Cats

CatSynth pic: Perrey and Kingsley with CrudBox

From Steven Litt of CrudLabs, featured in an article on Rhizome:

“Kitteh! Steve’s cats Perrey and Kingsley’s homage to CatSynth“

Thanks to Steve Litt and Cici Moss of Rhizome for the tribute :).  More information from the article on the CrudBox:

While a graduate student at NYU’s ITP program, Steve developed a machine known as the CrudBox. Central to his installations and performances, the CrudBox allows users to plug electronic or electromechanic devices into a 16 step, 8 channel step sequencer. While normal sequencers draw from a set bank of sounds, the CrudBox allows one to plug in devices such as turntables or solenoids or power tools, opening up the range of sounds one can sequence.

This would certainly be an interesting device to use in live performances.

CatSynth Video: A Day In The Life Of Alessandro Cortini

From Trash Audio, via Synthtopia, and submitted to us by RadicalGeometry on twitter.

We have actually seen Alessandro Cortini’s work in a previously posted video. This one features multiple black cats, a tabby cat kneading, gratuitous kitten placement, and a large Buchla synthesizer setup.

It’s a long video, at almost 8 minutes, but worth a watch.

Weekend Cat Blogging #270

We at CatSynth are happy to be hosting Weekend Cat Blogging #270. This edition is coincident with World Cat Day 2010 on August 8, so we are making that the theme of this edition!  If you would like to participate in WCB or WCD, please leave a link on this post, contact us or leave us a tweet @catsynth with tag #WCB and we will add you to the round-up.

First up, at Sidewalk Shoes Patchouli is coping with the heat (98F or about 36C) that is affecting much of the U.S…except of course here in San Francisco with it’s about 50F, which is about typical for mid-summer.  Anyhow, Patchouli and Pam have a lot in common and agree there is only one way to spend time when it is 98 degrees outside.

A note from Tristan Tabbycat Longtail about Van Meowlin’s British Invasion Tour: “Yes, I had in fact heard that London Bridge is falling down and yes, I know that the concert last night got a little out of hand, but I can ASSURE you, neither I, nor any of my entourage had ANYTHING to do with ANY property damage ANYWHERE in city. Now, you must excuse me, I have to catch a flight….”

“Nom, nom, nom!” Looks like Diamond Emerald-Eyes has some tasty new treats.  Visit her blog to find out more about them.

Usually it’s all-black Jules who comes to visit from Judi’s Mind Over Matter when Luna hosts WCB.  But this week it’s all about Vincent, who is looking through a window and stalking a tiny moth.  We’re happy to see Vincent this week, and he is at least “mostly black.”

More black cats this weekend.  We meet Boom Boom, a big and lovable cat and hear about his homecoming story.  I think this may be the first WCB entry from the new blog I Think My Cat Is An Alien, so please join me in welcoming them!

There is a plethora of cat-blogging events out there in addition to Weekend Cat Blogging.  Nikita Cat and Elvira break it down for us in their post 7 Days, and 37 Ways.  Their four great pictures help promote their list, which will also be incorporated into their permanent sidebar.  We have not a chance yet to “formally” welcome Elvira, who recently joined the family.  And their dad Kiril has some Good News and Bad News about his health, which is actually all good news.  We continue to wish him well.

Sparkle has advice for humans on World Cat Day.  It can be summed up as follows: gifts.  Lots of them, with wrapping paper.  But most importantly, spend time with your cats today. A longer play session, or a longer nap together, or whatever brings you and your cat(s) closer.

The folks at Zoolatry are celebrating World Cat Day with a series of posts and images in tribute to all their friends from around the Cat Blogosphere.  Do to take the time to scroll down from the main post and see them all.  They are also responsible for the “World Cat Day” graphic that we are using.  PS: nice hat :).

There was a little bit of gender liberation as Faith Boomerang steps in for “Mancat Monday”.   We at CatSynth find such fluidity in gender roles quite refreshing, actually.  Also, thanks to KC for helping to get the word out about our weekend event.

Sniffie and the Florida Furkids are celebrating with a remembrance of Cats who Came Before.  It is a celebration of some of the cats their mom has known over the years, with photographs.  We also sending thoughts for Sniffie.

The chair that speaks at The Chair Speaks has been a favorite resting place for cats for years, and hopes to be around for years to come.  “To all the cats in the world, big and small, Happy World Cat Day!  And wish that all cats have the right to a loving home, food and care.”

The Cats of Wildcat Woods are celebrating World Cat Day with a series of trivia on feline colors and markings. Fun and educational!  They also conclude with this thought that we would like to repost here:

“Cats give us so much – they captivate us with their beauty, make us laugh with their antics, give us companionship when we are lonely, snuggle with us while we watch TV, keep our houses free of mice – our lives are enriched by their presence in our homes. Do something special for your cat, your neighbor’s cats or the cats at the local shelter. Give them back a little of what they give us. Have a Happy World Cat Day!”

World Cat Day is really just a normal day for Samantha and Clementine.  Here we see Clementine relaxing, and perhaps plotting something fiendish, while Samantha is blissfully snoozing off in another photo.

It looks like a normal day for Salome as well.  She joins us from Vienna while snoozing away the weekend on her gizzy quilt.

Congratulations to Rosa and the cats at Rosa’s Yummy Yums, who are celebrating their 5th Blog Anniversary today!  Rosa’s blog mixes baking, cooking, photography, and of course, cats, and she has been a long-time participant in WCB.

The cats and humans at PDX Pride are celebrating World Cat Day with a newly adopted kitten.  Angel Skylar found his mom Erin adopt a new kitten named Scamper, who appears to be fitting in quite well.  It’s always great to hear about cats finding new homes.

Thanks to all who participated this week.  We had a nice large turnout.  We’ll continue to post entires as the come in through Monday morning, but for now, we will rest.

Weekend Cat Blogging 264: Cats in Santa Cruz

Last weekend I made a brief visit to Santa Cruz (where as many readers know I lived for several years). While walking around with a friend, I was reminded of how many cats are around, in front yards and on sidewalks. Here are a few of them:

This cat appears to be enjoying the plants in this garden, or perhaps something hidden amongst the plants:

Cats are a rarity on my walks around downtown San Francisco, though I occasionally encounter them in the Mission district and in industrial areas.

Weekend Cat Blogging #264 is being hosted by Nikita Cat at Meowings of an Opinionated Pussycat. His dad often takes photos of cats he sees on walks.

The Carnival of the Cats will be up this Sunday at One Cats Nip.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging #261

We at CatSynth are happy to be hosting Weekend Cat Blogging #261.  It’s a delightful weekend here, one to step outside and enjoy.  And we hope we have a lot of cats come join us.

In order to participate, please leave a comment below, or contact us, and we’ll be happy to add you over the course of the weekend.

And without further ado, let us get started with the round-up:

First up, Nikita Cat provides definitive proof that cat lovers are not brainless. Thanks to MRI technology, see how Nikita performs a “cat scan” on his dad’s brain.

Next we have Parker caught in mid-yawn, or is that a roar? In any case, it sounds like Parker is looking forward to a nice weekend with some outside time on the deck (similar to Luna’s excursions on the patio).

Seeing double?  No, this is “whiz-kitts” Daniel and Mikey, a pair a litter-mates in and old photo (as one can tell from the CRT monitor, anyone remember those?).  They are part of the family at Kittens ‘n Things.

Samantha and Clementine are getting along better, but still have their differences, as can be seen in this Smilebox slide show they have put together to share this weekend, complete with captions of their antics and background music.

We are delighted to have Jules from Judi’s Mind Over Matter join us this weekend.  “Jules and Luna have something special in common,” as can be seen in these pictures.  Black cats and white blinds are also a good visual combination, as we have shown in some previous photos.

More of our fellow black cats are joining us this weekend, including Maruschka from Rosa’s Yummy Yums. Her eyes almost look orange in this photo, as does the rug on which she lies.  They leave us with an apropos quote from the band Danzig: “Big black witch cat.  Yes, you cast a real strong spell…”

Finally, Spot (aka “Harry Spotter”) and Fiona are happy to be reunited with their family after their mom and dad’s trip to China.  And it looks like they have a new human member of the family!

That concludes the round-up for this weekend.  Thanks to everyone who participated!  (And if we did miss your entry, please let us know and we would be happy to add it retroactively.)

CatSynth videos: Cats react to iPhone Cat Piano

Today I specifically wanted to post some cat-and-iphone-music videos. While these don’t quite rise to the level of iggy investigating the iPad, they do make use of the popular “cat piano” app for iPhone.

From luke255 on YouTube:


“My cat Dennis has an interesting conversation with my iPhone!”

And another, from amb0 on YouTube:

The black cat in this video looks a bit like Luna.

I do of course have this particular iPhone app, and have even used it in some shows. Luna has shown very little interest in it, however. She is clearly jaded from gadgets making strange sounds (even cat-like sounds)

Carnival of the Cats / Carnaval de los Gatos #324

We at CatSynth are happy to host another (slightly tardy) edition of Carnival of the Cats

¿Por qué en español? Well, this weekend happened to also be the big Carnaval festival in San Francisco.

I spent most of yesterday at Carnaval with friends, enjoying the music, the rather vibrant and colorful costumes, and the overall energy. Considering that this actually has very little to do with cats, however, let is move on to our regularly scheduled “carnival”:

It’s been a sunny and warm weekend for us. And for others, too. K.T. Cat shows his jungle heritage while enjoying some sunshine outdoors in this great “nature photo” at K T’s Sratching Post.

Our friend Nikita Cat is also enjoying the outdoors in a unique way, as he goes for a stroll outdoors with his dad. Literally, a stroll in a stroller. In addition to being a great way to enjoy some fresh air, it’s helping his dad’s continued recovery and rejuvenation. And he certainly gets some attention from passers by. And this is a lead in to Nikita’s second contribution concerning how much non-felines obsess over cats.

Elisson visits his elder daughter’s new digs and meets some of the animal residents, including Miss Kitty, who has adjusted well to domestic life after being adopted from the streets (I wonder if she should meet Mister Kitty). There is also Minnie, appropriately described as “one tiny ass dawg.”

At Elms in the Yard, Hadi is adjusting well and learning to trust humans after her past experiences (including the vet). As one can see from this image, she is learning not to trust but to quite appreciate belly rubs. Rahel also encountered a visitor in her home while preparing for bed. Fortunately, the stranger turned out to be a neighbors’ cat, and was soon back home safely.

At Dophin’s Dock, Dolphin says “goodbye” to Sigyn. But this story has a happy ending, as Sigyn is going to a new home where she should be able to enjoy a lot of love and attention.

Antics about at Life from a Cat’s Perspective, where Samantha and Clementine have a rough over a paper sack. They have a photo series with the action unfolding. Samantha does not look pleased.

That concludes our Carnival for this week. Thanks to everyone who participated.
(Note, if you had planned to participate but I missed your entry, please leave a comment or contact and I will be happy to add you.)

Weekend Cat Blogging: Endangered Wild Cats

Every year on or around earth day (or “erf day”), we at CatSynth dedicate our Weekend Cat Blogging to some of the world’s endangered wild cat species. We look to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as our primary source for species that are “endangered” or “vulnerable”. There are several cat species on this list from many parts of the world, and we present a few of them here.

This year, we focus on South America (for reasons beyond the scope of this article). The Andean region is home to some rather intriguing cats that we have discussed in the past. Perhaps the most intriguing and most endangered remains the gato andino, or Andean Mountain Cat. The Andean mountain cat lives in rocky areas at high elevations of the Andean region of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Perú. It is quite small, but has a very distinctive large tail. There is now an organization dedicated to studying and protecting the Andean cat, Alianza Gato Andino. There you can find more about the cat, see photos and also see more of the Andean landscape it inhabits. I am drawn to the starkly beautiful dry landscape, and perhaps will have a chance to visit someday.

In reading about the Andean cat, I also learned about the Pampas Cat. The Pampas cat also lives in western South America, but is not considered nearly as threatened a species. As one can see from this photograph, it bears a resemblance to domestic cats, though with perhaps more squat body shape.

The Guiña, or Kodkod, is a wildcat native to Chile (and parts of Argentina). It is also relatively small, with a thick fur coat and spotted markings.

It is currently listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and until recently little was known about it. A project was undertaken in Chile to learn more about these cats.

We round out our South American cats with the Oncilla. It looks quite like a domestic cat with wild the coat and markings of a wild cat. In addition to habitat pressures, it has been trapped in the past for the fur trade.

We next go to southeast Asia where several of the worlds most endangered cats live. The very unusual looking Borneo Bay Cat lives only on the island of Borneo. It is quite rare, and little is known about this cat, but it was classified as “endangered” in 2005 primarily due to habitat loss.

The Flat Headed Cat, also from Indonesia, is not one I would immediately recognize as a cat. It lives in the forests of Indonesia on multiple islands, usually near water. Sightings of this car are rare, and it is classified as “endangered.”

Another endangered cat of southeast Asia (and India) is the Fishing Cat. It has an interesting face with a distinctive flat nose and small ears. As the name suggests, it is quite adapted to hunting and eating fish. As such, it is dependent on wetlands and fishing stocks, and is now also classified by IUCN as “endangered.”

Perhaps the most endangered species of cat remains the Iberian Lynx. It is listed as “critically endangered”, with an IUCN survey suggesting between 84 and 143 adults left in two breeding populations in Spain. Conservation efforts are currently focused on supporting these breeding populations. You can read more about the Iberian Lynx in our first “Earth Day Weekend Cat Blogging” article.

If we include large cats as well, there is the even rarer Amur Leopard of northeastern Asia. A census in 2007 counted only about 20 adults remaining. We conclude with this video of the Amur Leopard:

Weekend Cat Blogging #254 is being hosted by Salome at Paulchens FoodBlog?!

The Carnival of the Cats will be up this Sunday at When Cats Attack.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.