These two photos really say it all. I walked upstairs and found Steve lying dead center in the middle of the bed in the spare (lavender) bedroom, and I sat down to give him some attention:
My ass no more than hit the bed when this happened:
He is so damned needy.
My bff Tammy is up for the night with her pooch Samantha, and we are having Holly and company over for dinner to celebrate Holly’s 3rd Aneurversary of her aneurysm. Tammy has nicknamed Thurston “Thirsty” because he is so damned starved for attention.
It fits.
*** Update ***
By request, pictures of Samantha:
And like all good models, as soon as she is off camera, she relaxes for the next shoot:
She’s a good dog and folded seamlessly into the pack in under ten minutes.
SiubhanDuinne
John, I know there are a lot of people here who miss the old cranky curmudgeonly you — and in all truth, I thought that guy was pretty damn funny — but I must tell you, I also love this new, mellowed-out you.
P.S. How is Holly doing? Can’t believe it’s been three years! Are there any lingering effects from her aneurysm? (“Aneurversary” is funny.)
satby
There’s one in every crowd John, and Thurston is yours. Best to Holly on her Aneurversary!
hovercraft
But that face, how can you not love that face!
satby
@SiubhanDuinne: Happy John makes us happy.
And he can always come up with an appropriate rant if he needs too, so it’s all good.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@SiubhanDuinne: We only need to worry if Cole finds the mustard.
efgoldman
@SiubhanDuinne:
Bah.
There was so much sweetness and light last nite, I thought about increasing my insulin.
Omnes Omnibus
@SiubhanDuinne: I sometimes wonder if Cole has actually mellowed or if, instead, our anger levels have ratcheted up enough that he just seems mellow to us now.
Bill E Pilgrim
Holy crap I read the first fifteen words and actually kind of gasped, before I read the next words or they registered or whatever. Don’t do that to me.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Omnes Omnibus: Oh, blow a goat*.
*Meant, of course, with all due respect.
Omnes Omnibus
@?BillinGlendaleCA: DIAF*
*Due respect, etc, etc.
debbie
Such a face!
Bill E Pilgrim
@Omnes Omnibus: Somehow the line “This is the other place” comes to mind there but I’m not sure what I mean.
Omnes Omnibus
@Bill E Pilgrim: “Heaven? Whatever gave you the idea you were in Heaven, Mr. Valentine?”
I get you.
guachi
We have Brussel’s Griffon (think ewok as that’s what the ewok was based off of) that will worm her way in front of the cats when I or my wife try to pet the kitty. We have to hold the dog at bay to pet the cats and she just sits there licking the air because she has to lick something!
HinTN
What’s amazing about that second picture is Steve. He’s cool,man.
Bill E Pilgrim
@Omnes Omnibus: Right I guess in the sense that “Wouldn’t it be great if I won all the time” = “Wouldn’t it be great if everyone was nice all the time” it works.
One of those times when the analogy came to me before I quite understood what it was.
Krista/RedKitten
I demand Samantha pictures, Cole.
germy
Ambrose Bierce
amygdala
@Bill E Pilgrim: I thought it was just me. My stomach sort of flipped until I re-read it and realized Steve was ok.
jl
Thank to Cole for sequence of pet photos.
Did Cole pet the poor damn starved-for-attention dog? I do hope so.
Trumpster plans out DC last couple of days seem to have dialed the stupid, manic vicious and crazy up to 11. So, I am staying away from intertubes, and TV boxes as much as possible for a while. I guess I’ll need to check back in early next week, when stuff happens. Oh yeah, French election! Woohoo! If Le Pen wins, maybe Trump will fly off to France for a while to celebrate.
Elmo
@Omnes Omnibus: One of my favorites!
Gravenstone
Attention must be paid.
JCJ
@Omnes Omnibus: Just read your comments from the Science March thread. It was indeed a beautiful day in Madison. I was there with my daughter and a co-worker.
Omnes Omnibus
@JCJ: Signs?
ETA: Since I got there early and was by myself, I wander through the crowd taking photos of the crowd and the good signs. “Make America Smart Again” might have been my favorite.
Lyrebird
@amygdala: @Bill E Pilgrim: Yeah me too, though just for a fraction of a second since even in the top photo he looks thoroughly alive, but thanks for reporting that I wasn’t the only startled reader… and thank goodness!
Sab
@germy: Do cats really fall in love with anyone but themselves?
germy
Ambrose Bierce
germy
@Sab: Our cat is in love with us. Loves to sit on our laps and purr. Insists on sleeping at the foot of the bed. Once my wife worked very late, and the cat sat staring at the front door until she returned.
Bill E Pilgrim
Actually the epitaph narration by Roddy at the end of that episode I just went and found seemed kind of timely as well
“A scared little man who never got a break. Now he has everything he’s ever wanted. And he’s going to have to live with it…”
Might change “never” to “always” but otherwise kind of fits current events. I don’t mean John.
A close friend’s mother went to high school with Serling, and always referred to him as “Roddy” when she reminisced about it. “Roddy always wanted to be a writer…”
Another Scott
(Whoops. Wrong thread.)
Cheers,
Scott.
Bill E Pilgrim
@Lyrebird: Right it was split-second. But still. Funny how quickly adrenaline seems to work.
rikyrah
Thurston cracks me up???
Your house is lovely, Cole.
lollipopguild
Kneel before Thurston!
Hal
Cats and super cute dude playing the piano
MomSense
@Omnes Omnibus:
I enjoyed “Alternative Facts Come From Uranus”
schrodingers_cat
@germy: My bosscat is a total loverboy, he sleeps on my shoulder every night. If I ever had to pull an all nighter working on an assignment, he would stay awake till I did. Of course he does not hesitate to bite or hiss if I annoy him, which can be quite often.
Krista/RedKitten
@MomSense: That one was brilliant.
schrodingers_cat
@germy: Ambrose sounds like a dog person, with a particular animus towards kittehs.
germy
@schrodingers_cat: If I annoy our cat, I get the “warning claw” She’ll clutch at me and then slowly unsheath. I always take the hint.
Most of the time I’ll get the paw rather than the claw.
zhena gogolia
@Omnes Omnibus:
The thing about the internet is you find out other people have the very same catchphrases in their heads that you thought were yours alone.
germy
@schrodingers_cat: Most of those 19th century men were, except for Mark Twain, who had a fine appreciation of our feline companions.
Bill E Pilgrim
@MomSense:
schrodingers_cat
@germy: Yup the bite is a warning bite with teeth barely touching my skin.
germy
I see Kedi will be playing in a theater near us:
MomSense
@Bill E Pilgrim:
Ha!
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
Who could imagine a needy dog at your place? And in a pink room too, with a great nickname. How’s Holly? It is hard to believe it’s been 3 years – she’s an inspiration with her tenacious approach to recovery from such a serious event. It sounds like you guys will all have a terrific visit.
On the topic of brains, its NAMI Walks time, and there’s a team in search of support:Team Bella Q. While the NAMI I directed was absorbed to create SW OH, in order to better allocate scarce funding, I still field a team. Any support would be greatly appreciated, can be anon/pseudonymous, and it’s tax deductible. Named communication will be from the affiliate and I’ll not know who you are (unless I do already). On the team this is a new member of the Q household.
Thanks to all those who can contribute.
JCJ
@Omnes Omnibus: My daughter had a sign with a quote from Carl Sagan on one side and on the other she had written “Laws of Resistance “. We arrived there about 12:40.
Omnes Omnibus
@JCJ: I missed you guys then. Sorry we didn’t have an accidental encounter.
ETA: Which Sagan quote?
Mnemosyne
@Sab:
Yep. When we first got Keaton to keep our older male cat Boris company, Keaton immediately loved Boris. Boris was … not so sure, but Keaton persisted until they were best buddies.
danielx
@SiubhanDuinne:
You must have missed this gentle and pacific post from the other evening.
HAHAHAHAHAHA YOU SLIMY FUCKER
The old Cole is not gone, just waits until the schadenfreude is overflowing.
JCJ
@JCJ:
Her Laws of Resistance started with an abridged quote from Marie Curie, then the other three she wrote herself
1) Understanding more leads to a future of fearing less.
2) Atrocities in motion will remain in motion unless we act.
3) For every right denied there will be an equal and opposite push back.
4) This energy of protest cannot be destroyed.
Omnes Omnibus
@Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho: Donated.
mainmata
I have a dog whose eyes have a distinct large white area (for a dog), iris (hazel) and pupil (dark) and a very expressive face (a bit like Thurston’s). So, because her eyes are rather human-like and, because she has dog eyebrows, she is very facially expressive to a human. A lot of small dogs, especially have just black button eyes that aren’t quite as relatable in the same way.
Gin & Tonic
Circle of life shit here. We are visiting my daughter, who is days away from making my grand-daughter the big sister. In the meantime my father in law is in the ICU and my son in law’s only aunt is heading to hospice for what appear to be the final weeks of her life. The presence of a small child brightens things a great deal.
JCJ
@Omnes Omnibus: It is long.
“Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves…
Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.”
Mnemosyne
@Gin & Tonic:
Back in 2012, G’s cousin’s father died the same day his second child was born.
That was a weird rollercoaster of feelings for him, to say the least.
satby
@Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho: I’m in! Good luck and pictures of the newest member shared please!!!
Omnes Omnibus
@JCJ: Yeah, I didn’t catch you. But we were part of a good thing, weren’t we?
satby
@Gin & Tonic: it does. Best wishes and comfort to you all with all the transitions happening now.
Omnes Omnibus
@Gin & Tonic: Good thoughts to you.
JCJ
@Omnes Omnibus:
No doubt. I enjoyed the day and it is encouraging to be among so many sane people. As you know I live in Waukesha County so sanity seems to be quite uncommon
Greenergood
My gorgeous 15-yr-old felid companion had to be put to sleep two weeks ago – I was here on Planet Mom (NY) while spouse and felid companion were 3000 miles away in Scotland. Spouse tried to keep Gus going, but he was fading and miserable, and we have the great luxury of making that decision for feline overlords. It still feels awful – I escape from Planet Mom on Monday, and I know my house will feel bereft of its benevolent feline presence. Steve just looks so lovely, having had his spring shearing. Makes me look forward to welcoming a new rescue cat into our home eventually.
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
@Omnes Omnibus: Thank you!
I appreciate your support; it’s a vital service.
I had lunch yesterday with a friend who taught for my NAMI and teaches at the new big affiliate one – donating his time – and among the things donations help with are token gifts for hard working volunteers like him. He also facilitates a family support group twice a month and he’s always told me he gets more out of those activities than the time he puts in.
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
@Gin & Tonic: Geez your family’s been hit hard. I hope you’re staying on topic of injury discomfort. Know my thoughts are with all of you.
chopper
oh Jesus. the way the text wrapped on my browser the first line said “These two photos really say it all. I walked upstairs and found Steve lying dead” and I started to lose it.
raven
@chopper: yep
Jackie
@HinTN: I was shocked Steve didn’t throw a catfit reaction to “strange dog just jumped on my bed!!!” WOW! John’s new mellowness must be rubbing off on Steve :)
Krista/RedKitten
Ahhhhh! Samantha is so freaking cute!
geg6
He and Lovey are like twins, personality wise. Poor Koda never gets petted, poor thing, without Lovey shoving her way in and taking all pets for herself.
They are funny little things.
Gin & Tonic
@Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho: Thanks. Yeah, when it rains…
CaseyL
Thurston is still a pup, and will always be a pup :)
Do our cats love us?
Yes.
For a long time humans thought only humans had “real emotions,” animals just had instincts, dependence tropisms, and the rule was “don’t anthropomorphize!” The rule wasn’t just silly, it was cruel. (Some researchers still cling to it, though.)
I actually wonder about the obverse sometimes. Are human emotions essentially tropisms, dressed up to look like something transcendent only because we can memorialize them in art and conversation? I particularly wonder about that nowadays, with our societies and our politics reverting back to tribalism and knee-jerk reactions.
J R in WV
@Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho:
Guys, what’s NAMI? Easier to help when you know what’s going on.
ET
@germy: I saw it and it was great. All that time with cats! Sigh.
Scourge7Cs
Pre-Rosie lurker sends this smile to Cole and Co and all of you… xo
NotMax
Lavender.
Hah. Pull the other one.
a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)
@J R in WV: It’s the National Alliance on Mental Illness. It has local affiliates that provide education and support to people with the diseases and their families, free of charge. More is explained at the link for Team Bella Q, above. I can’t link from to his tablet. At the roster, you can read team members’ pages. Harry’s is good. ?
satby
@Greenergood: so sorry Greenergood! It has to be hard not to be there, but he knew you loved him and you spared him suffering. Big virtual hug.