Recently in the Catblogging Department:

July 26, 2011

More Pictures of Hotch

I was going to blog about the President's speech, but look! Kitty pictures.

Taking all these pictures of Hotch is proving to be more difficult than I expected. For one thing, the color balance is all over the place. The room is actually lit with incandescent light, which gives everything a warm glow, but of course the flash on the camera is daylight white. So while the colors in the camera images are probably accurate, it's not matching what I saw when I was there, so I've been making some adjustments, and the results havn't been very consistent.

The problem is that the camera is guessing one color balance and then I'm making rough adjustments to that guess, so the variance is accumulating. I should probably get out the grey card and switch to raw mode.

Hotch chewing on the iPhone...
Larger ImageHotch chewing on the iPhone...

As you can see, Hotch thinks my iPhone case makes a great chew toy. Too bad the iPhone's still in it.

...and trying to look like he's sorry.
Larger Image...and trying to look like he's sorry.

The other problem with taking pictures of Hotch is that my focus technique doesn't work very well. With the kinds of photograpy I usually do, I've found it works better when I disable the automatic auto-focus on the shutter button, so when I want to take a picture, I pick the object I want in focus, press the manual focus button, and then recompose the picture and press the shutter button. Now I can take as many pictures as I want at that distance, without the auto-focus deciding to do something different.

The problem is that Hotch moves so fast sometimes that between the time I press the focus button and the time I press the shutter, he's moved away from the focus distance. I've taken thousands of photos this way -- weddings, children, flowers, buildings, even marathon runners -- and it works just fine, so I wasn't expecting a problem, and it took me a while to recognize what was happening, because the camera's LCD screen is too small to show the problem unless I know to look for it.

Still, I got a few nice ones.

More to come in a few days.

July 15, 2011

Meet the New Cuteness

About 10 years ago, my wife had just adopted Ripley, and we were thinking of getting a kitten next, and we thought it might be fun to get a purebread kitten. We weren't sure what breed we wanted, so we did some research on the web and at cat shows. Eventually we settled on the Ragdoll breed, and began to contact a few local breeders to learn to learn how the adoption process works and to get an idea of the difference between breeders.

What we learned -- and this will shock you -- is that some cat breeders are a bit nuts. They all had lots of special rules we were supposed to follow once we got the cat, not all of which seemed, uh, entirely grounded in reality. I remember one even wanted the right to take back the cat if they thought it was being abused. (Taking back an abused cat makes sense, but they wanted to make the determination themselves, rather than, say, a neutral veterinarian.)

That turned us off the idea a bit, and somewhere along the way we got a kitten from a shelter, Buffy. (I didn't have the camera back when she was a kitten, sorry) Then, a year or so later, we were visiting the Orphans of the Storm shelter (where we had adopted Ripley and Buffy), and we stumbled a cat with more hair than I'd ever seen before. We picked him up and played with him and brushed his hair -- which really needed it, there was an awful lot of loose hair stuck to him -- and put him back in his cage. But he just sat there, looking at us with those big blue eyes... So we took him home, and he became my favorite cat, Dozer.

Sadly, Dozer passed away a few months ago. He looked like a purebread blue bicolor Ragdoll, and he probably was. You can't really tell if a cat is purebread without the breeding history, but Ragdoll breeders are a fairly protective bunch, so there aren't too many fakes out there. (Unlike, say, Persians.) Based on our experiences with Dozer, my wife and I decided that we must always have a Ragdoll cat.

After a period of grieving, we began looking at web sites for Ragdoll kitten breeders, trying to decide what kind of Ragdoll we wanted. My wife fell in love with the blue lynx pattern, and we found a couple of blue lynx kittens at Dr. J's Perfect Dolls. Last Friday, we met with Jennifer Woll, DVM, and took home a kitten. Check out the expression on his face in this shot:

Dr. Jennifer Woll With Our New Kitten
Larger ImageDr. Jennifer Woll With Our New Kitten

As usual, we had some trouble coming up with the name. Because he's so cute, it's tempting to name him "Nermal," but he'll eventually grow up, and "Nermal" is a silly name for a grown-up cat. We could also name him "Joel," after the kitten in The Closer, but that too seems like a silly name for a full-size cat.

My wife likes "Roark," after Eve Dallas's love interest in the In Death series by J.D. Robb, which would also tie in nicely with my libertarian leanings because of the link to Howard Roark in The Fountainhead. On the other hand, "Roark" sounds a bit pretentious to me, and I'm not really a Rand fan. Alternatively, we could name him "Dallas" after Eve Dallas and also after the captain of the Nostromo in Alien.

For now, he's Hotch, named after Aaron Hotchner, the character Thomas Gibson plays on Criminal Minds. Among other things, it has the advantage of being a single syllable, which means it might be possible to train him to respond to it.

It could happen.

Anyway, we have the kitten locked in the master bathroom for a few days as part of the process of introducing him to the rest of the household. He's a bundle of energy, so I thought it would be amusing to setup the video camera to record his activity until it ran out of space, then I could edit it into a fun highlights video. As it turns out, however, all that energy is just for show. With no one watching, he just slept for an hour and a half.

I managed to salvage something, however, by compressing the video timeline. Here's Hotch asleep for an hour and a half, shown at 50 times normal speed:

If you haven't had enough, here's the whole set of photos of Hotch.

June 19, 2010

Dozer Meets the Cat Pillow

A little while ago, my wife and I noticed that our ragdoll cat, Dozer, had taken to sleeping on the floor right in front of our china cabinet. We wanted to make him more comfortable, so we put down a cat pillow for him, right in the spot where he liked to sleep.

Anyone who owns a cat could've predicted how that would turn out:

Dozer Meets the Cat Pillow
Larger ImageDozer Meets the Cat Pillow

March 20, 2009

Dozer and Ripley

Fluffmaster Dozer
Larger ImageFluffmaster Dozer
Dozer Grooming Ripley
Larger ImageDozer Grooming Ripley

March 13, 2009

The Triumphant Return of Friday Catblogging

Yeah, it's been a while, but I thought it was time to hop back on the catblogging train.

This week, a brief introduction to the cast:

Buffy In Among My Books
Larger ImageBuffy In Among My Books
Ripley Takes a Break
Larger ImageRipley Takes a Break
Dozer Contemplating...Sleeping Probably
Larger ImageDozer Contemplating...Sleeping Probably

More photos of the kitties coming next week.

Update: The Friday Ark is up.

Update: Kip blogs about his dog Diamond.

January 31, 2009

Herding Cats

I gather this is an old Superbowl commercial:

Sounds about right.

(Hat tip: Illinois Review)

September 16, 2008

A Knock In the Night

I've been having trouble sleeping lately. I get tired, but when I lie down I don't fall asleep.

Tonight I was finally feeling ready to doze off by about 4 am. I was lying there, relaxing, my thought process become disordered as I slipped into sleep... When I heard someone knock on the front door. Four rapid taps. Knock knock knock knock.

As I started to get up, I realized there was a more likely explanation for the noise, but by then the adrenaline surge had shocked me fully awake and alert. I grabbed a heavy police flashlight and went to investigate. No one was at the door.

It's the damned cats. Did you ever see a cat sit down and scratch its head and neck with its back paws? Well, every once in a while they to this right up against a door, and one of the hard leg joints taps against the door as they scratch. Knock knock knock knock.

I'm used to most of the things cats do in the middle of the night: Meowing, hissing, chasing, even jumping into the bed and walking on top of me. Knocking on the door...that one still gets me.

Now to see if I can get back to sleep...

April 18, 2008

Network Admin Kitteh

June 22, 2007

Friday Catblogging

May 25, 2007

Friday Catblogging: Minky!

Fans of this blog, or at least of this blog's catblogging, may have noticed that most of the pictures are of sleeping cats. What can I say? I am surrounded by lazy kitties.

However, I recently paid a visit to my friend Cindy to take pictures of her new kitten.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you...Minky!

Minky!!!
Larger ImageMinky!!!
Minky!!!
Larger ImageMinky!!!

Update: The Friday Ark is up.

May 11, 2007

Friday Catblogging

Here's a picture of Dozer doing what he does best:

And here's a special guest cat, spotted on a neighbor's balcony:

Neighbor Cat
Larger ImageNeighbor Cat

April 13, 2007

Friday Cat Blogging

March 30, 2007

Friday Catblogging

No real blogging today, so here are a few cat pictures to contemplate.

February 26, 2007

Pupkiss, R.I.P.

A few weeks ago, my friend Cindy's cat Bootsy passed away. Her other cat, Pupkiss, has had severe kidney problems which Cindy has nursed her through for two years. Last week Pupkiss's health took a turn for the worse, and Cindy had to make the decision to let her go.

February 11, 2007

Carnival of the Cats #151

Carnival of the Cats #151 is up at When Cats Attack!

February 9, 2007

Friday Ark

February 6, 2007

Bootsy, R.I.P.

This is my friend Cindy's cat, Bootsy, who unexpectedly passed away earlier today. Bootsy was 6 years old.

February 2, 2007

Four More 35mm Cats

More pictures of the cats with the 35mm prime:

Dozer Yawning
Larger ImageDozer Yawning
Dozer Sleeping
Larger ImageDozer Sleeping
Upside-Down Kitty Head
Larger ImageUpside-Down Kitty Head

January 6, 2007

Four of Ripley

Here are a few more of the first few pictures I took with my D200, back when I only had the 35mm prime lens.

December 1, 2006

Special Bonus Critters

Technically, these aren't cats. But they're a couple of lovable critters that belong to my friends Gary and Mary, so I've decided they can be honorary cats.

Bettina (or however they spell it) is a Cockatoo, and despite the name, Bettina is a dude.

It's been a while since I've done any catblogging and I'm way behind.

Rested Upon
Larger ImageRested Upon

To give you an idea how far behind I am, I have only just now reached the last cat picture taken with my old camera. Like most of my cat pictures, it's Dozer sleeping:

Dozer Sleeping
Larger ImageDozer Sleeping

Now I can finally start showing the cat pictures I took with the new camera. All I had was a 35mm prime lens, so there's no zooming in.

Without further ado, here' s picture number 0001 from the new camera:

Checking Out The New Toy
Larger ImageChecking Out The New Toy

That's Ripley and Buffy who've noticed I'm excited about my new toy.

October 6, 2006

Do Not Be Alarmed

A rare photo of Dozer doing something other than sleeping:

Rare Photo of Dozer Not Sleeping
Larger ImageRare Photo of Dozer Not Sleeping

He's not doing much, but at least he's not sleeping.

To reassure more sensitive viewers, here is a more typical photo of Dozer, with a special added bonus cat:

Dozer Sleeping (Plus Added Bonus Cat)
Larger ImageDozer Sleeping (Plus Added Bonus Cat)

September 8, 2006

Friday Catblogging

Dozer Asleep on Some Pillows
Larger ImageDozer Asleep on Some Pillows
Ripley Lookin' Like a Star
Larger ImageRipley Lookin' Like a Star

August 25, 2006

A Sleepy Day

July 21, 2006

Ripley v.s. Rain

The rain always wins.

Ripley is a curious and active cat, except when it rains. Then he retreats to the only room in the house that doesn't have windows, the main bathroom, and hides behind the door. Because, you know, there's water falling from the sky!

Here he is during yesterday's downpour. We put down a pad for him behind the door because we figure the tile is cold.

Ripley Hiding From the Rain
Larger ImageRipley Hiding From the Rain

July 7, 2006

Views of Buffy

It's been a while since I did any catblogging. However, I just ordered an expensive piece of camera equipment, so I figure I need to stay on my wife's good side.

Here are four rather nice views of our Buffy cat:

Buffy In Charge
Larger ImageBuffy In Charge
Buffy the Lioness
Larger ImageBuffy the Lioness
Buffy Sleeping Hard
Larger ImageBuffy Sleeping Hard
Buffy Up Close
Larger ImageBuffy Up Close

March 5, 2006

Carnival of the Cats #102

March 3, 2006

A Study In Fluff

I'm still going through old photos, and I ran across a batch of about 50 photos of the big guy lying on the floor. I think I was experimenting with different ways of composing and lighting the shot to really bring out the absurd amount of fluff on this cat.

Is it working? Let me know what you think. Lots more photos after the jump.



February 25, 2006

Resting Kitties

It's a little late for Friday catblogging, but it's my site so I'll play by my rules.

Dozer Resting
Larger ImageDozer Resting
Dozer Resting Some More
Larger ImageDozer Resting Some More

You can see why we call him Dozer, can't you?

Even More Dozer Resting
Larger ImageEven More Dozer Resting

I've been working through many of last year's photos. Cats sleep a lot, so you'd expect a random collection of cat photos to include a lot of pictures of sleeping cats, but this is getting ridiculous. I have an awful lot of pictures of sleeping cats. Or at least resting cats.

Dozer Yet Again
Larger ImageDozer Yet Again

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Buffy's Paws
Larger ImageBuffy's Paws

January 13, 2006

Shoe Fetish

Buffy has a special (and slightly disturbing) relationship with my shoes, especially right after I take them off...

Shoe Fetish
Larger ImageShoe Fetish
Serious Shoe Fetish
Larger ImageSerious Shoe Fetish

December 4, 2005

Carnival of the Cats #89

December 2, 2005

Sorry, No Pictures

My first catblogging since joining the Catlover's Blogroll, and this is the cooperation I get?

Sorry, No Pictures
Larger ImageSorry, No Pictures

I have more pictures of the cats in my Catblogging Archive.

December 1, 2005

Catlover's Blogroll

I've finally given in and admitted that catblogging is a big part of this site.

In fact, I've decided to embrace it. I've joined the Catlover Blogroll Community. You'll see the list of links in the sidebar. Lots of cats there.

All my own catblogging is in the archive for the Catblogging category.

November 24, 2005

Thanks For...

November 18, 2005

Ripley on Stage

A while back I was doing a product photo for something I was selling on eBay when Ripley wandered in to see what was happening.

Ripley on Stage
Larger ImageRipley on Stage

November 4, 2005

Buffy In Her Favorite Place

I missed catblogging last week, so here's a whole time-series of Buffy in her favorite hiding place on the shelves behind my computer desk. Some of you out there may enjoy them, but really, they're mostly for my wife.

Buffy's Favorite Place 1
Larger ImageBuffy's Favorite Place 1
Buffy's Favorite Place 2
Larger ImageBuffy's Favorite Place 2
Buffy's Favorite Place 3
Larger ImageBuffy's Favorite Place 3
Buffy's Favorite Place 4
Larger ImageBuffy's Favorite Place 4
Buffy's Favorite Place 5
Larger ImageBuffy's Favorite Place 5

October 21, 2005

Two Views of Buffy

Time for some more Friday catblogging.

Buffy Relaxed
Larger ImageBuffy Relaxed
Buffy Really Relaxed
Larger ImageBuffy Really Relaxed

September 2, 2005

Making Up For Lost Catblogging

I must apologize for the apalling lack of Friday Catblogging. My wife is not at all pleased. I'll try to do better.

Here's a shot of buffy asleep on the pillow on my wife's worktable:

Buffy Sleeping
Larger ImageBuffy Sleeping

And here's a photo of Dozer hanging out near the window in our bedroom:

Dozer By the Window
Larger ImageDozer By the Window

June 10, 2005

Ripley Again

My wife pointed out I haven't done any Friday Catblogging in a while, so here's a picture of Ripley:
Ripley On the Couch
Larger ImageRipley On the Couch

May 6, 2005

One More Cat Photo

I just took this today, and I liked it too much to wait until next week.

Buffy and Ripley

Buffy and Ripley
Buffy and Ripley

Not the best picture I've ever taken, but I'll bet my wife is going "Oooooh!"

April 29, 2005

Buffy Napping

A return to catblogging. (Testing.)

Buffy Naps Next to the Computer
Larger ImageBuffy Naps Next to the Computer

April 8, 2005

Dozer

Dozer is our most recent cat. We got him from Orphans of the Storm about three years ago.

He was about seven years old when we discovered him in a cage outside the adult cat room. The sign said "If you pet me I will purr very loud." We got him out of his cage and started petting him and sure enough, loud purring. Sort of a jackhammer cadence, loud and slow on the inhale, nothing on the exhale.

We played with him a while and then put him back in his cage, because we hadn't really planned on getting a cat that day. He just sat there, looking up at us with those big blue eyes of his.

Dozer Close-Up
Larger ImageDozer Close-Up

We caved in and brought him home.

April 1, 2005

Introducing Ripley

This is Ripley. He's the first cat my wife and I got together after her previous cat Rover passed away.

We got Ripley—and all the cats to follow—from the Orphans of the Storm animal shelter about 10 miles north of Chicago. Orphans has some of the cats and all the kittens displayed in a bunch of little cages, like at a pet store. In addition, they have a couple of rooms in which adult cats are allowed to just wander around by themselves. It's kind of like the difference between segregation and population in a prison. We got Ripley out of population when he was a 1-year old.

We decided to get an adult cat for a couple of reasons. In part, of course, it's just kind of sad to see all those cats languishing in there because most people prefer to get kittens. Our main reason for getting an adult cat, however, is that what you see is what you get. The cat has all his shots and has survived whatever diseases cats can get. His coat has grown in in full color.

Most importantly, the cat's personality is fully developed. You might start out with a playful kitten, but she could grow up into a skittish and unpleasant cat. Some of this is under your control, of course. You can pick a cat from a breed that is genetically predisposed to have a good personality, and you can shape a kitten's personality quite a bit as it matures. Many kittens grow up to be very nice cats. But if you adopt an adult cat, you can make sure it's already a very nice cat.

We did that with Ripley. We sat down in the adult cat room and paid attention to which cats came over to play with us. We also watched how the visiting cats got along with other cats: We knew we'd eventually get at least one more cat, and we wanted this one to socialize well.

Cat D51 (back then Orphans didn't name them) came over to both of us several times and climbed right up into our laps. He responded to attention and purred and didn't pick fights with the other cats. He had an eye infection and having been through one sick cat already we weren't sure we wanted to risk another. We decided to take a chance and bring him home with us. After a bit of deliberation, we named him Ripley, after Sigourney Weaver's character in Aliens. (Yes, he's named after a woman. He's also been neutered, so we figure his name is the least of his gender identity problems.)

Have another picture:

Ripley Cleaning Himself
Larger ImageRipley Cleaning Himself

March 25, 2005

Pet Show

This last weekend, my wife and I stopped by the Chicagoland Family Pet Expo. I took pictures. Most of them were pretty bad because I was trying to take them in ambient light with a handheld camera and they came out blurry because of camera motion. I also took a few pictures with the flash. I usually hate my flash pictures, but some of these didn't look too bad.

First up, a red Persian, doing what persions do best:

Lounging Persian
Lounging Persian

This next animal is not technically a cat:

Alaskan Malamute
Alaskan Malamute

That's an Alaskan Malamute, one of several breeds suitable as a sled dog. The owners told us that normal Alaskan Malamutes have a smooth coat. This one has a common mutation for the breed that gives it a soft and fluffy coat. I figure that makes it an honary cat.

Some of the owners entertained their cats for my wife. Well, we call it entertaining. The cats might think of it as annoying.

Annoying the Cats
Annoying the Cats

Finally, here's a cat that was obviously tired of the show:

Ornery Cat
Ornery Cat

March 18, 2005

Network Security

Network Security Specialist
Larger ImageNetwork Security Specialist

This is Buffy. I put up a picture of her first because she always hides when people come over. Many of our friends probably think she's a figment of our imagination.

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