I've Been Asked (er... Ordered By Viki) To Apologise...

...to this one of the cats on my sister & brother-in-law's farm.

Why? Because I keep pointing out that it's got one leg that doesn't look like it belongs... it's a dark cat, with just this one light-coloured leg... and it always reminds me of these people who drive around in cars with one door a different colour because the original one got dented and had to be replaced, and they've not got around to painting the new one yet!

So, I apologise unreservedly for laughing at you, puss... you are very pretty and not at all strange looking...

(lalala)

Hunclett Cat In Mouse-Catching Shock!

Peedie Ginge actually doing what (s)he's meant to!

Spot The Difference

See if you can tell what's different about these two photos of my sister's tomato plants...

*whistles innocently*

Keeping Things In Perspective...

Here are 2 of the semi-feral cats that live on my sister's farm, christened by my brother as "Peedie Ginge" and "Peedie Peedie Ginge"...

Their father is a ginger tom that has visited a few of the farms in the area, and I think has possibly been persuaded on his way with the aid of a rifle a few times, so I suspect that there might be one or two of his nine lives missing... and my brother has christened him... can you guess....?

Big Ginge, of course!

As you can see, I didn't quite manage to get the perspective right in this photo, as Peedie Peedie was further forward than Peedie, so looks about the same size... In reality, he(?)'s about half the size of his / her half brother / sister (it's not easy to discover the sex of a feral... unless they're pregnant! However, I have helpfully labelled them so you can tell the difference).

In the time my sister & brother-in-law have been away on holiday, and my brother has been out looking after their elderly dog, those cats have been living a life of luxury... going from a diet of cat food, bread and munchies to having cooked chicken and mussels! Is it any wonder they're not that motivated to catch the rats that they are meant to!?

Leia & Gizmo

Gizmo tries to get the video recorder working while his mummy looks on with trepidation:

Aww... mummy & "baby" having a cuddly sleep:

Poor Jeannie...

Jeannie is a ragdoll that used to belong to Mum... it was made for her (when she was grown-up and married) by the mother of a guy that was friends with one of my sisters... and then I inherited her.

She'd been through the wars a bit when I got her, and a friend of Mum's had to make new arms for her as both of hers were gone... and she needed a hair transplant... and she'd also lost her shoes, but I bought new socks and pretty shoes for her.

Now she sits on a chair in the living room by the TV. But every so often we come through and poor Jeannie has been interfered with! This time she was brutally knocked off her chair and her hat sent flying.

We do have a suspect... one ginger and white cat who answers (when he feels like it) to the name of Gizmo...

This Is Maurice... Feeling The Wind Through His Fur...

Don't ask... but I assure you, both Viki & I ARE mature, sensible, grown women...

(Viki took the photo... my brother stuck our monkey out the sunroof... I was an innocent bystander - er, sitter)

Self Portrait by Viki...

(photo by Viki... obviously, or it wouldn't be a SELF portrait)

Riding Of The Marches, August 2009

The Riding Of The Marches is a recently-revived tradition in Kirkwall, where horses and riders ride around the boundaries of Kirkwall, celebrating the time when Kirkwall was granted the Royal Charter, giving it the status of City...

The parade lining up in Broad Street before setting off:

Lol... an Emohorse:

(Photos by Viki)

Happy Valley, Stenness...

Wikipedia: Happy Valley, Stenness, Orkney

As you approach, you wouldn't think there's much there except a bunch of trees:

Then you get to the gateway, and it's like you're going into Fairyland:

Imagine... the man who created this garden / wood actually lived in this little house:

An archway over the stream he created:

(Photos taken by Viki... Thanks, Viki)

(Nearly) A Seagull

I am determined that SOMEDAY I will get a good photo of a bird!

Until then, I can only offer photos like this... the seagull having just exited stage left...

Be Vewwy, Vewwy Quiet...

... we is photogwaphing wabbits...

My brother took a photo of this bunny on the path in front of us on the Brough o' Birsay earlier this year...

Gizmo Comes Visiting With Us

As is our usual Sunday routine, this afternoon, we wandered around the corner to my brother's house to go for a run...

But this time we had company... Gizmo decided he didn't want to be left at home... he wanted to come visiting his uncle David... so he followed us all the way down our road, and along the front, past the oil tanks and in through the gate to David's.

First he spotted the hole that had been cut into the bottom of the door through to the yard for my auntie's cat (both auntie and cat now deceased), and he disappeared through it, pausing to peep back out at us just to check where we were...

before reluctantly coming back to us...

We rang the doorbell, David answered, and in wandered Gizmo, cool as you like... making a beeline for up the stairs!

After a wee while, we went out to the yard to feed the gulls, and you can see Gizmo exploring and meeting the birds here.

After his visit, we walked back round the corner and he followed us all the way home like a peedie dog. Gave him some cat food and, while he was distracted, we legged it back to David's so we could go for a run... although I'm sure Gizmo would have happily got in the car with us and come too!

Dozy mog!

Whites? Delicates? Boil Wash?

Lol... daft cat...

I took in the washing, folded it all, and we went to put it away, leaving the empty washing basket on the sitting room floor...

Came back a bit later, and there was Gizmo in the basket, poking his paws out the sides to putter at the pink fluffy thing you can see on the floor...

And then Leia, his mum, appeared to see what the hell he was doing...