The Artful Meow

Herding cats

2011-07-24T09:25:00.002-04:00

The commercial:

The making of video:

This explains it perfectly

2011-07-03T21:01:00.004-04:00

"I don't make things in order to have finished objects. I have finished objects as a by-product of my need to always be making."

-Adam Savage

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T08:51:00.002-04:00

Just keep watching

2010-11-13T09:27:00.007-05:00

How many kittens do you see?

Wordley

2009-08-21T20:57:00.003-04:00

My mom found this new online toy. It does funky things to words. Like:

Also known as:

The Termite
by Ogden Nash

Some primal termite knocked on wood
And tasted it and found it good!
And that is why your Cousin May
Fell through the parlor floor today.

Stormy sunset

2009-06-26T22:31:00.009-04:00

After the Kr-boom and panning to the left...

Cloudy interference

2009-06-26T21:58:00.008-04:00

There has been some wacky weather this week, leading to some odd clouds. Pardon the occasional interference and non-clear photos. I'm not yet skilled in taking photos while driving but some of the clouds needed to be shown anyway.

There was also a wee bit of rain.

Kr-boom

2009-06-26T21:49:00.004-04:00

I missed getting home before this storm hit by a couple of minutes. It completely soaked me, head to toe, running from my car to put the garbage can away that had ended up in the driveway, back to the car to park in the driveway, then to the front door. A matter of seconds. It had calmed down a lot by the time I got to videotape it.

UPDATE: I talked to my next-door-neighbor and apparently if I'd been a little later getting home I wouldn't have gotten home until much later. All the roads into the neighborhood were apparently flooded. Her husband and kids were stranded for a while. Now I don't mind getting bonked in the head with hail quite so much.

Oregonness

2009-04-25T20:56:00.011-04:00

Came back from a trip to Oregon last week. Got a few good photos. Still sifting through them.

(Yes, this last one was taken from the plane)

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T07:51:00.002-05:00

Pictures will have to be added later...

UPDATE: Adding pictures as promised.

No wilds and no woods

2008-10-14T21:32:00.013-04:00

But there was some very nice weather. For October.

Really. Very nice weather.

I mean, just look at those wispy clouds.

And that lovely blue sky.

You can almost smell the ocean air.

Ships swinging in the breeze.

Just a nice, warm, just lovely day.

Nuts

2008-09-29T20:22:00.002-04:00

I left my adult elephants at home...

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

2008-07-16T20:28:00.002-04:00

If you're a Firefly fan, a Joss Whedon fan, a funny, quirky SciFi fan or just someone who likes a laugh, I highly recommend this!

Cute chicks

2008-05-04T23:15:00.005-04:00

Meet my new cousins. Cute Overload, eat your heart out. ;)

xkcd today

2008-05-02T20:07:00.003-04:00

Some things just beg to be highlighted.

April Fool's Day

2008-04-01T23:06:00.003-04:00

I like how Google handles April Fool's Day. They put a ton of time and energy into it for the pure laugh of it, but it's not at anyone's expense. If you haven't Virgled yet, I highly recommend it.

30 Seconds to Funny

2008-03-15T11:36:00.006-04:00

Have you seen the 30 Second Bunnies?

Wake up cat

2008-03-05T19:51:00.002-05:00

Simon Tofield sure knows his cats.

Greens

2008-03-02T15:33:00.009-05:00

Well

2008-02-26T21:16:00.005-05:00

I think that about says it, don't you?

Compliments of our friends at Cute Overload. Of course.

Mine

2008-01-28T20:56:00.000-05:00

Nd nou cand hah nny.*

* - And you can't have any.

And a Happy New Year!

2008-01-01T10:59:00.000-05:00

May this one be better for everyone.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T11:40:00.000-05:00

The Perfect Snowflake

2007-12-09T08:01:00.000-05:00

I had the smallest and neatest experience Friday. It was snowing (for the third time this month!) and I stuck my head out the door to see if it was sticking (it wasn't). I noticed that there seemed to be a nice variation of snowflake sizes, and they were falling at a nice pace right outside the door. So, I decided to stick my hand out to see if I could catch a snowflake (I didn't have my jacket on). Well, just sticking my hand out didn't quite do it, so I stuck my whole arm out. And caught a couple of snowflakes in my hand right away! And they as quickly melted. But it was chilly, so I brought my arm back inside. And noticed a few snowflakes on my black sleeve. And did a double-take, because one of them seemed to have more substance than the others. I took a closer look and it looked like someone had tossed a cake decoration star at me. It was a perfect star with a perfect circle cut out of the middle. I really didn't believe that it was a snowflake. It looked fake. It had substance. It was too perfect. Snowflakes are just random flops of frozen fluff to the eye. It just had to be fake. But then what the heck was it? So, I carefully scooped it up with my fingernail and put it on my finger to take a closer look. It was almost 2 millimeters across. It was equally thick all the way through. It was compressed. It almost felt like ice, but it wasn't quite that dense. It was definitely snow. It looked like someone had taken a log of stars, cut off a slice and tossed it out the window at me. And then it melted.

I'd never seen an actual shaped snowflake before. It was just amazing. I stood there and gaped for a while after. It was just too cool. So to speak. I wish I could have taken a picture of it. I think I'm going to be looking at snow a little more closely from now on.

Signed truck

2007-11-02T20:22:00.001-04:00

I'm just hoping it doesn't mean something Satanic or curseworthy or anything. I just thought it looked cool. And hey, we were in traffic.

It's on fire!

2007-10-28T16:33:00.000-04:00

How ironic.

My Beloved Izzy

2007-09-30T15:52:00.001-04:00

As many of you know, I lost Izzy a few months after I lost Howie. That sucked. Izzy missed Howie. He took to sleeping on the mat by the front door which had always been Howie's spot. It was as though he was waiting for Howie to come back through the door. Izzy passed away on June 1, 2007. He had lymphoma and fatty liver disease.

Izzy was fuzzy, furry, fat and friendly. He was a Maine Coon cat. He had the requisite fur collar around his neck. He had stripes on his massive, furry tail like a raccoon that you could only see in the right light. He had a bit of fur that stuck out from the tips of his ears. He was possesive. He thought he was a dog. He played fetch. He played tug-of-war. He liked sleeping at the foot of the bed on my feet, when he wasn't sleeping on my stomach. He was a gorgeous cat. He was 25 pounds of fluff and "big bones". His tummy was covered in curly, fluffy fuzz. He loved having his tummy rubbed. When he was in the mood, that is. He also loved having that spot right in front of his ears rubbed. He loved his treats. And he knew how to be snuggly and adorable when he wanted to be.

He had this lazy way of licking his paw as though he was about to start washing his face and then he'd just stop and go to sleep. As previously mentioned he was polydactl, meaning he had an extra claw on his front paws. He looked like he had opposable thumbs and when he held anything in his paws you would swear he did. He liked licking the top of Howie's head when Howie would let him. He liked to groom my hair. He had the loudest meow you could imagine. And an exceptional purr. And I miss him.

Blue Sky

2007-09-16T13:43:00.001-04:00

Yesterday.

Wha?

2007-09-09T16:44:00.000-04:00

Yep, we only train Sears truck drivers here. Not Target. Not Wal-Mart. Not KMart. Not Home Depot. Not Barnes & Noble. Not A&P. Not Macys. Not Toy R' Us. Not Babies R' Us. Not Kids R' Us.

*breath*

Not Piggley Wiggley. Not Big & Tall. Not Radio Shack. Not the Caddy Shack. Not CVS. Not UPS. Not USPS. Not Payless...

Swoop

2007-09-02T15:19:00.000-04:00

Just a bit of Sunday swoopage.

Now in Technicolor!

2007-08-24T20:28:00.000-04:00

No Photoshopping. Promise!

Tower room

2007-08-18T11:53:00.000-04:00

Where's the dragon? Guarding the drawbridge I guess.

More pink poof

2007-08-12T11:44:00.000-04:00

Pretty poofy pinkness pour your pleasure.

Onions

2007-08-09T19:36:00.000-04:00

Not the stinky kind.

I swear

2007-07-28T16:01:00.000-04:00

He was a groundhog just a minute ago.

Reflections

2007-07-24T20:04:00.000-04:00

Trucks and trucks and trucks galore!

Foggy, foggy night

2007-07-17T20:41:00.000-04:00

Well, okay so it wasn't at night. It was just really, really foggy.

Seeing seeing

2007-07-13T19:43:00.000-04:00

Double double.

You'll have to pardon the raindrops on my windshield there.

Before and after

2007-07-10T19:32:00.000-04:00

Before

During

After

You might notice a slight change between Before and After.

(insert Tarzan yell here)

2007-07-08T10:16:00.000-04:00

And perhaps the sounds of some running antelope and panthers and such.

Seats

2007-07-07T17:21:00.000-04:00

You're tilting your head again, aren't you?

The long and winding rail

2007-07-04T08:03:00.000-04:00

Okay, so it's not winding so much as being bendy. Whatever.

SWNT*

2007-07-03T19:26:00.000-04:00

* - Steeple With No Tree

Leetle towers

2007-07-02T20:03:00.000-04:00

Oh Rapunz, Rapunz, let down your hair!

What, you don't think there's room for a whole Rapunzel in there do you?

Snakey ducts

2007-07-01T09:46:00.000-04:00

Think they have rolls of colored duct tape standing by just in case?

Stepped up

2007-06-29T21:08:00.000-04:00

Going up?

Sploosh

2007-06-28T19:46:00.000-04:00

Alright, who dropped the bar of soap in the ocean again?

Rocky sky

2007-06-27T21:16:00.000-04:00

Ultra font

2007-06-26T20:25:00.000-04:00

That'sa nice.

Day First

2007-06-25T19:51:00.000-04:00

Well, today was Day One at my new job.

I survived.

I think a little piece of me died when I realized that I couldn't check my Gmail. In fact, I have access to exactly two external websites. Both of them company websites.

Sigh.

And not even any Cute Overload to make up for it.

Well, it's a job. We will see how it goes.

One of these things...

2007-06-24T07:32:00.000-04:00

Joe: Hey, Bob!

Bob: Yeah, Joe?

Joe: Who's the new guy?

Bob: Oh, he's Martha's cousin Goeffrey's best friend Ezekiel's former roommate, Jacques.

Joe. Oh. (brief pause) Okay.

Duuuhnuh duuuuuuuhnuh

2007-06-23T07:09:00.000-04:00

That's a pretty big land shark. Third cousin to a loan shark I believe.

Find the birdy

2007-06-22T07:19:00.000-04:00

Hint: He's not all there.

Neat pokey things

2007-06-21T09:15:00.000-04:00

Burble

2007-06-20T10:12:00.000-04:00

Ahhhh. Feels cool and refreshing.

No words

2007-06-19T10:30:00.000-04:00

Fencing

2007-06-18T16:02:00.000-04:00

I don't think that fence is doing much good at the moment.

Self portrait

2007-06-17T10:33:00.000-04:00

From left to right, that's me, my mom and my dad. Wave hi!

Solid holes

2007-06-16T15:03:00.000-04:00

Amazing how much solidness is still in these holey poles.

Soaring

2007-06-15T11:56:00.000-04:00

I'm a leaf in the wind.

Doorways to nowhere

2007-06-14T10:48:00.000-04:00

Well, you'll just have to trust me that they don't go anywhere. Or rather, they go to large slabs of more concrete. But it looked neat from this angle.

A single chair

2007-06-12T13:50:00.000-04:00

Perhaps someone was trying to get away from the live band.

Roar, I say

2007-06-10T12:40:00.000-04:00

Yes, this photo was taken in New Jersey.

Brief hiatus

2007-06-10T12:35:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the temporary suspension in blogging activities. As those of you who know me, er, know, I recently and very abruptly lost my poor Izzy. It's left me feeling somewhat less than enthusiastic about posting. But, we will now return to our regularly scheduled postings. I'll do an Izzy post at some later date. But, for now, on with the posts.

Tunnel vision

2007-05-31T11:39:00.000-04:00

It just keeps going and going and going and going...

Whoosh

2007-05-30T13:00:00.000-04:00

Er. I think it's trees (scratches head). Maybe. But, uh, I planned it that way. Yeah. That's it. Planned it. Impressionism via camera. Yeah. Campressionism.

Nope

2007-05-29T15:30:00.000-04:00

I really don't feel like having my picture taken today thank you very much. Too many paparazzi around these days. Really, it's an outrage the lack of prihvacy these days. Just shameful.

Going up?

2007-05-28T20:45:00.000-04:00

You're tilting your head, aren't you? I know, I'm evil.

Separated

2007-05-28T12:13:00.000-04:00

Do you think they spent more time making a straight line with the red mulch than it would have taken to go back and get matching black mulch?

Woof

2007-05-26T12:12:00.000-04:00

I just love the texture of bark. It's just so...barky.

Can you picture that?

2007-05-24T17:36:00.000-04:00

Can't you just see the little ladders going between the fairy homes?

Sneeff

2007-05-22T16:20:00.000-04:00

I wiill pose brieefly so you can vieew my pairfect posture.

And then I wiill ziip awayy.

Bluey

2007-05-22T12:18:00.000-04:00

Okay, who ordered the wispy, white clouds? Got your order right here.

Slip and slide

2007-05-20T18:32:00.000-04:00

I hope that raccoon enjoyed itself on my newly patched roof.

Les Misérables

2007-05-20T14:00:00.000-04:00

Went to the revival of Les Misérables on Broadway last Tuesday. Even better than I remembered. I greatly enjoy the music. It's been running through my head ever since. Here are some brief excerpts - from the musical, not my head:

"At the end of the day you're another day older."

- At the End of the Day

"Who am I? 24601!"

- Who Am I?

"Charge 'em for the lice / Extra for the mice / Two percent for looking in the mirror twice!"

- Master of the House

"When the beating of your heart / Echoes the beating of the drums / There is a life about to start / When tomorrow comes!"

- Do You Hear the People Sing?

"In the rain the pavement shines like silver / All the lights are misty in the river / In the darkness the trees are full of starlight / And all I see is him and me forever and forever."

- On My Own

"Phantom faces at the window / Phantom shadows on the floor / Empty chairs at empty tables / Where my friends will meet no more."

- Empty Chairs at Empty Tables

Can you see it turning?

2007-05-20T11:05:00.000-04:00

Spent a lovely day at the boardwalk yesterday.

Just close your eyes. Er, maybe that won't work very well.

Well, here's some detail for you instead:

It's SAT Day!*

2007-05-19T20:18:00.000-04:00

* - Steeple And Tree Day

Dining out old style

2007-05-18T09:47:00.000-04:00

It's not a black and white photo, but who can tell?

No shouting

2007-05-17T18:15:00.000-04:00

Just twisting.

What a name

2007-05-16T21:38:00.000-04:00

Bleeding Heart

I mean, sheesh, you may as well call it the "Stab Your Cheating Lover in the Heart and Watch them Bleed to Death Before you Dial 911" flower ("Stabius Cheatius 911ius" is the Latin name I believe). I think I would have gone with "Flying Heart" or something like that, myself. Chocolate, not stabbing, people.

And pouf

2007-05-15T08:54:00.000-04:00

This time of the Izzy variety. Slightly over-stuffed cushion indeed.

Poof

2007-05-14T09:21:00.000-04:00

Just making sure everyone knows it's really, really Spring.

Be the branch

2007-05-13T11:03:00.000-04:00

No one can see me. I am invisible. I am one with the tree. I am the branch.

I wish I hadn't eaten that last batch of nuts.

Shiny

2007-05-08T10:51:00.000-04:00

Take a left at Valhalla

2007-05-06T11:04:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite sets of directions includes this. There was a perfect combination of traffic, wind and flag flappage to bring you this photo.

Sproing

2007-05-05T21:16:00.000-04:00

You'd think it was spring or something.

An abrupt ending

2007-04-15T13:35:00.000-04:00

This past Thursday my place of employment (the number one broadband phone company - in their eyes at least) decided to unemploy me and a few hundred other people. A first for me, usually I'm the one leaving. Ah well, the rose-colored glasses toward that place shattered long ago. (Photo compliments of Cute Overload, of course)

Adorable slurpage

2007-04-10T22:05:00.000-04:00

Compliments of our Cute Overload masters. Who can resist? Not I. Not. I.

A rose is a rose is a rose

2007-04-10T22:01:00.000-04:00

I don't care if they're "common," I still think they're beautiful.

Happy Holiday

2007-04-08T16:04:00.000-04:00

Yeah, whatever, just pass the Cadbury Creme Eggs and Peeps. We could use some more chocolate and marshmallow holidays in my opinion.

Craftsy

2007-04-06T20:08:00.000-04:00

Some of the recentish spheres I've been creating.

No fooling

2007-04-01T21:35:00.000-04:00

A wall at work and a sampling of the carpet.

What's new, Pussycat?

2007-03-31T22:48:00.000-04:00

Woah, woah!

I just watched "Flushed Away," so you'll have to pardon me if I go all Tom Jonesy on you for a minute. Highly recommended if you like that kind of thing. I do. Er, the "Flushed Away" part, not the Tom Jones part. Not that he isn't perfect in some situations. Or rather, his music is. Oh just go rent the movie already.

No, really. Go.

What are you doing still reading this? Get in the car. Now.

Continuing a trend

2007-03-26T19:39:00.000-04:00

I enjoy the contrast between the relatively flat water in the foreground and background, angular rocks and vertical water spray in the middle.

Sploosh

2007-03-23T21:12:00.000-04:00

Look Ma, no cats!

2007-03-22T20:02:00.000-04:00

More New Jersey shore for your viewing pleasure.

Well, it's not just cats

2007-03-21T21:32:00.000-04:00

Just mostly cats.

This needs more cats

2007-03-20T20:38:00.000-04:00

Because you can never have too many cat photos. In my opinion, at least. You might perhaps have already noticed that trend here.

A better perspective

2007-03-18T21:50:00.000-04:00

I've been asked to indicate Izzy's enormity a bit better. I'll work on a better shot, but how about this? Please note that in a not-very-stretched out state he's almost the length of my leg. Granted, I'm not a very tall person, but still. Human leg. Izzy. Not small.

Note: he's mostly Maine Coon cat. They're supposed to be big, though he is on a diet currently. Yes, he's polydactl (he looks like he has opposable thumbs). Yes, he plays fetch. No, he is a lap cat. Can't get them all right.

Just the two of them

2007-03-18T11:17:00.000-04:00

Here's a photo to give you a view of the size differences between Howie and Izzy. Yes, there is a bit of perspective in this angle, but you get the idea. When Izzy stretches out on the bed there isn't much room left for me. He is a large, fluffy, hefty beast. Not that Howie was small.