Weekend Cat Blogging: Hanukkah Cat

For this year’s holiday edition of Weekend Cat Blogging, we have scenes from our rather casual observance of Hanukkah.

Luna inspects the iPad-based menorah after the fourth night (which happened on Friday). The iPad app is from an Israeli studio, and has simulated oil flames rather than candle flames. It has the traditional prayer in Hebrew, which I cannot read particularly well – growing up, we either said it in English or from transliteration.

We do have a real menorah as well, but Luna is not allowed near it. You can see it in this post from the past.

Luna did get some new toys to play with. She is quite fond of the catnip-filled variety.


Weekend Cat Blogging #342 is hosted by Jules and Vincent, at Judi’s Mind Over Matter. Check out their great black-and-white photos.

Carnival of the Cats will be hosted tomorrow by Billy SweetFeets.

The Friday Ark is off this week for the holidays.

Weekend Cat Blogging: SF SPCA Holiday Windows 2011

Each year, the San Francisco SPCA teams up with Macy’s in San Francisco to feature adoptable pets in the holiday window displays at their main store in Union Square.  And we at CatSynth present some of the cats that are featured in the windows and available for adoption.

The windows featured a theme this year that appeared to me as a series of gears and old machinery.  It turns out that the theme is in fact “Make a Wish” and the machinery represents a “wish factory”.  Clearly the wishes here are for loving homes for all the adoptable animals.

The program is always popular with visitors to busy Union Square.  And it has been quite successful, placing many animals in homes and raising funds for the San Francisco SPCA’s many other programs.

The holiday windows continue through January 1, with different animals rotating through each day.  If you are in San Francisco this holiday season, I encourage you to check it out.  Those who aren’t going to be in the area can still enjoy the displays via the live video feeds.

You can find out more about Macy’s SF SPCA Holiday Windows at this website, including hours, volunteer opportunities, and donation information.


Weekend Cat Blogging #341 is hosted by Billy Sweetfeets Gingersnap.

The Carnival of the Cats will be hosted this Sunday by the always hard-working Nikita and Elivra at Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging and Photo Hunt: Light Stripes

For Weekend Cat Blogging and the Photo Hunt, we preset this photo of Luna with stripes of light.

This was once again taken with the Hipstamatic on the iPhone, using relatively simple lens and film effects that bring out the light.


Weekend Cat Blogging #340 is hosted by Pam at Sidewalk Shoes, with help from Coco.

The Saturday PhotoHunt has a new home. This week’s theme is Lights. Thank you to tnchick for hosting over the past years.

The Carnival of the Cats will be hosted this weekend by Samantha, Clementine and Maverick at Life from a Cat’s Perspective.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging: Homecoming and Birthday

Both Luna and I returned to CatSynth HQ this week after our respective sojourns. And just in time for her 7th birthday this past Wednesday.

Luna received this birthday card from a close friend of ours in Canada.

It’s been a very busy week since returning, with both a curated show and a performance, a major application due, and a pair of shows next week as well. But we took time out to celebrate. Here Luna is enjoying some yummy food. Often she dismisses such offerings, but on this occasion she devoured it with abandon.

And then of course it’s time for play:

Good food and play. It’s just a normal day for a house cat (except for the card).


Weekend Cat Blogging #339 is hosted by Meowza.

The Carnival of the Cats will be hosted this Sunday by Samantha, Clementine and Maverick.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging: Pallas Cat

What do you see in this picture?

Well, since it is Weekend Cat Blogging, one would expect to see a cat. And indeed there is a wild cat sleeping well camouflaged amongst the rocks. This is Pallas’ Cat, native to the high-altitude grasslands of Central Asia including Mongolia, western China, and parts of Russia and Afghanistan.

This particular individual was not in Central Asia, but rather at the zoo in Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

Pallas’ cat has a nice thick fur coat and, unlike the writer of this article, is well suited to colder climates.

They are similar in size to larger domestic cats, and of course have many of the same characteristics. They hunt, tend to be solitary, and spend a decent amount of time sleeping. But despite the similar appearance, there is a lot of question about how closely they are related to other cats. They are currently not part of the genus Felis with domestic cats and related wild cats, but part of the separate Otocolobus (though this is subject to discussion).

Pallas’ Cat is not on the endangered list at this time, but is listed as “near threatened” primarily due to habitat loss and illicit hunting and trade (one can only imagine that an animal with such a fur coat could be easily threatened by illegal hunting). There are efforts underway to help preserve these cats in their native territories, including programs in Russia and Mongolia. Follow the links for information on these efforts.

For more general information on Pallas’ cats and their current status, visit the Feline Conversation Federation (FCF) and our friends at the International Society for Endangered Cats (ISEC)

Weekend Cat Blogging and Photo Hunt: Two

For our combined Weekend Cat Blogging and Photo Hunt theme of two, we present a pair of Hipstamatic photos of Luna. A single pose, but two sets of lens and film effects:


It’s a sleepy morning for us, after I recover from two music performances over the past two days, and Luna basks in some sunshine after a wet and rainy Friday.


This weekend also marks the 400th Edition of the Carnival of Cats. That is quite a milestone, and we are happy to help celebrate! It is hosted by Mog, we has been the “Carnival Caretaker” over the past couple of years There is a history of the Carnival posted by last week’s hosts Nikita and Elvira of Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat.


Photo Hunt #291 is hosted by tnchick. The theme this week is two.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging: Cat at Islais Creek

Islais Creek in San Francisco is a favorite photography spot of mine, and also home to an art studio complex featuring many metalwork sculptors. While walking outside of Islais Creek Studios, I encountered this gray cat.

It’s not the first time I have come across cats at Islais Creek Studios. Indeed, I posted about a cat I encountered there last year. It seems to be a natural environment for outdoor cats, lots of places hide in the industrial debris, and friendly people who leave food for them.

In the picture, we see the cat sitting near large metalwork sculptures by the artist David I McGraw. I like the abstract shapes and focus on single, and the fit well with the environment. And they go well with cats.


We participated in this year’s BlogBlast for Peace, which occurred yesterday. Cats have been quite prominent among the entries every year. You can see our peace globe here.


Weekend Cat Blogging #335 is hosted by Kashim, Othello and Salome at PaulChens FoodBlog?!

Carnival of the Cats #399 will be hosted this Sunday by Nikita and Elvira at Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging #333: Works of Art

Luna contemplates the sculpture Pierced Screen by Joshua-Tree-based artist J Michael Smiley.

She has a good sense for how to contrast her natural shape against stark geometric lines. Actually, given our art and decor, she doesn’t have much choice in the matter.

I bring the outdoor sculptures inside every winter. This month has been rather volatile, ranging from a heatwave to violent rainstorms and now to more typical crisp autumn weather. We were caught completely by surprise with the storms, with both heavy rain and winds. A particularly strong gust of wind one of the outdoor sculptures crashing to the ground.

Fortunately, it was not damaged, perhaps a few scratches but nothing worse than usual wear and tear. I consider the rust sculpture more sensitive to rain, so that one came indoors for storage. Luna has been fascinated by it ever since.

I would like to clean it and fix the rust surface a bit, but I don’t have much expertise in this despite owning multiple rust sculptures.


Our friend Parker of Perfectly Parker has received some very sad news this past week. Our thoughts are with Parker and her family.

Weekend Cat Blogging #333 is hosted by Billy Sweetfeets.

Carnival of the Cats will be up this Sunday at Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Weekend Cat Blogging will be here for Hallowe’en next week!

Weekend Cat Blogging: Talking and Heatwave

Luna is often quite talkative in the morning. Recently, she started launching into a long monologue while I had my iPhone handy to capture it.

Of course, she gets some scritches at the end. I am always curious what it is she is trying to say.


It has been quite warm the last few days in San Francisco, and CatSynth HQ always tends to run a bit hotter than its surroundings.

Luna tries to balance lying in the sun while trying to stay a bit cool in her fur suit.


Tomorrow (October 16) is National Feral Cat Day (who knew?).

Alley Cat Allies launched National Feral Cat Day on our 10th anniversary in 2001 to raise awareness about feral cats, promote Trap-Neuter-Return, and recognize the millions of compassionate Americans who care for them.

Events will be taking place around the United States to demonstrate compassion and support humane treatment of all cats. Follow the link to the map to see if there is an event near you. I also like the poster.


Weekend Cat Blogging #332 is hosted by Jules and Vincent at Judi’s Mind Over Matter. Jules is looking very Luna-like in his black-and-white portrait 🙂

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

Weekend Cat Blogging: Luna and Apple

The influence of Apple and Steve Jobs extends deep into this site and into our lives at CatSynth HQ. For today’s Weekend Cat Blogging, we look at a few of the many photos of Luna with Apple computers and devices:

This last photo is one of our many taken with the Hipstamatic app on the iPhone.  Indeed, most of the photos, even those not taken with an iPhone, are processed on a MacBook or Mac Pro.  Nearly all of the writing is done on a MacBook, and occasionally on an iPad.  The technology of Apple has become ubiquitous, even down to blogs featuring cats.


Weekend Cat Blogging #331, is hosted by pam at Sidewalk Shoes, where Smudge says Happy Fall to everyone.

Carnival of the Cats will be up tomorrow at Meowsings of an Opinionated Pussycat.

And the Friday Ark is at the modulator.