I love cats

A blond version of a cat lady in one of my collages.  Everything is handcut and pasted and embellished with rhinestones. A yellow napkin was used to make the hair.  Done for a woman decorating her daughter's room in leopard and turquoise.  https://www.etsy.com/listing/95268422/cat-collage-cat-woman-leopard-turquoise?ref=pr_shop is the link to the item in my online shop.  

Lots of interesting cat stuff in the Sunday New York Times.

Here are two items.

First, in the travel section on South Korea, is a mention of a Cat Cafe (godabang.com).  Cats live in the cafe for you to play with and photograph.

Who knew there was such a thing as a cat cafe? According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_caf%C3%A9),  a "cat café is a theme café whose attraction is cats that can be watched and played with. Patrons pay a cover fee, generally hourly, and thus cat cafés can be seen as a form of supervised indoor pet rental.

Cat cafés are quite popular in Japan, with Tokyo being home to at least 39 cat cafés. A pioneer is Cat's Store (猫の店 Neko no Mise^?), by Norimasa Hanada, which opened in 2005. The popularity of cat cafés in Japan is attributed to many apartments forbidding pets, and to cats providing relaxing companionship in what may otherwise be a stressful and lonesome urban life. Other forms of pet rental, such as rabbit cafes, are also common in Japan.^[3]

There are various cat cafés. Some cat cafés feature specific categories of cat such as black cats, fat cats, rare breed cats or ex-stray cats. A cat café must obtain a license and comply with the strict requirements and regulations of the Animal Treatment/Protection Law.^[4]

Japanese cat cafés feature strict rules to ensure cleanliness and animal welfare, in particular seeking to ensure that the cats are not disturbed by excessive and unwanted attention, such as by young children or when sleeping. Many cat cafés also seek to raise awareness of cat welfare issues, such as abandoned and stray cats. In 2011, American singer Katy Perry was seen at one of the cafes in Tokyo while on tour.

Secondly is a review of the book "Another Insane Devotion: On the Love of Cats and Persons" by Peter Trachtenberg.  A rave review by Jennifer B. McDonald, calls the book a pet memoir...... but "not jut a pet memoir".  Along with writing about the pursuit of his missing cat, Biscuit, she says that  Trachtenberg's memoir "is about the torments of grief and separation as much as it is about the nature of desire and devotion." 

Sounds intense.  Depressing.  Maybe I won't read it.

Here's a link to the book:  http://www.amazon.com/Another-Insane-Devotion-Love-Persons/dp/0738215260

Happy reading!!  Happy New Year!!  Happy cats!!

Animal soap

Just discovered this really kool felted soap that I want to share which includes some fantastic animal art. Check out http://www.etsy.com/shop/SoFino?ref=seller_info
 

 

"SoFino Handfelted Soaps combine high quality soaps with exfoliating soft merino wool; last longer than regular bars of soap; and leave you with a reusable multipurpose pouch."
 
Custom orders are welcome.  Among the 30+ available scents are:  chocolate expresso, lemon verbena,  apricot freesia, spellbound woods, and love spell.  Nice!!!!

Dogs I met this summer

 I just returned from two weeks in Los Angeles.  Lots of beauty to photograph.  Lots of cute dogs, especially at Bark n' Bitches, an amazing pet boutique that  rescues dogs from shelters and finds them homes.  Which means that lots of dogs are running around the store.  They greet you and sit on your lap and give you a little kiss.  Great place for some pet portraits. You can read more about them at http://barknbitches.com/.

Here's a dog I saw hanging out at a Venice Beach bistro.

I saw these dogs recently at a park in Chicago.

YAY FOR DOGS!!!!!!

AND CATS TOO!!!!

Here's Gonzalo who so kindly shared his house with me on my trip to California.

At the beach with my new app

Got a new app for my iphone and I am beyond thrilled.  Had a blast this weekend photographing at some of Chicago's beaches.  School is out!!!  Look forward to a summer filled with art making.

Squirrely

I've just discovered likeabirdblog and have decided to participate in May Photo-a-Day or in my case Mid-May Photo-a-Day. Check out this link for info:

http://likeabirdblog.com/2012/04/may-photo-a-day/

Here's my first - May 12 - surroundings - a squirrel on my balcony screen door.  He just wants to say hello and get a peanut.

Here's the daily challenge list:

Buddhas birthday

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/05/vesak-how-buddhas-birthda_n_1478896.html

See a fantastic slide show on people celebrating Buddha's birthday around the world when you go to the link above.

Here are some of my collages featuring Buddhas with cats and dogs. I like the idea of animals and Buddhas together.   It's comforting.  I like to think that "over the rainbow bridge" there are tons of Buddhas sitting around with the beloved animals we've lost.  Sounds like nirvana to me. 




  

 

Animal Takeover

ANIMAL TAKEOVER!!!!  I love it!  Seen in the Wynwood Arts District.

Here's a link where you can find out about the street artist behind the art. 
http://culturedesigners.com/2011/10/05/street-artist-profile-animal-takeover/

"His Tumblr page  explains the basis for his universe. A place where animals look down on our pathetic human lives as they plot the reclaiming of what is rightfully theirs.

They do not destroy anything – unlike us. They just want their shit back. They really want the humans to chill the hell out. In large cities they would actually like to hang in their bars."

I like this guy.