (also a folksinger – as am I)

      • Murray C October 22, 2017 / 9:02 pm

        that’s supposed to say “VERSION”, not “PERSON” – D**N you autocorrect!

      • Blue Footed Booby October 23, 2017 / 8:36 am

        It doesn’t help that he spent part of his childhood in India. It’s a weird accent.

      • Murray C October 22, 2017 / 9:01 pm

        I think that’s the version most of the people I know sing.

    • Jendeyan October 22, 2017 / 6:34 pm

      That just blows mind with its awesomeness!

      • allein ? October 22, 2017 / 7:29 pm

        I couldn’t decide between Beetlejuice and Nightmare Before Christmas…

    • Murray C October 22, 2017 / 9:01 pm

      So great!

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