Category Archives: Sachiko

The Damp Isn’t the Worst of It

Posted on by

You may have heard that it’s been wet in California lately. I’m here to confirm that the rumors are true.

We’ve had rainfall of biblical proportions*.

* Overstatement. It hasn’t rained continuously for forty days and forty nights (though it does feel like it). But there have been record-setting quantities of precipitation, and I suspect that more than a few residents of the Bay Area wish they had built arks.

Yesterday was the worst so far. Not in the quantity so much as in the special effects department. There was just a tiny bit of thunder and lightning* to go along with the rain and hail.

* Understatement. Multiple thunderstorms with massive, multi-second, literally house-shaking rolls of thunder.

We’ve been fortunate (picture me knocking on wood at this point). No flooding (other than a leak in the garage roof, directly over the spot where our phone line comes in), the foundations are still solid, the storm drains in our area are keeping up with the precipitation, and we haven’t lost power.

But I can say with no fear of contradiction that Bay Area felines aren’t used to thunder and don’t have a clue what to do about it.

Hiding seems to be a popular choice. Sachiko and Lefty disappeared into the master bedroom closet the first time the house shook and didn’t reappear until nearly dinnertime. Emeraldas vanished into an undisclosed location and wasn’t seen until this morning.

G’aw curled up in the Rose Cottage in the back yard, tucked his ears under his stomach and appeared to sleep through the afternoon storm.

‘Nuki, self-proclaimed master of the universe, slunk into my office making pitiful meepling noises and required a good fifteen minutes of snuggles before he calmed down enough to sink a couple of claws into my leg.

Kokoro’s been around long enough to have seen and heard it all; she woke up when the thunder hit, looked around, and went back to napping. Smart lady.

To be fair, Bay Area humans aren’t all that great with thunder either. My reaction has been to hold my breath, waiting for the lights to go out. Hypoxia was a real risk.

Reports say we’ve got at least another week of rain. Here’s hoping it doesn’t include thunder.

Shall I?

Posted on by

For reasons too complicated to explain right now, we keep a baby gate closed across the door to the bedroom. ‘Nuki, Lefty, and Em jump it with impunity, but Sachiko is less willing to do so. She’s perfectly capable, and has done it many times, but given her druthers, she’d rather sit in front of the gate and make goo-goo eyes until a hoomin lets her in or out.

So, a rare view of her looking over the gate, trying to decide if it’s worth the effort, or if there’s a hoomin around to do her bidding.

(Spoiler: After I took the picture, I did open the gate for her.)

I Am Not a Number

Posted on by

I am a free cat!

For local values of “free”, anyway.

Because Yuki’s legs aren’t really up to handling stairs, we keep a baby gate across the door to the master bedroom. It keeps him safe, but still allows the other cats to visit him (and us).

It’s not an insurmountable barrier to the other, free-roaming, cats. Lefty and Emeraldas jump over it in either direction at will. ‘Nuki uses the condos outside the room as a launching point when he comes in, but leaves from ground level. Even Kokoro, whose own legs are getting wobbly, jumps to the top of the gate, then jumps down.

Sachiko, though…She’s quite capable of jumping the gate, either using ‘Nuki’s condo technique or from the floor. But she’d rather not. Far better, from her perspective, to get a biped to do the work. So she’ll sit down right in front of the gate and stare through it until a hoomin comes to her rescue and opens it.

It might take hours, but Princess Pointy Bits isn’t bothered by that. If she really needs to go downstairs for anything, she could manage. But expend energy? Nah.

Gravity’s Little Helper

Posted on by

Sachiko comes by that particular nickname honestly.

As she says, “I helps Grabity and Grabity help me. It moochooally ‘fishal ‘rangement.”

While she does sometimes settle down to read the paper with her butt, more often, she’s on the table to decide what to assault next.

“Too much up here, even if I knocks it over. Gotta put more on floor or Grabity not cut me slack. Dat salt grinder easy target…”

-=*=-

OK, for those of you with sensitivity to spiders, stop here.

 

For the rest of you, scroll down a little further for one more shot of our new neighbor. I love how this one turned out with the light behind her web.

 

[more protective spacing]

 

Srs Kitteh Is Srs

Posted on by

Sachiko considers it very important to keep on top of the news.

She is, without question, the most dedicated butt-reader in the family.

And, while her choice of reading material speaks well of her determination to stay informed, the sad truth is that–appearances notwithstanding–much of the content is over her head.

A Rare Moment

Posted on by

We don’t get a whole lot of Emeraldas/Sachiko mother/daughter bonding moments. To be brutally honest, there’s often hissing when they meet.

Which isn’t really surprising. They’re both dominant types with strong personalities, so a bit of pecking order negotiation is the expected norm.

But every so often…

We get a peaceful encounter.

In this particular case, Sachiko had been sleeping when Em leapt up on the condo. A bit of mutual staring occurred–I suspect it was the feline equivalent of “Make sure you wash behind your ears” / “Mom!”–and then they both got distracted by a passing moth and took off in pursuit.

It’s nice to see them sharing a passion for sports.

Thanksgiving Chillin’

Posted on by

It was, if not the quietest possible Thanksgiving, far quieter than it could have been.

We all did as little as possible.

Including Her Batshit Majesty, Princess Pointy Bits.

She’s laid claim to the entire condo complex on the landing outside the bedroom. From time to time–intervals measured in weeks or even months–her preferred perch shifts from one structure to another. Lately, it’s been this round condo: well placed to observe everything going on in the front hall, the bedroom, and the upstairs hall.

It wouldn’t do for the junior ruler of the universe to be uniformed about the actions of her subjects, after all.

You Asked For It

Posted on by

Another late post? Yup.

Great art takes time.

And so does what I produce around here, especially when cats are involved. All jokes about cat herding aside, it’s tough to get them to actually pose.

That said, please note that you have been warned: sensitive viewers may want to skip this post.

Seriously.

Ahem.

You wanted Sachiko’s bad side?

You got it.

Just imagine this as the first thing you see when the furry alarm clock awakens you thirty minutes before the other alarm clock is set to come on.

Local Reaction

Posted on by

Sachiko’s reaction to last week’s post.

“Alright, dat’s ‘nough about Big Brudder Nookles. Is my turn now.”

“Attention hoomins! I is Her Batshit Majesty, Princess Pointy Bits. Bow in fronna me an’ worship.”

“Gives me pettings an’ treats, an’ I lets you call me Skittercritter.”