Cats

Weekend Cat Blogging #268

I had no idea what to post for Weekend Cat Blogging (I have been so focused on the performances, rehearsals and other goings on).  But while sitting on the patio this morning, I saw Luna looking up at something, and managed to get a few good pictures.  Here is one.  It is definitely worth doing the “click to enlarge” thing:

[click image to enlarge]

I have no idea what she was looking at.

Yesterday on a whim I tried out the HD video feature on my camera – this camera is for still photography, so the video feature was mostly coincidental – and caught a bit of Luna scampering about.  You can hear her give one little squeak early in the video.

Behold the power of HD video to use up hundreds of megabytes of slightly shaky and blurry motion!  Also, as this an impromptu recording, the house is in the middle of normal daily use, with cat toys and the incongruous bright blue yoga mat spread out in our usually clean living room.  (Actually, the cat toys are usually scattered about.)

While on one of my long urban walks yesterday, I saw one of the mobile adoption stations set up by the San Francisco SPCA.  This one was along the Embarcadero, near the Gap company headquarters.  Lots of kittens, mostly curled up for an afternoon nap.  We certainly hope they find good homes.  The mobile adoption stations are out regularly in the summer, so if you’re in San Francisco downtown, check out their schedule and stop by.

Weekend Cat Blogging #268 is hosted by Nikita and Elvira (the new edition to their household) at Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat.

The Carnival of the Cats will be hosted tomorrow by Kashim, Othello and Salome.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging #267

Between the Outsound Festival and other things going on here at CatSynth, we barely had time to squeeze in Weekend Cat Blogging.

I returned home briefly last night between various events to rest for a moment and of course to spend a few minutes Luna. With camera already in hand and made a few photos of Luna near our favorite glass-and-metal table. It caught a bit of blue in the reflection, and inspired me to make this image with everything but the blue reduced to grayscale:

Later that evening, I encountered some feline themed art:

This is a moment from a 3D film/video by Kerry Laitala that was screened last night at SOMArts. I did not see the kitten featured on the exhibition website, though. I will have a review of the full event at SOMArts soon.

Aside from brief excursions in photography and visual art, the last few days have been dominated by music.  For each of the groups I am working with, wehave compositions that we print on paper and then read during rehearsals and performances. It is a lot of work.

But is sheet music tasty?

On the subject of tasty treats, our friends Kashim, Othello, Salome and Astrid are hosting special edition of WCB dedicated to Sher, who passed away unexpectedly two years ago. In addition to being a dedicated and supportive member of Weekend Cat Blogging, she was also a food blogger who published many recipes which I have used over the last few years. We will go back to the archives and try some more as soon as things calm down a bit and we have time for luxuries like well-prepared home-cooked meals.

Weekend Cat Blogging #267: In honor of Sher is hosted by Kashim, Othello, Salome and Astrid at PaulChens Foodblog?!.

The Carnival of the Cats will be up today at When Cats Attack!.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator

Work completed: Flora Davis, For Luna

The piece I had commissioned from artist Flora Davis was completed in late June:

The metal surfaces of each box are glued and covered in a protective layer, and the sides are finished with a metallic paint.

The piece now also has a title: For Luna. It seems appropriate, as both Davis and I have cats named Luna. And of course it is a nice tribute.

You can see previous articles documenting the progress here and here.

It was exciting to see it complete and take it home. The final step will be to display the artwork. Combined with the companion cat painting Zeus, the five boxes can be arranged in any number of ways. Here are but a few examples:

I have yet to settle on a final arrangement.

R.I.P. Tali

Some sad news from this weekend, via matrixsynth. Tali, the feline companion of carbon111 passed away over the weekend:

We featured Tali’s CatSynth pics many times over the past couple of years, and she will be missed. I send carbon111 my deepest sympathies.

You can read kind words for Tali (aka “Circle Cat”) at Harmony Central and matrixsynth.

I did not know before reading carbon111’s post that Tali was named for Taliesin.

Weekend Cat Blogging #266 and Photo Hunt: Free

For Weekend Cat Blogging #266, we present some photos of Luna relaxing in the dining area.

A contrast of colors, texture and shape.

This is also perhaps one of our weaker attempts to fit the Photo Hunt theme this weekend, which is free. Relaxing in a favorite spot is a fine way to spend free time.

Weekend Cat Blogging #266 is being hosted by LB and Breadchick at The Sour Dough. It also marks the approximate 5th anniversary since WCB was started by a group of mostly food bloggers who set aside a day on the weekend to blog about cats.

The Photo Hunt is hosted as always by tnchick. This week’s theme is free.

The Carnival of the Cats will be hosted by Nikita Cat.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

CatSynth video: Boys List: 7/1/2010

From scienceclubmusic on YouTube, via matrixsynth:

On the floor… This version is cut in many places to fit YouTube’s 10 minute limit. A full-length version is available here: http://vimeo.com/13060686
Equipment used: Roland MC-202, Acidlab Miami, DSI Mopho Keyboard, DSI Evolver Desktop, Roland TR-505

I like the cat inspecting things as the music starts 🙂