Taking the High Ground

We don't have a cat tower; it is surprisingly hard to find a good one in Brooklyn, and shipping costs are too high for ordering over the internet. So we keep a rickety wooden ladder up in the bedroom, and our nimble wards enjoy playing on it. Mr. Beans' favorite game is when he sits on top of the ladder, I swing the mouse on a wire toy near him, he grabs it, puts the mouse in his mouth, then jumps off the ladder, gallops down the hallway and into the living room - my job is to chase him and cry, "where are you going, where are you going?!".

The Beansie game reminds me of one of the funniest scenes Ronnie every witnessed. When Beansie was a very small 5 month old, I had some take-out food that included a rolled-up pita bread. Beansie grabbed the pita in his mouth, and I started chasing him around the apartment because I didn't want him to eat all that white flour. The roll was almost 1/2 his size at that point. With the size perspective, and his relatively small head, he looked like a saber-tooth tiger running with a huge bone. He hid under tables, ran around the back of chairs, and I'm yelling at Ronnie to help block him, but Ronnie was too busy laughing his head off at what I admit was a very comic scene. In the end, Beansie jumped with it into the litter box. Suffice it to say, no pita for me or the Bean.

Aaaanyway, yesterday we had to move the ladder to the kitchen. Beansie somehow got up on the high shelf above the cabinets and was nervous about coming down. We thought he could jump to the ladder, but Lola decided to go for the block. The moment after Beansie made his way down, Lola went up to claim the space and Beansie played on the ladder.

You can just see Shelagh's wonderful cat art calendar in the background of the first and last photos.

A few days of snow in Brooklyn and Bryant Park

I'm still enjoying the snow, but not as much as the dogs. 

This handsome fella skipped the cleared stairs to the right - 

the snow was more fun!

Some don't let 18 inches of snow and resulting slush get in the way of high fashion.

A Swing through Bryant Park at Night

Bryant Park on the way home.  I promise I'll soon go off my usual path to work and back to get capture some other NYC scenes.   I'll be super-inspired next month - I'm going to take a one-day seminar at the International Center of Photography on how to use all the settings on a DSLR.   They promise I'll never use the auto or icon modes again!

The skaters, Bryant Park Hotel and Empire State Building.

People have to told it is OK if their kids laugh at them (sign on left).  These tables have little heaters above and below.

The back of the New York Public Library - the east side of the Park.

The ceiling murals in the library.

There are a few Christmas stalls open in the Park.  These twirl with the slightest breeze.

We still have our Christmas tree up too.  We took off and packed away all the ornaments, but it still looks pretty with just the lights and one cloth ornament at the bottom for Lola.  It will come down this week.  Year-round, I have an odd recurring nightmare where it is March or later, the tree is still up, ornaments are falling off and there is nary a needle on it.  Must be something about my fear of procrastination.

Surprising to see the fountain running in winter.  These usually are turned off at the first sign of a freeze.

The line to get into the skating rink.

Beansie, not a fan of the winter sports or winter weather, uses the light as a heat lamp.  He'd climb into it if he could as you can from all the cat hairs along the bottom rim of the shade.   When he is cold, he makes himself so small - in fact in he long and very tall!  This was taken before we took the ornaments off the tree - I swear, we have done that!

Putting 2010 to Bed

I don't do New Year's resolutions, but I would like to find the time to blog more.  With the new smaller camera, it is so much easier to photograph the small and large wonders I see everyday.

Here are some of the photos from December I wanted to share.  Captions are under each photo because with this amount, it is just easier than trying to get the darn blogger (non-HTML) software spacing issues to work.

The morning after the lunar eclipse.  We couldn't see the eclipse because it was behind the
building at that time (and I was not going out at 2:30am). 

The night of the blizzard - the street lights gave the sky and snow a soft pink-yellow glow.

The night after the storm.  And these streets are so-called emergency roadways
that should get priority plowing. 

A few more ornaments crafted by my mother.  This used to be a whole family,
but the father took off to parts unknown.

This little gingerbread man is less than 2 inches tall.
[edit - oops, just realized this guy is missing a "button" leaving the remaining
looking like something else...]

Senor Rick!  He traveled from Spain to spend Christmas with his loving humans (my in-laws) this
holiday season.  He is quite the trooper and international cat!

Mr. Beans - we got them Christmas gifts, but as usual, the Lord and Taylor
bags are the biggest hit.

Yes, this is the same Mr. Beans. Quite the little man of mystery and disguises.

Lola - her turn in the Lord and Taylor's bag.

A rare night with lights on in the Church across the street.

New Year's Eve day - still some clean snow to be found...

...but not much!

New Year's Eve - the best show and a beautiful way to close 2010.

For some, 2011 is looking much the same, but for me it is already off to a great year -
 I hope it is for all of you too!