It’s time for another cozy Caturday in the open thread. In lieu of a throw rug we have Hamster, via reader Tracy R., who adds:
In case anybody needs to see a fuzzy cat belly (and really, these days, who doesn’t need to see a fuzzy cat belly?), here it is!
Bonus! Reader Duckie sends this picture of an egg laid by her bird Duckie, with the customary banana for scale.
The world has probably never been in more urgent need of fuzzy cat bellies, and I for one wish to thank Hamster for his humanitarian work.
I also wish to thank Mr Gary Oldman for the masterclass in acting he’s currently giving in “Krapp’s Last Tape” at my local theatre. Like (apparently most) actors of mature years he didn’t do the banana peel slip indicated in the stage directions, no doubt wishing to avoid breaking a hip in front of a paying audience, but I don’t think anyone minded. Interestingly, the vintage tape recorder used in the show was also used by two other great actors, John Hurt and Michael Gambon, in their own productions of the play. It was all a far cry from his first paid acting job at this theatre as Dick Whittington’s Cat back in 1979, when he fainted on three occasions due to the suffocating heat inside the costume!
I envy you the experience!
Sounds like you enjoyed the show–that’s lovely.
In case you missed it, Gary Oldman’s interview a few weeks ago on Stephen Colbert was fabulous, and ended with a hilarious reimagining of scenes from some of his key roles.
Happy Caturday! Fuzzy cat belly is great but I don’t know about the fireplace. Today’s high is supposed to be 85°! Not ready for that. (Then tomorrow is supposed to be 69°…🤷🏻♀️)
Yesterday was my parents’ 55th anniversary! 🥂🍾
Today I need to set up my new phone and clear out my old one so I can return it to the Verizon store. I’m getting $600 in credit for the trade-in (would have been $830 but that requires one of the higher-level plans and I don’t need all that. The middle plan is $90 a month by itself, and my estimated bill with the lower ($75) plan is around $90 with taxes and the actual phone payment (which is only about $7/month higher than if I was getting the full credit amount). I’ll also need to get a new case, because while the screen is the same size, the frame is thinner and the camera is bigger so my old case won’t work. (But I do have one screen protector left from the pack of three I got for my old phone and that should fit.) My dad informed me recently that my current 5-year-old phone won’t be supported with the next IOS update (which google tells me is still a few months away, but with all the tariff back-and-forth who knows how much more expensive it might or might not be by then).
(The phone came Wednesday but I didn’t feel like figuring it out after work, and Friday I had to run over to my parents’ while they were out at lunch to leave their card. Found out later that they actually got home while I was there but just drove past when they saw my car and came back after I left because they didn’t know what I was doing and didn’t want to ruin it. 😄 Then I got home and ended up taking a nap and then time sort of got away from me and then my battery was low and it says to have both phones fully charged before transferring the data. So I said “I’ll do it tomorrow” for the third time and went to bed.)
Also need to do some laundry. Easter dinner at my parents’ tomorrow.
It’s either six minutes of not much happening (or being said – too breezy), or it’s six relaxing minutes with Olive and Mabel on Formby beach at sunrise and Troon beach nearing sunset. It all depends on your point of view. I’ll go with the latter.
And there were some other good dogs this week, too…
Happy anniversary to your parents! 55 years is impressive!
Give my regards to your parents–happy anniversary indeed!
I saw Sigourney and Alice last night–it’s worth watching the full video on Instagram. Laughed until my sides ached.
Buford deserves all the steaks.
After multiple attempts and a fair amount of swearing, my new phone seems to be set up. (The old and new didn’t seem to want to talk to each other and the only trouble shooting it would give me was ‘make sure bluetooth is on’ which it was). I left it updating all the apps so I’ll make sure it’s all good before I erase the old phone.
But the screen protector I have doesn’t fit. The screen size (diagonally) is the same but the height and width (and the curve of the corners) are ever-so-slightly different. Because of course they are.
Not a fan of the Big A, but the cases I saw in stores that I actually like are all like fifty bucks. I was hoping to find the brand I have (which I got at Target for I think $35 which is still kind of a lot), because it is still in good shape after five years, but I can’t find much from them now…Best Buy and Target basically had the same stuff, aside from some that I think are Target brands. (They also tend to be a bit disorganized which is annoying. The same cases for different phones in the wrong sections…grr…)
I don’t know about the brand, but this one is pretty and not too pricey…and most of the negative comments in the reviews are abut the screen protector; people seem to like the case itself. I saw another one the other day but I can’t find it now. At least if I have to go the Big A route, my dad has Prime and I can get it quickly (because I am paranoid; I didn’t even want to touch the screen to set it up because it was so pristine! I have a stylus but I couldn’t find it).
Oh my! That’s a nice belly, would Hamster let me pet it do you think?
Duckie’s egg is the smallest egg I’ve ever seen!
Yesterday we went to cast out vote for Canada’s nest government, the election is actually on the April 28th but there was 4 days you could go vote early so we thought let’s go on the first day around lunch time to avoid crowds but it seems a lot of people had the same ides and we ended up waiting in line for more than hour, well at least it’s done.
Nothing much else is going on, it’s grey outside and I have chores to do, I hope everyone has a good weekend.
I voted early last year, too. I went on Halloween in hopes that people would be busy with trick-or-treating. I only waited a few minutes. (The parking lot was pretty full but it was at the library and I think something else was going on that night, too.)
I did encounter a Minion and a banana, though.
I am so tired of adulting I could shriek. Nevertheless, I have plans to march today, as that is more important than my inner toddler complaining.
Happy to see fuzzy belly and teeny egg!
Amen! Is Bibi going with you?
I left Bibi in charge at home. She doesn’t really understand politics, though I’m sure she’d support my positions out of empathy and solidarity.
It’s a bit frustrating, because I injured my foot and am supposed to take it easy, so no marching for me for the moment, even on this glorious 250th anniversary of Paul Revere’s famous ride! (Oh, the irony of that ride vs this week’s news is inescapable). I do love doing posters and have all sorts of wicked ideas, so I am trying to figure out if I can upload images somewhere so anyone can download and print them out if they want. I have seen some fabulous signs, but know not everyone has the time to make their own. Good luck on the march!
Heather Cox Richardson had a discussion the other day with Senator Angus King about Paul Revere’s ride, and what it “means for us today.” It’s on her youtube and facebook pages.
(The title is American Conversations: Senator Angus King (I-ME), on Paul Revere’s Ride.)
Thanks! That sounds very interesting.
Hi Hamster! Gosh, you do have the life. I’d love to give your fuzzy belly a gentle little rub. Jacques must know I’m writing about you because he just poked his head up from the black-cat-cuddle-puddle and “chimed-on”.
I’m still recovering from whatever wiped me out last weekend. I think I’m done being contagious, but the exhaustion! wow. I took yesterday off and accidentally slept until past noon. I thought about marching today, but I think I better still take it easy. My volunteer from work, who is good with plants and such, is coming over to take a look at my front hedge which took a turn for the worst this year. Half of it died and I’m not sure how.
I’m in the same climate zone as Allein and have no idea how it is going to be 80°F here today. It’s totally overcast which to me means muggy humidity. yuck.
Duckie and Duckie – congrats on your little egg. One of my favorite YouTuber’s is Ann Reardon who does “How to Cook That.” She a food scientist from Australia and I love her very informative quick shows. Here’s the one on how she makes mini eggs for your 1/12 scale kitchen!
Be careful! you can spend all weekend watching her amazing creations and experiments. She does a lot viral video debunking as well. Super fun.
I hope everyone has a nice weekend – if you celebrate the holiday – Enjoy!
I love her channel! I sometimes feel bad for her husband and kids, though. 😄
She hasn’t done any tiny kitchen videos in a while.
Hope you’re feeling better soon.
I just looked up where there are protests in NJ and they are all an hour or more away in places I am not at all familiar with…
This women is INSANE😳 All that teensy tiny stuff—that works! Amazed.
That Ostrich egg was pretty cool, tho.
Take care of yourself! Sleep sounds like the best possible antidote.
Greetings to Cutetropolis from Neapolis, Italy! We’ve been here a week. If it weren’t for Mt Vesuvius and the food, I would give southern Italy a miss. Too many people, scooters, trash, noise, and smombies (smartphone zombies). Some cute excavation and harbor cats though.
Watch out for those smombies! Despite all the negatives, I still want to go to southern Italy.
we’ve been to Pompeii, Oplontis, the archaeological museum and then some. The ancient world is fascinating… 2025, not so much.
Sounds like a great trip, smombies notwithstanding. Enjoy!
Hamster, you need to relax more. Srsly. Love that beautiful tummy. And lil Duckie makes the cutest eggs ever.
After a week of very warm weather, we got our April snow yesterday. It flurried all day yesterday and it’s still cold today. I may turn on the fireplace this evening.
Warping my new, wider rigid heddle loom today! The adjustment from 15″ to 25″ inches may not seem like much, but the new loom takes up a lot more space.
Hugs to you all.
Happy weekend, everyone. And thank you, Hamster, for that glorious tummy. I’m imagining what it would feel like.
Little Duckie only did three eggs in five days this time around. I took someone’s suggestion to leave the eggs in the cage, and it seems to have worked. Much better than her last round of ten eggs in twenty three days. Thank you.
Hubby’s family has decided that it’s not fair we spend so much time dealing with my family’s problems, so they’ve started up their own trouble. I’m so glad hubby is dealing with it.
I’m with everyone on the baffling weather. Yesterday I was pulling sun dresses out of storage. Today I’m wrapped around a mug of hot tea with a fleece blanket wrapped around me.
I have a quick question for everyone. I’m trying to find some Bellis/Ellis plaid fabric (does not need to be true tartan wool) for a sewing project. I’ve looked online, and have had several minor heart attacks over the costs. I’ve tried Spoonflower, but they won’t make it due to copyright issues. Any ideas?
I’m spending the weekend putting stuff in boxes, just to create the fiction of organization. It’s actually working. So, off to unwreak havoc. Have a fantastic weekend, everyone.
Have you looked on Etsy for fabric? You can also design your own tartan that’s close but not identical. Contrary to most people’s understanding, tartans don’t have to be registered. Their authenticity usually doesn’t go back farther than the late 18th century, at most.
Hmmmm….
Semi-lurking today but good to read everyone else’s news. Feeling kinda blah today after dealing with weird weather this week. Its was cool and windy and cloudy most of the week but today is sunny and in the 70s. Spent last night like Duckie, wrapped up a flannel shirt and a fleecy throw hugging a hot mug of tea with some whiskey (for medicinal purposes ya know😉). Lego club meeting later, might do some gardening and re-arranging the craft/dining room. Tomorrow is lunch with friends and groceries. Enjoy any nice weather you have, and for those that celebrate, Happy Easter.