Pablo by torchlight

This was me on Thursday night, June 21st.
The shortest day of the year (that is, the day with the shortest amount of daylight).
The day when Hobart had its lowest maximum temperature for two years (6C/43F).
At around 9pm on this, of all nights, we had a power blackout.
By then, the temperature was around 4C/39F.
I know that's not amazingly cold for some of you (like Jack and Persephone up in Canada), but it was pretty cold for me, and even colder for Nick and Kate, who don't have the benefit of my luxurious furs to keep them warm.

So, with no light and no heat, they rugged up and found torches and candles. I followed them around, because I wasn't sure what was going on. Then Kate asked Nick to take a photo of me by torchlight (that's it, above).

Then things got a bit experimental.

Nick found his little pen torch and he and Kate did some 'light painting' with timed exposure shots:

This one's a cat; you can kind of tell. I'm there to the right.

Here's Nick trying to do a 'P' for Pablo (I'm there on the right again).

Kate tried to draw some cat ears on her head...

... then Nick gave me two heads. (Don't worry, it's not real!)

Kate was thinking that she was going to have to give me a candle-lit meal, but then the power came back on. The 45-minute blackout was fun, but I was glad to be able to see my food and have the heat back on.

Injury update: I'm totally on the mend. The antibiotics have worked a treat and my would is healing beautifully. My furs are even growing back! Thanks for all your good wishes. Fighting might be tough, but it's not fun when you get hurt. I'll try to control myself in the future.

Cheers,
--Pabs

The horror...

Ok, so I've been fighting again.

This time, I copped a nasty bite just above my left eye. The bite wound was invisible under my furs, so Nick and Kate didn't know it was infected until my face puffed up a few days later (you can kind of see that in the first shot of me in the prison box, my left eye is all squished up).

So it was a rare trip to the v-e-t for me. Luckily, this is only a five-minute car ride down the hill to the city. I wouldn't let Kate take any pictures of me in the v-e-t surgery... some things are best left private. And it was very gross, anyway. All that needs to be said is that I came out with a heap of my face furs shaved off and some antibiotics that Kate has to give me every day for a while.

I'm ok now, it's probably worse than it looks. I just have to suffer the shame of having shaved furs on my face for a month or so. Does it make me look tough? Maybe I need to wear a t-shirt that says 'You should see the other cat...'. Daisy or Skeezix, do you have one of those?

Cheers,
--Pabs

Happy Christine Day!!

This is my friend Christine and her almost-husband, Mike. Mike is from Hobart, while Christine is from the US of A (has been living in Louisville, KY, for a few years now) . They met through their blogs, their friendship blossomed into love and, after meeting face-to-face late last year, they are getting married on June 29 in Hanover, Germany (where Christine's parents live).

But that's not why I'm writing about Christine.

I just read Mike's blog, and today is Christine's birthday. Mike has proclaimed today Christine Day, and has asked me how I'll be celebrating the occasion. Christine and Mike were my blogging inspirations, and Christine was nice enough to bring me some American kitty treats when she visited Tasmania over Christmas. So I'd really like to make her feel special today.

Here's where you come in...

It would be awesome if everycat who reads this could pop over to Christine's blog and leave her a Happy Birthday comment. Please say that Pablo sent you! Don't feel like you have to, but it would be great if you did.

Happy Christine Day!

Cheers,
--Pabs

Wednesday workshopping

I'm always trying to think of new ways to increase profits here at Pablo Enterprises. You know my post from the weekend about spending some 'me time' under the bed? Well, I workshopped a great idea. You know how people like chocolate? And cute, fluffy kittens? Well, I thought of a way to combine the two that doesn't involve cats getting boiled up and used as Turkish Delight filling or cats having to get melted chocolate all over their paws (Ew! Sticky!). Stay with me... please...

I present to you... the Giftcat*!

Giftcats* could work in one of two ways: 1) The Giftcat* could act as a delivery service, and not be part of the gift (more like a singing telegram, if you will); or 2) for those wanting to give a cat as part of the gift, the Giftcat* could be shrinkwrapped with the box of chocolates (I'm looking for some volunteers to pilot this part of the business plan, let me know if you're interested).

Giftcats* are sure to be a hit. If you want to get in on the ground floor, call my broker and arrange to buy some Pablo Enterprises shares before they go sky high.

So, next time you want to say something special to that someone special... say it with a Giftcat.*

[Need to work on my smile...]

Cheers,
--Pabs

*Patent pending

Farewell, Suzanne...

Much-loved cat blogger and Pablo Fan Club member Suzanne went to the Bridge today, Australian time. She was sixteen years old, and had kidney disease, the same illness that took Kate's cat Kobie to the bridge in 2000. Lots of love to Toni and the rest of Suzanne's family... we're thinking of you! And thanks to Daisy for making and sharing this beautiful tribute card. Goodbye, Suzanne... we'll miss you!

Cheers,
--Pabs

Sunday seclusion

You may not believe this, but sometimes it's hard to be Pablo. There's a lot of pressure, a lot of expectations. Sometimes, I just have to get away from it all. In those times, I head for my secluded spot under the bed. And that's where I' ve been for most of this weekend, just me and my thoughts, chilling out on the spare mattress...


It's not very glamorous, but it's my special chillout place. Hope you liked seeing it!

Cheers,
--Pabs

Dona nobis pacem...

'Life is very short
and there's no time
for fussing and fighting, my friend.'
from We can work it out (Lennon/McCartney)

Blog Blast for Peace: http://mimiwrites.blogspot.com

Cheers,
--Pabs

Cheers for the toys, Benny!

These toys could be the future of the West Hobart Tigers. My friend Benny gave them to me last year. It's a funny story, actually; he and his friends Matt and Pos wanted to play ping pong, but there was one small problem - no ping pong balls. So Matt called all the shops, but it was a Sunday evening, so no luck. Then he went out to get snacks. An hour and a half later he came back with snacks... and a pack of toys for cats, one of which happened to be a red ping pong ball! I scored the rest of the toys.

Anyway, most of you would know that Daisy has done a few posts this week about her cool collection of toys and all the things she does with them. Meanwhile, I've made the grand confession that the West Hobart Tigers (and every othercat in the SFFL) don't actually know how to play Australian Rules Football. So I got to thinking about these toys that Benny gave me, and how I could use them in some training skills and drills with the Tigers...

A preliminary sniff to start things off...


Experimenting with the 'L' formation...

Dodge the barbell, pick up the ball, tackle the mousie...

Things got a bit crazy towards the end there, but I think these toys will make awesome training equipment. Can't wait to share them with the other Tigers. Thanks, Benny!

Cheers,
--Pabs

My true confessions...

Well, Monica has tagged me for Marilyn MonREOW's True Confessions meme. Trouble is, I confessed most of my confession-worthy deeds in my seven facts meme, like my greasiness and the fact that I wasn't properly toilet-trained until I was two. But never fear, cats of the blogosphere, there's always more dirt in the Pablo Files...
So... my true confessions:
1) This is related to my pre-toilet-trained days, when I used to poo in corners... a lot. When I went to live with Kate, her housemate Rachel nicknamed me... Pablo Poopants. Part of the reason I shaped up with my toilet training was to live down that name.

2) When I was a youngcat, I disgraced myself by jumping up onto the lap of a dinner guest and proceeding to eat her delicious meal from her plate. You snooze, you lose, Jan!

3) Like most of you out there, I jump up on tables and benches when the housepeople aren't around. But I've also got a thoroughfare. Nick and Kate call it the 'kitchen bench', but I know better. It' s my thoroughfare between the loungeroom and the rest of the apartment. Who needs doorways when you've got a multi-level thoroughfare?

[Here's Nick cluttering up my thoroughfare by making jam. Photo taken from the loungeroom.]

4) Okay, this is a biggie. You know the West Hobart Tigers? The Australian Rules Footy team that I captain/coach in the Southern Feline Football league? Well... nocat in the SFFL actually knows how to play footy. We have teams and training sessions and we get together for matches, but we don't know how to play. We're working on it though, and that's the main thing! I'm actually trying to get star Australian Football League player Matthew Richardson (a Tassie-born footballer who plays for the Richmond Tigers) to come down and do a training clinic with us.

5) I have a pinup of a Balinese hottie from Cat Fancy magazine on the fridge next to my food bowl!
Don't worry, I only buy it for the articles! You can also see my picture of Amos and Heidi, my favourite Garfield comic (Panel 1, Jon:'Who knows? Maybe there are beings on other planets?' Panel 2, Garfield: 'Yeah...' Panel 3, Garfield: 'Chickens would be nice...'), and above that is a picture of Axel rolling around on the floor of his Nonna and Nonno's house.

So that's my true confessions! I tag Phoebe, because I don't think she's done hers yet, and I tag Axel too, for a very specific confession... I wanna hear about his breakout at Melbourne Airport!

Cheers,
--Pabs

My 50th post: Dedicated to Heidi

It's my 50th post! I've been blogging since August last year, so it's taken me a while to get here. I love blogging; I'm so glad I started. I've made so many friends from around the world and you've all had the chance to get to know me a bit... it's great! Thanks, everycat, for your comments and encouragement.

Anyway, I'm dedicating this post to Heidi, one of the two young ladies who adopted me as a kitten and lived with me until I was 2 (when I went to live with Kate). Heidi got married last month in Seattle, Wa, to a fine young man called Amos:
Isn't she pretty? She's been living in Indonesia teaching English for a few years, so it's been ages since I've seen her. I couldn't get to her wedding, but I sent her a great gift. It was a picture of me, the most sultry and manly mancat picture I could find, which I got Kate to have made into a jigsaw puzzle. We broke it up into its pieces and put the pieces in a pretty little bag. Here's the picture we used:

Heidi was nice enough to send me a thankyou card, a wedding picture and a newsletter. Here I am checking them out:
Amos is a Christian missionary pilot on the island of Yap in Micronesia. Heidi and Amos will be going back to Yap as soon as Amos has finished racking up some flying hours stateside. Who knows when I'll get to meet him? I'm glad I don't have to live on Yap with Heidi because:
1) It would take a million plane rides to get there, and as I've said previously, cats were never meant to fly.
2) Yap sounds like an island where lots of noisy little dogs live. I hate noisy little dogs.
3) Heidi used to mix rice with my cat food. Ew! I hate rice.
4) Heidi used to dance around with me while singing ABBA songs. I hate ABBA. (Many people blame my current neuroses on these ABBA experiences in my formative years.)

Anyway, congratulations Heidi and Amos! Come and visit me sometime... but don't expect me to visit you.

Cheers,
--Pabs

A meme: Seven things about me

Hi everycat!

My good friend Phoebe (co-chairfeline of the Pablo Fan Club) has tagged me for a meme. So here it is: seven things about me.

1. Ok. Let's get a few awkward ones out of the way first. Fact Number One: I have two litter trays. See?
(Don't worry- they're clean!) There's an explanation here. Whe Kate first got me, I wasn't totally down with the whole toilet training thing, even though I was two years old. Kate noticed that I didn't like to use the tray when I'd already... um... been in it. So she gave me two, so I'd always have a clean one! I don't mind so much these days; in fact, I mostly go outside these days. The trays are just for nighttime and rainy days. P.S. Kate's thinking of trying me on the crystal stuff... do any of you use it? What's it like?


2. We all like to rub our scent on things, right? I know I do:

Well... I'm pretty greasy. Nick and Kate regularly have to clean the grease from my favourite rubbing spots in the kitchen (and on the legs of the ironing board).
See the greasy black mark? Even I admit that it's gross. But a mancat needs to mark his territory!


3. I don't do laps (sitting, sleeping in people's laps). Ever. Fact Number Four kind of explains why.


4. By my rough calculations, I've lived with 15 people over my seven years in the world. (For the first 2 years of my life, I was a sharehouse cat. Since then, I've lived exclusively with Nick and Kate.) I had to deal with too too many people when I was a youngcat... I think this is why I don't like people so much. Even now.


5. But recently, I've decided to let Uncle Simon pick me up without going nuts at him! Here's Uncle Simon. He's Nick's big brother:

Letting Uncle Simon pick me up is a Big Deal. It's his reward for feeding me when Nick and Kate go away. He understands my needs.


6. I have a post-food 'soul cry'. After I've eaten, I do a couple of really long, deep, mournful meows. There's two main reasons for this: 1- it's an existential cry. Kind of like, 'I eat, therefore I am a cat'. 2- I'm mourning the fact that I've just eaten, and the point just after eating marks the longest point before I eat again.

7. This is a big confession... I have a 'brother'. His name is Ben. That's not the confession part. This is the confession part:
Yep, he's a dog. He's Kate's dog. He lives with her parents, 300kms from here. Frankly, that's not far away enough. I've never met him; I've only smelt him on Kate's stuff after she's been to visit him. Let's hope it stays that way!

So there you go. Seven very candid facts about me. Now I have to tag other cats to do the meme. I tag Beto, Axel, Jack and Persephone and... any othercat who hasn't been tagged!

Cheers,
--Pabs

While the Kate's away...

I am not allowed on the table.

It's one of the Cardinal Rules.

But when Kate flies off to Melbourne for a week, such rules go out the window. Tables are great. I love being up on higher levels. You get a different perspective on life. Speaking of different perspectives (how's that for a segue?), Kate sent me back this picture she took in Chinatown in the Melbourne CBD:

They're Chinese lucky cats, said to bring prosperity to businesses who display them in their window. I'll have to ask my Chinese friend Shelley what the characters say.

Anyway, Kate's back home now, having attended her 'important conference', seen her football team get thrashed (that's what we call it when one team beats another by a big margin) by Nick's football team and dressed up as Madonna at Aunty Tracey's karaoke birthday party. She didn't get to go and see Axel though, which sucks.

So I'll be back on the blogosphere as normal now. But I don't think I'll try my luck on the table anymore. I might get squirted with the water spray!

Cheers,
--Pabs

Benvenuto, Axel!

This is Axel. He's a rescue cat. He lives with Kate and Nick's friend Manny. I've never met Axel, but Nick used to live with him before he and Kate were married, and Kate was actually with Manny when he adopted Axel from the RSPCA as a tiny kitten. Well, Axel sure landed on his paws there, cause he now lives on an awesome farm outside of Melbourne, where he has acres of land to explore... and he is very spoiled by his Nonno, Manny's dad.

Anyway, Axel now has his own blog, where we can keep up with his adventures on the farm. I'm also hoping that he'll tell us about his adventures in Tullamarine Airport in Melbourne, when he busted out of his kitty carrier after flying from Hobart to Melbourne to go and live on the farm. That story has become legendary among the cats of Hobart.

Benvenuto, Axel!
Cheers,
--Pabs

P.S. Just wanted everycat to know that I do intend to update my blog links to include as many of you as I can. I need Kate's help with that, and she's 'busy' at the moment. Whatever. Maybe I'll just get her to do a few at a time. So don't be offended if you're a Pablog regular and you're not there... you will get there, I promise!

On balance

Man, I've sat on this meme for a coupla weeks now. Sorry, everycat! Anyway, it came from Faz and it's about achieving balance in one's life. Hope you enjoy my thoughts... with pink text in honour of Lilly Lu, who's been pretty sick lately.

How do you achieve balance in your life?
We cats have an innate sense of balance (like on fences and walls and things), and I reckon we're pretty good at inner balance, too. We don't have to work particularly hard to achieve it, it just happens...

What is your biggest challenge in balancing your life?
Having to depend on Nick and Kate for food and outdoor privileges cramps my style a bit sometimes. But I've been living with them for almost 5 years now, they're learning to see things my way more and more.

What are your priorities?
All my priorities revolve around the most important thing in my life: me! My comfort, my standing in the West Hobart feline commuity, my health. As such, my priorities are threefold:


Work: This is me on partol for the West Hobart Tigers. As captain/coach, it's vital that I lead by example. This takes up a fair bit of my waking time.


Rest: Here's me doing what I do best, relaxing on my sheepskin rug in my basket. If you're a regular visitor to this blog, you'll know that the sheepskin is but one of my many sleeping places. I like to rotate them from time to time; right now, I'm going through a basket phase.


Play: Aah, the old stringplay. Keeps me fit and young, as well as helping me develop skills and drills to share with the Tigers.

How have your priorities changed over time and why?
Well, they've always revolved around my comfort and my public profile. I'd like to think that I've become a bit more outward-looking since I've been with the Tigers. But not too much!

What advice can you share to help all of us balance our own lives?
To appropriate a well-worn phrase from the world of chocolate advertising, 'A chicken a day helps you work, rest and play!'

Cheers,
--Pabs

... and hooray for Monica!

After much deliberation, Monica has joined her sister Phoebe in venturing Outside! I know that Monica thought long and hard about whether or not to do this, so I understand what a big deal it is. Doesn't she look great out there?
Check out Phoebe and Monica's blog for more great pictures of both ladies going Outside. Congratulations, Monica!

Cheers,
--Pabs

My cousin Gypsy

Here are some pictures of my cousin Gypsy. She's not my real cousin, but our human mums are cousins... in a roundabout sort of way. Check out her very unusual (but pretty) markings (that's all natural, no dye jobs or photoshopping involved. I promise):
As you can see, Gypsy is a sink-o-phile. I told her mum that she should send her picture into Cats in Sinks. Like you, Daisy, she also likes to drink out of the tap (that's what you Americats call a faucet). It looks pretty tricky:
Think I'll stick to bathdrinking.

Cheers,
--Pabs

Hooray for Phoebe!!

This is my friend Phoebe. She's co-chairfeline (with her sister Monica) of the US chapter of the Pablo Fan Club. And she's outside! Her mum Tracey bought her a harness so she could go exploring... and she's out there! Look how cool she looks!

Can all you outsidecats remember how scary it was going outside for the first time as a kitten? Well, imagine having to do it as a grownupcat, when you're all set in your ways and stuff? I really dunno if I could do it. You can see more pics of Phoebe's expeditions on Phoebe and Monica's blog, but I just had to offer my congratulations here, too.

Three cheers for Phoebe!
Cheers,
--Pabs

Skinny Ginger (West Hobart Tigers player profile #2)

Player name: Skinny Ginger
Rookie year: 2002
Skills: Alertness, great social skills (especially good at liaising with people), extremely car-savvy, awesome sense of smell, fearless roof climber/walker
Favourite pasttime: Car maintenance

Skinny Ginger is one of the West Hobart Tigers veterans. He even pre-dates me! Now I've spoken about SG on this blog before... and some very smartcat asked me if the fact that there was a Skinny Ginger implied that there was also a Fat Ginger. Well, it's true. Fat Ginger, Skinny Ginger and Blackie were the original West Hobart Tigers, forming back in 2002. But we haven't seen poor Fat Ginger for a few years... don't know if he's gone to the bridge or if he's moved elsewhere or if he's just keeping a low profile. Anyway, Skinny Ginger is a great player, especially with the ruckwork (that's jumping up and tapping the ball to other players) and the contested marks (that's jumping up and catching the ball).


Off the field, we've noticed that SG has a real penchant for cars. If I ever need to find him for a team meeting or a training session, I just look under the nearest car. He's actually gained quite a bit of automotive knowledge over the years. We're planning on making him our team mechanic (if we ever get a team bus, that is). You can tell that he's an automotive expert. Look at how expert he looks:
SG is the Tiger who's most at ease around people (he's been known to wander into neighbours' homes and curl up on their beds!). This makes him the natural choice for the Tigers' Human Relations Officer, a job he carries out with distinction. SG is also lucky enough to have the most extensive outside privileges of any of us. So he takes the lion's share of the outdoor patrols. Thanks, SG!

So that's Skinny Ginger, another champion player with the West Hobart Tigers. Next month, look out for West Hobart Tigers player profile #3: Graham White.

Happy Easter to everycat, too!
Cheers,
--Pabs

Five reasons why I blog...

Here I am outside on the patio, pondering my answers to this meme. I take these things seriously!

(With thanks to my good friend Phoebe, who tagged me for this meme.)

1. Shameless self-promotion, and promotion of Pablo Enterprises and the West Hobart Tigers.
2. Being able to meet and make friends with awesome cats from all around the world.
3. Being able to report on important cat news from Australia on The Cat Blogosphere.
4. To do my bit to help cats dominate cyberspace.
5. Helping me with my blog gives Kate something to do, so she doesn't hassle me for pats and cuddles so much.

OK. I now tag Faz, Beto, Jack, Icon Baxter Bentley and Merlin!

Happy Caturday!
Cheers,
-- Pabs