Cat Clips--Before You

Please click on the photo above to watch the next episode in the Cat Clips series, "Before You." In this episode, the male cat confronts the female cat about her "alleged" past. (I will be posting an episode a day for the next few days, as the storyline is leading up to a big Valentine's Day surprise.)

Dog Days--Pair of Pugs

Please click on the photo above to watch the second episode of "Dog Days." In this episode, Lenny tries to distract George from eating food by sending him upstairs on a fake mission.

Pride is Not Just for the Patriotic

On my journey the other day through the vast playground we call the Internet, I stumbled upon a posting that caused me to take pause. (Yes, I actually cocked my head and paused…for maybe thirty seconds. Or maybe I was having a mild stroke, I’m not sure.) Anyway, the post was on the subject of Pride, and it was written by Mo of It’s a Blog Eat Blog World. In the posting, Mo asked how pride became a “sin” in some cultures, as he was having a few issues about taking some pride in his own accomplishments.

I totally understand this line of thinking, because when I was young, my Grandmother practically beat it into my head that I was too proud for my own good. But before you start imagining me walking around boasting about my various accomplishments, let me clarify what my Grandmother meant by this. It wasn’t because she thought I was arrogant or self-centered (well, maybe a little self-centered), but rather because I asked too many questions. Any time she told me to do a chore, or gave me an explanation about something, I would question it. (Or so she claimed.)

What can I say? If I didn’t understand or completely believe an answer I was given, I just wanted further clarification. Was that such a bad thing? No. But to my Grandmother it was. She used to call me “Lawyer Jones” because she said I could argue about almost anything. She even tossed in the old adage, “In my day, children were seen and not heard,” to which I would reply, “I’m so glad we don’t live in your day then, because I have too many things I want to say.” As you can imagine, this response never went over very well.

Anyway, I think the confusion about “pride” stems from the various manifestations it can take. There’s the kind of pride Narsissus felt toward his own reflection, which is the kind of pride most of us probably think of. But there’s also another kind of pride, which is much quieter. Like having a deep sense of achievement of what you’ve been through, what you’ve survived, and how you’ve grown. This kind of pride is important, because it gives you strength and courage to face whatever comes next.

And so, to illustrate this point, I have written a short little poem. I hope you enjoy it.

Sometimes I’ll try and take a peak,
To find what others often seek,
The worth behind this mask I wear,
But if you knock, is something there?

Who knows what secrets hide inside,
Some hurt my heart, some sting my pride,
The kind of scars that never show,
Were only meant to help me grow.

Yet in my mind I see them clearly,
All the critics I once heard yearly,
They’ve long since gone their separate way,
Though wounds they left still bleed today.

So once again I’ll let them go,
For life is not a tale of woe,
In fact, I love the life I lead,
In many ways, I did succeed.

I look inside and now I see,
What truly are the gifts of me,
Some I’ll share, and some will steep,
Until the time what’s sewn will reap.

For on this journey, one thing’s true,
There’s only ever one of you,
You’re flying solo till the end,
So try be your own best friend.


Thanks Mo, for inspiring this post.

Bird Bits--Meet the Uncles

Please click on the photo above to watch a one-minute video from the "Bird Bits" series entitled "Meet the Uncles." In this episode, Belinda Bluebird introduces Robin to her "Uncles" before going on their date.

Creative Quips on Qualifying Quirky Qualities

I have once again been tagged by Roxy of Roxiticus Desperate Housewives to carry out one of her humiliating tasks of self-evaluation and public exposure. I don’t know why she feels it necessary to unload her particular requests upon me, but for some reason I feel the need to comply. After all, the latest “homework assignment” involved publicly revealing my special quirks or idiosyncrasies, as if I had any of those to begin with. To me, this was a big assumption on Roxy’s part, because I personally view all of my personality traits as normal extensions of my being. And should some of my habits happen to be a little different than the average person, I certainly wouldn’t call it a quirk. I think of these individual attributes as “qualities” rather than quirks, but perhaps that’s because I’m just more advanced than some people. (i.e., a certain Desperate Housewife.)

Nevertheless, I will try to assemble what I consider to be some of my most interesting “qualities,” several of which may have been referred to at one time or another as a “quirk.” Certainly not by me, of course, but by other people. After all, aren’t your quirks really pointed out by someone other than yourself? Because without their input, you might think everything you’re doing is perfectly normal. Unless one of your quirks happens to involve strange rituals with pig blood and dead chickens, in which case you might actually be displaying cult behavior rather than a quirk. But I digress.

Another interesting assumption of Roxy’s request was the requirement of listing six different quirks. As if everyone had six basic quirks they could easily assemble at any given moment. Like having six senses, your six quirks were as obvious as your eye or hair color. (The proverbial sixth sense being your ability to see dead people, like Bruce Willis’s career.) But what if you had seven quirks, or a hundred and eight? Or what if, God forbid, you only had two? And you had to make up the rest just so you wouldn’t be embarrassed. Or even worse, what if one of your “quirks” was the fear of actually having to talk about your various quirks? What then, Miss Roxy, what then?

So now that I’ve successfully drawn out my sarcastic introduction to a fourth paragraph, I think it’s time to tackle the issue at hand: the public pronouncement of my most interesting “qualities.” And here they are:

One of the major “qualities” that distinguishes me from the masses is my obsession with anything animated. Disney animated movies are my favorite, but I also like classic Saturday morning cartoons like Scooby Doo and Bugs Bunny, as well as the more artsy Japanese animation from Hayao Miyazaki. I believe that in a former life (if there is such a thing), I probably started out as an animated character. Perhaps a pencil drawing or a sketch on a napkin. (You may even have seen me as a forest animal in “Snow White” or as one of the puppets in “Pinocchio.”) Animation is magical to me. I am literally drawn to the colors, the characters, the stories and the overall feeling that “everything will be all right in the end.” If this is a quirk, I gladly accept it with all the candy-coated optimism such an attribute implies. After all, without optimism we have nothing.

A second quality of mine is that animals love me. I’ve been told by many pet owners that their dog or cat is usually hesitant or fearful around most people, but feel immediately at ease around me. I’m not sure if it’s because I smell like a butcher shop or I remind them of a fire hydrant they once peed on, but I definitely have a kinship with our four legged friends. And I don’t mean in a Horse Whisperer sort of way; more like an understanding of what it’s like to be the underdog. (Literally) My black cat, Trey, who appears in the Cat Clips videos, sleeps by my head every night as if there to protect me.

I’m addicted to chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter. (Not at the same time. Although I have tried mixing them in the past, and rather liked the results. Though my waste and teeth do not.)

I don’t drink coffee unless it has some kind of flavored creamer in it. And I don’t mean the powdered kind, which never really provides the fatty creaminess one requires in their cup of coffee. (For more on my coffee requirements, please refer to My Quest for the Perfect Cup of Coffee)

I sleep in the nude. This isn’t really a quirk. More of an advertisement.

I love the glamour and mystique of Old time Hollywood. From the silent comedies of Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd, to the Film Noir classics of the thirties and forties, to the big MGM musicals of the fifties and sixties, I’m a classic film buff. (I also like movies produced after the sixties, but there is something very special about the older films that I truly appreciate. ) Hitchcock is one of my personal favorites.

And finally, and probably most significantly, my constant need to “create” is one of the driving forces in my life. It doesn’t really matter what form it takes (playwriting, drawing, singing, blog writing, making movies, etc.), as long as it gives me the opportunity to express myself. That is what gives me the most pleasure, and is probably my biggest quirk. Though I think of it as more of a gift. And if others happen to like what I create, that’s just icing on the cake.

But that’s just me. What are your six “qualities” that people might consider quirky?

Cat Clips--Litter Etiquette

Please click on the photo above to watch a short one-minute video from the "Cat Clips" series entitled "Litter Etiquette." In this episode, our two cats discuss the finer points of proper cat box policies.