Saturday, November 28, 2009

DANTE: SUNSHINE ON HIS SHOULDERS ON SUNDAY!

After a few cloudy, rainy days in a row the sun finally came out again. It's a little cooler, but that's to be expected.

There's nothing like a little sunshine on my Dante's shoulders (a nod to John Denver, there). Or anywhere on his furry, fiery coat, for that matter. So just relax and enjoy the scenery! It's Sunday, after all.



























Dante and I hope that made you warm and happy! Now you can go for a snooze.

CATURDAY ON THE CHASE WITH DANTE

These first two pictures are a blur because Dante was moving so fast. I have posted them in the order that they took place, and I noticed that the squirrel is actually farther ahead in the first picture. It must have turned back somehow, and run directly into the red beast -- who just barely misses the capture!




Sometimes I think the squirrels do this just for the thrill of it, because they certainly seem to be fearless. Of course, in this picture, squirrelly knows that Dante can't go any further, and sits just out of reach, calmly eating his lunch.


Dante returns to his favourite tree, where another little black demon is hovering above.


Aha! There it is -- bold as ever!


Dante does the nonchalant thing, and just tries to ignore it.


But he is taunted yet again!


Dante decides not to let this distract him from having a good scratch.



He spots another demon on the approach. This saga has no end!

Tune in same place, another time for the next installment in this series.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Saturday, November 21, 2009

NOT SO EASY SUNDAY WITH DANTE!

It's Sunday and Dante is definitely not at ease. In fact, he's on high alert! You can see the focus in his eye as he peeks around the tree. His pupil dilates widely as he spies the object of his desire.
(Biggify for maximum exposure to the eye of the hunter.)


And then it was gone! Look at the difference in his eyes in this second picture. The killer stare has completely evaporated.



Dante has reacquired his target.



He's beginning to hunker down.


Now he's fully hunkered (and what a hunker, hunker he is, too!). And the killer look is back in force.


This is a very short video that reveals the thrill of the chase. But alas, not the capture.



OK, Dante! Stand down and at ease. It's Sunday after all, and both you and that squirrel deserve a rest. This neverending story will repeat itself tomorrow, and the day after that, and that day after that ...

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

THURSDAY IN THE GARDEN WITH DANTE




So, it's Thursday again, and although Dante is in charge of fertilization, for the most part, he has a few other duties around the yard as well. Our neighbours have also hired him as a consultant, because Dante can test their soil and gauge exactly what is needed for their plants to weather the winter to come.


Here is Dante sniffing their bushes. He can tell by their scent how healthy they are. He seems to approve of these ones.


Here, Dante is checking out a hole that he has found in their foundation where vermin are known to hide. I'm sure he'll make recommendations in his report about this. Likely some repairs are warranted.



Next, Dante is smelling the almond bush. In the spring it is very pretty with pink flowers. He thinks this will need some more fertilization before the snow comes, but he will only offer his recommendations, not his fertilizing services. Only we have the distinct honour of benefitting from his own personal brand of fertilizer.


Dante thinks this particular bush has been cut back way too much, and may not survive. However, once he writes up his report along with his suggestions, it will have a better chance -- as long as the neighbours heed his wisdom.

Hey, maybe as well as being a Society of Feline Gardeners, they can be a group of consultants, too! After all, they have a common concern about the health of the environment.

Until next time, this is the Secretary of Fertilization signing off.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY: DANTE THE TREE HUGGER








Sunday, November 15, 2009

EASY ON SUNDAY: DANTE IN REPOSE

It's Sunday and a little rainy, so Dante's inside posing in repose. He's quite accomplished that way, you know.

For this photoshoot, because it's indoors, I had to use the flash.


Of course, the flash sometimes produces the laser eyes, so this is what we have here. However, I think that is more than offset by the cute upside-down pose, in repose.


I got a comment the other day about not being able to notice Dante's classic tabby markings easily. Well, you certainly can see them in this picture on his head and on his forelegs. Biggify it if you want to see them even better.


Dante actually has the tabby stripes all over his body, of course, but with his fur being as long as it is, you can't see them -- they've all grown out into this massive collection of floof.


I was struck in these pictures by the contrast between the deep red of his top coat, indicated here by his tail and the top of his head, and the pale fur on his underbelly. Dante's breeder told me that he had some red dilute in him.

I love the variation of colour in Dante's fur. Every picture seems to reveal a different combination of fire and cream.

And with that, let's leave Dante off to dream!

Friday, November 13, 2009

CATURDAY MEET 'N GREET: GOOD DOG MEETS DANTE!

This is the second Meet 'n Greet between Dante and Scooter, the woofie, in recent history. Their previous encounter was documented on this blog in a Wordless Wednesday post on November 4th (you can just scroll further down this page to see it, if you wish).

This time around I am calling Scooter a good dog. I guess at one time his beans thought he was bad, because he's had his barking box removed (poor thing)! I tend to think it's the beans fault for not training a woofie properly, rather than the dog's fault for barking too much.

Anyway, Scooter is often walked by another neighbour (not his owner) named Danielle. She lost her own beloved woofie a couple of years ago, and so she bonds with her neighbour's pets now.

Danielle was very frightened the first time Scooter encountered Dante last week, because she said he's usually very nasty with cats. However, I don't think Scooter had any idea that Dante was a cat! Dante is at least as big as Scooter, if not a little larger -- he's certainly taller, anyway.

The first meeting ended very well, and was quite amicable, so this week when Danielle came walking by with Scooter again, she brought him up the driveway. When Dante saw him coming, he rushed right over to greet him. Unfortunately, you only ever see the back of Dante in these pictures, but you get the general idea.

Scooter's tail was wagging madly in a very friendly way. He was delighted to see Dante again! Indeed, when Dante ultimately turned to walk up the porch steps to sit in the porch chair, Scooter pulled on his leash, and Danielle allowed him to follow. Scooter lay right down in front of the chair where Dante was sitting! Unfortunately, the battery in my camera had run down by then, so I didn't capture that part of the visit.

It was so sweet to realize that Scooter actually likes Dante that much. He didn't even want to leave when Danielle finally tugged on his leash and told him it was time to go. She had to encourage him gently, and finally with a brief nod to his new friend, Danielle and Scooter took their leave.

Until next time, amigo!








I wasn't prepared to take a movie, but I guess my camera was on the video setting when I first turned it on (you'll hear my big "whoops"!). This film is a whole two seconds, but if you look quickly, you can see Scooter's tail wagging happily.



Dante is very attracted to woofies. He really doesn't know the difference between cats and dogs either, I think. All he knows is that it's a new little friend. Isn't that sweet?

Dante is as gentle as they come. They don't call Maine Coons "Gentle Giants" for nothing!

DANTE: THE BUSHIER THE BETTER

Most of these latest pictures of Dante are taken through one of the bushes in the front yard. Of course, it's easy to see him through the bush since most of the leaves are gone.

As the bush becomes less bushy, Dante himself has become more bushy. Is this true irony or what?

Dante's my regular bushbaby, except a whole lot cuter. Have you ever seen pictures of those bushbabies? Yeesh!

































And just to show you, here's a picture of an actual bushbaby.


I think it looks like some alien Star Wars character. Look at those toes! It could win an Ugly Feet Contest, hands down (LOL)!

Which bushbaby would you like hanging out in your front yard? Dante, or the real thing?

My apologizes to all the bushbaby owners out there. They are sort of cute in a very odd way. And I wish them all the best.