Max on... Synchronized Napping

I went to visit my friends Noodles and Lindsey the other day and caught a glimpse of their hidden talents. They have perfected the art of synchronized napping. It goes something like this...

Simultaneously they...

• flop on their backs, spread eagle
• sleep a while
• sit up abruptly
• smooth ruffled fur
• clean their bums
• flop on their backs again...and repeat as long as the routine lasts.

I tell you, anipals. It's as poetic and beautiful to watch as those swimming ladies with the rubber heads and the funny things on their noses. And they don't goof. They are always in perfectly synchronized motion. It's amazing.

I asked their human if she taught Noodles and Lindsey to do that. Nope. She said she thinks they hold secret training sessions in the garage when she's not looking. But, she can't prove it. No matter how fast she opens the door, she can't catch them practicing their routine.

Any of you out there have synchronized sleeping routines?

Here's the count if you want to try it. It goes something like this...

• flop
• sleep...sleep...sleep...sleep
• sit up
• lick...lick...lick
• clean...clean
• -------
• flop
• sleep...sleep...sleep...sleep
• sit up
• lick...lick...lick
• clean...clean
• -------
• flop.... and repeat as desired.

Have fun!

Picture of the Week -- BagBoy

Some days, it's just great to be your own boss.

Book Review - How to Massage Your Cat

by Alice M. Brock

Book Reviewer: Max

When I first read this title, I gotta tell you, I thought it was just crazy. Who is the least tense, most relaxed of the animal kingdom? Right, we are. I mean, how often have you encountered a feline friend fraught with angst. Rarely? Am I right? So, I thought the premise for this book was off base.

Wanting to be fair, however, I consulted with Lindsey and Noodles for outside opinions, and they said that they might not be adverse to trying a little massage. On their recommendation, I read the book cover-to-cover to determine it's efficacy.

Know what I found? It's worth little as a massage book -- I mean, tell your humans not to try this at home; they could hurt your limbs. However, the value of it comes in the form of humor.

I think this book is one of those that humans give to each other just for fun. You know, it's that gift for the pet owner who has everything.

In reviewing the illustrations, drawn by the author, I realized -- or should I say I prayed -- that no one would actually massage their prized feline in such a manner. The massage appears to more closely resemble the kneading of tough dough rather than anything of therapeutic value. Here's a passage from the book that will sum this up. "...gently flip cat over onto its back and direct a volley of rapid slaps to the midriff..."

Okay, so either this is a humorous book or the author has never had a cat. Honey, if you deliver "a volley of rapid slaps" to my midriff, you won't live to write another book.

That being said. All-in-all, the book is very cute, the drawings fun and the text easy to read (I mean you'll read it in 20 minutes or less). How to Massage Your Cat was originally written in 1985 and the most recent version has a copyright of 2003, and it's still on sale. Whew... anything that lasts more than 20 years must have something going for it.

About the author: Alice M. Brock used to own Alice's Restaurant of the Arlo Guthrie song and movie fame. She has also written a children's book Mooses Come Walking with Arlo himself. She admits How to Massage Your Cat is a spoof on self-help and how-to books.

On a scale of 5, I give How to Massage Your Cat 3 Paws based on the humor factor.

My Friend -- Shorty

As I said in my bio, I'm a photographer and a writer. Well, this is my friend Shorty. He's very helpful for those aerial shots. He's a lofty fellow and great friend. Say hi to Shorty.

Max... on Twitter

I am so excited to be on Twitter. It just makes me twitter all over. And those little blue birds. What could be better than watching them fly around the site. A cat's dream I tell you.

If you want to follow me on twitter, just go to http://twitter.com/maxthequiltcat. Yahoo we'll have fun there and here. Pretty soon I'll get a little bird icon for the site. From now... click on the link.

Have a great day...

Max ... Picture of the Week

Max...on Max

Up at dawn this morning. A quick trip to the litter, a couple minutes to smooth ruffled fur, two loving swipes at my owner’s (Her Highness is what I call her. She calls me SweetPea –don’t know why) ankles to motivate her to fill my dish.

All that done, and here I am in front of the keyboard ready to punch out, one letter at a time, all these cat-extraordinary facts to revolutionize our lives--all nine of them.

First, let’s get acquainted…just a little bit. Her Highness is in the process of writing my biography, so no need to go into great detail here. You’ll be able to read the book for yourself some day. She’s quite slow though, so don’t hold your breath. Until then, I’ll give you a little glimpse of the origin of Max.

I am a snow-shoe point mix. I think that means that my mother was a lady of the evening (you know, alley cat) while my father was a fancy-pants pampered cat who slipped out of his cushy house for that one fling with my mom. Never met him. I did know my mom for a little bit until I was abandoned. Lived in Virginia for the first part of my life. Now, I live in Florida. You could say I’m a tropical cat. I do tend to wear sunglasses more often than not.

There… that’s a start and quite enough about me. Now, let’s hear something about you. Click on that word comment and let’s hear a bit of your story…

Getting started....

Iwas going to wait until the design of the blog was finished before I started posting, but I can't. I’m just too excited about my access to the world to wait for that. So, I’m going to start blogging and tweeting to get to know all of you. When the design is ready, we’ll have a party to celebrate it’s launch.

I'm Goin'...... LIVE... wooooohooooo!

I'm Max

This has to be close to one of the biggest things that's ever happened to me. I have my own blog. I've dreamed of it. Never allowed myself to really believe it .... my dream has come true.

Today... I have a voice. Watch out world. I'm ready to spill my guts. I've kept all sorts of thoughts between my furry ears for too long. I'm ready to cut loose. I mean, as a photographer and writer, I'm just beside myself that I finally have a forum. I'm thrilled to have a forum.

I'm gonna bring you tales and tails from the world of Catdom. And I'm hoping you'll talk back to me.... Yes, this is for you too. Here are some of the things I intend to bring you...

• book reviews
• product reviews
• humor
• celebrity cat sightings
• recipes
• sports
• polls and surveys
• contests
• philosophical rantings and ravings
• photos of my favorite places and things
• photos of my favorite cats and yours
• medical news
• food news
• thoughts from guest authors
• green cat tips
• stories of my life and yours
• music to stomp your paws to
• tips on how to be a better pet
• tips on how to drive your "owner" crazy
• I'll cover it all
• and much much more

Stop by often to see what's happening and for a Cattitude Adjustment...

Let me end with one of my favorite poems...

Crunchies on the floor

.......... that's what I adore

....................................oh yeah.

testing my quilt catiness

MEOW!