The girls aren’t the only one enjoying the yard:
Tunch is outside prowling, nose all pink, stealthing (as best he can) around the yard with his tail twitching and letting out a random chirp.
by John Cole| 95 Comments
This post is in: Cat Blogging, Open Threads
Comments are closed.
Odie Hugh Manatee
Hopefully Tunch won’t jump on the fence. I’d hate to hear that it collapsed after all of your hard work!
Good morning to you John. :)
SiubhanDuinne
TUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNCHIE!
But won’t his random chirping tip off the birds he’s stalking? (or, I guess, the seismic jolts of his every step).
Just kidding, Tunch! Love you! Thanks for the picture, John.
Linda Featheringill
Hot dogs! An action pic of Tunch! :-)
[You’re a pretty baby. Have fun in the yard.]
Josie
Oh, how pretty he looks in his new yard. Now you can build him a cat jungle gym and he can get some exercise. You guys are definitely going to get good use of that fenced yard.
Mustang Bobby
Now THAT’s a cat. Beautiful.
If Tunch was in my yard, wet paws would ensue. We finally got some rain here in South Florida.
Neil
The first time my cat Ben went outside it blew his little kitty brain. He just sat there motionless in the grass chirping for a good five minutes.
Keith G
Next Cole project: Getting rid of that broadleaf and getting some real grass.
j/k – One year, I applied broadleaf killer to the lawn at our family home and 60% of the vegetation went away.
middlewest
I’m not sure if this has been posted here yet, but the DOJ just filed a brief challenging the constitutionality of DOMA and requesting heightened scrutiny for discrimination based on sexual orientation. This is a big fucking deal.
WereBear
Make sure Tunchie is chipped. Just in case.
Keith G
@middlewest:
Why, oh why does Obama hate us gays?
PeakVT
Is anyone having a problem with BJ never fully loading again? It’s driving me nuts b/c I use Load Tabs Progressively and as long as BJ is spinning other things don’t load until I hit stop on the BJ tab.
Linda Featheringill
middlewest #8
You’re right. That is a big deal.
Very nice, really. I’d like to see how that plays out.
Odie Hugh Manatee
@PeakVT:
Nope. I use SeaMonkey (2.1.0) and the only plugins I use on it are NoScript and FlashBlock. BJ loads fast and I usually have 7-9 tabs open at any time (7 right now).
It’s very un-Tunch-like (lean & mean). ;)
Valdivia
Tunchie! He’s soo handsome. It also warms my heart that he is just as a big as one of my cats. :)
meh
Yeah sort of the way a Boeing 777 can stealth across a runway…
Jman
You’ll really enjoy sitting outside in the shade reading your iPad and watching the animals play. Just got a new puppy and it is hilarious watching him become part of the pack. The gruff old timer sets the limits and most of the play with puppy comes from the younger dog. It’s play time for everyone!
Poopyman
Happy cat is happy.
Given his rotundity and his glow–in–the–dark coat, I doubt the birds have too much to fear from the guy. So you at least avoid the guilt you’d feel if he nailed one under a bird feeder. Happens to me at least weekly.
@Keith G:
What’s the point? You just end up spending $$ on lawn products, half of which wash into the watershed. If you keep it cut close as Mr. Cole has it’s a perfectly acceptable lawn.
Speaking of which, I gotta go mow the weeds before it gets too hot. NWS sez it’s already 80 out there.
Cheryl from Maryland
#8 — this is a seriously big deal. Especially because the rational is based on adding sexual orientation to the classes which deserve heightened scrutiny, such as race, gender and religion.
harlana
Oh my, what a vision to wake up to, His Royal SnoWhite Gloriousness in the Wild!
Poopyman
I have had it with these motherfucking scorpions on this Motherfucking plane!
Odie Hugh Manatee
meh:
Fix’t.
Think BIG! ;)
mr. whipple
OMG, it’s Arnold Ziffle!
jeffreyw
I wonder if the rain puddles in the yard “shiver” when Tunch walks by?
Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)
Stealthing? That is the look of a cat in deep thought, plotting your demise.
Be afraid, John. Be very afraid.
mr. whipple
Watch out for kids climbing the fence at night to tip him over.
Trollenschlongen (formerly Tim, Interrupted)
I wonder if the rain puddles in the yard “shiver” when Tunch walks by?
hahaha…that is an excellent image. Made me laugh.
Hey Cole and you other people: Why do you call this noise the Tunchmeister makes a “chirp?” Is this a regional expression? I have never heard of a cat chirping. Birds chirp. Cats kill.
Oh, and Tunch is humongously overweight. But that coat is beautiful.
Keith
All of my cats took to the outside pretty quickly (after 7 years indoors), but 2 became full-on fence-jumpers/bird&rat hunters (and occasionally baby rabbit) before disappearing. The two fat ones still walk really delicately on grass, but I have even caught those two digging into dead birds (although yesterday’s case was a bird+window fatality that cat and dog both enjoyed). I am betting Tunch has some of that potential buried in him somewhere.
JPL
Trollenschlongen,
Tunch just has a small head. At least John doesn’t have to worry about him squeezing through the space between the gate door and the post.
Violet
What a pretty kitty! He looks so intense, stalking whatever prey he’s going after (John, was that you?). Looks like everyone is going to enjoy this yard.
WereBear
What looks like a big butt is a big butt; Tunchie has the impressive hindquarters of a SPRINGER. He leaps; and it takes a lot of muscle to move the rest of him.
Our Mostly Maine Coon, RJ, (he’s only sixteen pounds at four years old, but he might mature more) looks fat because he actually is big-boned. My own vet was astonished, and exclaimed, “That’s all muscle!”
Here RJ is on the top shelf, contrasted with a 9.5 pound nine month old Tristan.
Neil
@Trollenschlongen: Some cats don’t quite meow. They make what is probably best described as a noise sounding like a b followed by some rolling rs. A short little chirp as it were.
Exurban Mom
All ur yards are belonging to Tunch. He walks with the majesty that befits his station.
dr. bloor
That’s one angry sheep wandering around your backyard, Cole.
Trollenschlongen (formerly Tim, Interrupted)
I do not think I have ever heard that…but I haven’t had a pet cat since I was 14. Which was a frightening number of decades ago.
hahahahaha
Maude
Josie
That’s a good idea about the jungle gym. He can perch at the top and look down on his kingdom.
Constance
I came to this blog because Paul Krugman linked to something here and about the second or third thing I saw was a picture of Tunch. I fell in love with him, the dogs and the blog.
Great to see him enjoying the great outdoors–your story about him escaping for the night was fun, because he came home.
I have a white cat with one calico ear and a calico tail who is shaped just like Tunch. The Muffin has been on a successful diet for three years (I’ve lost years off my life listening to her scream for food) but at her peak she weighed 23 pounds. Now down to 14. She probably should have weighed 10 pounds as she’s pretty small.
At her heaviest she couldn’t go through the slats on the gate which was good because in addition to being slow she’s not the brightest cat around. She’s also a tad mean.
Kristine
John, if you want to get rid of the broadleaf but are concerned about the effect the weedkiller may have on the critters etc, you can find decent stuff at Gardens Alive. Like most organic stuff, it may not work quite as thoroughly as Scott’s, etc, but I don’t have to worry about my grass-eating pups ingesting any of it. There’s a corn gluten derivative that you apply in the spring, and an iron compound that kills weeds but leaves grass alone. And the usual herbicidal soaps, etc. Pricey, but I can’t find similar stuff in my area big boxes.
Bruce S
Not sure if there’s “off-topic” in an open thread with cat pix, but here’s a top hedge fund manager/global investment strategist calling for WPA-style infrastructure investments, financed by fed debt, as the only way out of the Great Recession/Jobless “Recovery” –
http://titanicsailsatdawn.blogspot.com/2011/07/excellent-advice-from-strange-places.html
Weird source of sane and necessary advice, but a signal of just how f-ed we are without any rational policy options available in the context of crazy “deficit-reduction” politics that just about everyone to the right of Bernie Sanders has pretty much swallowed.
jeffreyw
Mmm…breakfast
Fucen Pneumatic Fuck Wrench Tarmal
once tunch finally gets the feeling of answering nature’s call al fresco, there will be no turning back.
Valdivia
@ Constance–loved your story about your cat.
Roger Moore
I’m thinking it’s time to add some catnip to your garden.
datarat
@Werebare…same here. The looks of Maine Coons are deceptive. My Maine Coon, Fredo, was right at 16lbs as an adult, and he was *fast*. He liked the outdoors, and regularly gifted us with the rewards of his hunts.
Linda Featheringill
wearbear #30
Pretty babies.
By the way, your window sill looks to be about the same vintage as mine. :-)
gocart mozart
Cats playing the piano and the vocal harmonies of a demon kitty. Pro tip: Play both vids at the same time.
http://gocart-mozart.blogspot.com/2011/07/meowsicians-for-your-ameowsment.html
Cat Lady
@ Constance: I think most of us came here through another place – it was Sullivan for me. I came for the rants and the snark but stayed for the pets, and the commenters are the best on the interwebz. Welcome aboard!
A long ago boyfriend had a grandfather who force fed his cat named Penny, who was the fattest cat I’ve ever seen. She couldn’t come down the stairs herself cuz she was too fat, so he’d go and get her to feed her. She killed a mouse once by falling off the porch on it. I think she weighed about 27 pounds.
ETA: Love your name. There aren’t very many of us. ;-)
Jennifer
John, can’t help but notice with those pink ears that Tunch is a true white cat – lacking pigment in skin as well as fur. Which actually may partially explain his orneryness – animals with a lack of melanin also have low levels of the brain chemical melatonin.
Also, too: if Tunchie’s going to be outside in bright sunshine, those tender pink ears WILL burn. I had a kitty with that coloring who spent a lot of time outside – I put sunscreen on her ears. She didn’t like me doing it, and would diligently try to wash it off, but given that cats never really get their ears wet when they wash them, the sunscreen stayed on well enough to keep her ears from getting burnt.
Violet
Jennifer:
Or John could put a hat on Tunch. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
vhh
how can anyone who has seen Tunch’s picture call Al Gore fat?
gogol's wife
I agree with those who say Tunch is beautiful.
I agree that he may learn to climb the fence. Fat doesn’t necessarily mean unathletic.
I agree that you just mow the lawn and don’t worry about what particular green thing is there. I’m not going to pour chemicals on it to make it fit some suburban standard of beauty.
Tunch is so beautiful.
Jennifer
@ 48 Violet:
+1000
Maude
Violet
Let’s buy stock in band aids.
sukabi
dear god… climate change is really here!!! there’s a gigantic iceberg in Cole’s yard….
Valdivia
@48 Violet
LOL. That was perfect.
gocart mozart
Why Isn’t there a Dick Gregory or Richard Simmons for cats? Perhaps there should be.
blogreeder
The bigger Tunch gets, the more sunlight he’ll reflect. Maybe he should have been named Albedo? :)
opie jeanne
I love this thread.
I miss my Maine Coon, Tommy. He was a pretty big boy at 15 pounds.
He went missing back in late April, but here’s a picture of him:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/snowwhite/163091515/
eemom
“here’s the fierce alpha lion king stalking the zebra herd, picking out the biggest and juiciest for his breakfast.” — Tunch thought balloon
Jade Jordan
Ok, It’s been a while since anyone broached this subject but, “TUNCH IS FAT” in an adorable sorta way.
Roger Moore
I’m amazed nobody has commented on the picture title yet. Maybe they’re too afraid of annoying our lord and master, the most awesome Tunch.
JCT
@Violet, 48 — I had been hoping to see a Tunch pic with a hat for John’s birthday, but no such luck.
We just got back from taking all 3 of our pets to the vet — always an adventure.
It was fun to come back to this thread as when the vet was examining Mango the cat she had to break off her exam to give him his three shots so that he would stop purring, she couldn’t hear his heart. All I could think of was that classic picture of trussed Tunch at the vet.
Mind you, all the way on the drive there Mango was caterwauling from his carrier until the dogs lost their minds and started to howl in sympathy. Husband and I burst out of the truck like clowns from a clown car when we arrived. Madness.
Tunchie looks so happy outside! And our cat chirps too. It’s a neat sound.
ET
The Great White Hunter in “action”
Felonious Wench
Cole, that’s a beautiful, cranky, fat cat.
I’ve heard pets reflect their owners….
Hawes
Jesus. It’s Moby Cat.
Citizen Alan
I love that picture. Tunch looks like the villain from an episode of “Chip & Dale’s Rescue Rangers.” He needs a fez, though.
Anya
middlewest #8 ~~ That’s wonderful news. So this bids the DOJ against Boehner. I can’t wait to see Boehner and his conservative allies on teevee (or in my case monitor) pontificating about how mean Obama is and how he’s following the homosexual agenda to destroy America.
It will also be fun to see how the Obama haters in the left will spin this as another case of Obama throwing the base under the bus.
Sko Hayes
LOL!
From hell’s heart I stab at thee; for hate’s sake I spit my last breath at thee. Ye damned cat.
-not the Wrath of Khan
Hey, John, before slapping any old sunscreen on your cat, please make sure it’s safe to use on animals, some sunscreens are toxic.
Now that the safety warnings are taken care of, let’s hope that the combination of outdoors and exercise will bring Tunch back into the healthy kitty category!
Restrung
I think Tunch looks happy and magnificent.
Yes, I will send pics of my older than old dilute tortie when she dies. Like that’s going to happen. She’s like 4 pounds and has been for 75 years. I’ve only known her for 15..
Mark Dayton today called out the teabaggiest baggers–
http://www.mnprogressiveproject.com/diary/9536/documents-show-republicans-never-negotiated-in-good-faith
karen marie
I had noticed a lot of comments pointing and laughing at the size of Tunch but I wasn’t aware of how large he was until I saw this picture, so I have to ask, John Cole, what are you feeding him?
Last summer I took my cat Gracie to the vet because I thought she was constipated but the vet said she wasn’t but maybe, because her ass was so fat, she was was having difficulty shoving poop through the chute. (A short time later I discovered she was crapping in the basement to avoid the dog catching her poop as it dropped out of her butt.)
The vet recommended she get a change of food and feeding regimen. Up till then I had fed her as I fed my prior cat — as much dry food as she wanted, whenever she wanted. She’s not a very big cat but weighed 13 pounds, so the vet told me that the high level of carbohydrates in dry food is what makes a fat cat, so I should give her one can of wet food a day, split into two meals.
Within several months, Gracie slimmed down to the 10 pound weight the vet considered acceptable. Occasionally I give her an extra half a can if she’s particularly pesty, but she’s mostly perfectly happy with the change of diet, much preferring the wet food to dry.
I can personally vouch that being fat is as bad for a cat as it is for a person. Our Mr. Mittens who, while not obese and having a very large frame (head the size of a softball), was very overweight, tipping the scale at 27 pounds, died last summer at the age of seven years from a stroke.
I look forward to reading that you do for Tunch what I did for our Gracie so that he lives a long and healthy life.
Uncle Clarence Thomas
.
.
Unalloyed good news – President Obama’s DOJ has stated that DOMA is unconstitutional, and will now act on that basis. I salute President Obama and the DOJ for this progress!
.
.
Yutsano
TUNCHKITTEH!! This shall definitely make wifey haz a happy. As soon as she gets done playing with her new Canuckistani play toy.
Gravenstone
Ladies and gentlemen, the mythical Tunch action shot!
burnspbesq
What is up with the Wombat? She’s missed two open headers from point-blank range. The US is up one nil, but it should four.
trollhattan
So much fine Saturday snark to behold, along with the world’s largest self-propelled Bockwurst, and I have to tip my hat to 22. Mr. Whipple for the bestest, most obscure reference.
PanAmerican
US is leading Colombia at the WWC.
@burnspbesq:
Doesn’t she have a bit of a rep for not showing up at the big games?
South of I-10
To whoever posted yesterday about the new Gillian Welch album, thanks! Listening to it and loving it right now. Also, if you are a world music, upbeat sort of music fan, check out Givers. They are a local (to me) band and I’ve seen them live a few times and loved them. They currently have a new album on iTunes. Give them a listen and thank me later.
Mnemosyne
When we brought Keaton in for his first appointment with the vet, she tried everything to get him to stop purring, including holding him near the sink and turning on the faucet. No dice. She finally gave up and decided she’d listen to his heart next time.
He is a very purry boy.
John
Awesome song, and kids love it too.
“My Cat’s name is peanut butter”
“When he runs it aint no surprise
That his belly swings from side to side
When he runs his belly swings
It goes boom-baba-boom-baba-boom-baba-boom…
Peanut butter”
http://music.napster.com/artist-music/tracks/12918279/?artist_id=12918279#29984805
Barb (formerly Gex)
My guess is that Tunch can’t jump the fence like my cat. My youngest cat can jump the 6′ fence so we have this complex cat fencing net installed at the top of the cedar fence.
jane from hell
@mr. whipple:
BWAHAHAHA! Anyway, I thought that was an urban legend…
Comrade Mary
Aww. That picture and the associated story of Tunchy exploring his freedom made my day. Thanks, John.
Brief thought: speaking of freedom, does woad work as a sunscreen? And how would Tunch feel about having blue ears?
jane from hell
Lovely cat poem:
Cats Sleep Fat And Walk Thin.
“Cats sleep fat.
They spread comfort beneath them Like a good mat,
As if they picked the place And then sat.
You walk around one As if he were the City Hall after that.”
BethanyAnne
@gocart-mozart. Ha! I played the demon kitty one, and my cat is looking all around the room for the other cat now. hehe
DaddyJ
@Hawes: He RISES!
robertdsc-PowerBook
I didn’t know Voyager I’s cameras had such great resolution to capture Tunch so well. Thanks, NASA!
Laura Clawson
That’s fantastic. Tunch pictures are the best.
Jade Jordan
Tunch is Fat, Al Gore is fat therefore, Tunch invented the Internet.
licensed to kill time
All’s I can say is it’s a good thing Tunch can’t read these comments.
You just know he’d be thinking “We are NOT amused”.
Fucen Pneumatic Fuck Wrench Tarmal
didn’t the attica uprisings start with a plan hatched in the yard?
just sayin.
Zoe Johnson
Tunch needs the sunscreen because white cats are very susceptible to skin cancer. The vet says Helen who looks very much like Tunch needs it on her nose and ears. She says she has seen to many white cats die from skin cancer, or at least loose their ears. Of course, once the sunscreen regime was instituted Helen lost all interest in going outdoors.
Zoe Johnson
ps Helen looks like Tunch with a Hitler mustache. Does this mean the thread is over? Since a Nazi was invoked.
J.W. Hamner
I feel like Mexico is going to win the World Cup. Chicharito is for reals.
Somebody talk me down please.
asiangrrlMN
TUUUUUUUUNCHIE! Cole, thanks for the ‘in the wild’ picture of Tunchie. He looks magnificent!
P.S. Thanks, Yutsy, for tipping me off that there was a Tunchie sighting.
Yutsano
YW hon. I know you get grouchy when you miss sightings of His Eminence.
The Dawg yelled at me tonight. I’d be upset if it wasn’t so damn funny what he was upset about.
bob h
Our cat gets just one half a can of catfood a day; looks like Tunch could benefit from a similar regimen.