Happiness Is A Warm Cat

This is Basil's favorite spot during the winter. All warm and toasty by the fire.

These days of crackling fires and cups of hot cocoa are drawing to a close. Temperatures are up, the snow is melting, the streets are clear of ice. Spring is just around the corner, and soon Basil will find a new favorite spot in a cool, shady place.

Wouldn't you just know it... Halfway through this post, I get up to look out the window and find it's snowing again. Big fat flakes. Looks like winter isn't over yet.

Go on and curl up by the fire, Basil. I'll be outside shoveling.

Tree Cat

What is it about cats and Christmas trees?

Within seconds of setting up the tree in our family room, our cat Basil had firmly planted himself underneath it. And there he sits most of the day.

I don't know what he's doing. Waiting for Santa Claus? Maybe he thinks he's in the great outdoors and is just enjoying the fresh air and nature. Apparently he hasn't figured out that our tree is a fake one.

When Basil was a kitten, we would set up a real tree each Christmas and he would chew on the branches. His litterbox was always very interesting that time of year, with bits of green needles and silver tinsel mixed together in his waste.

The kids think he's cute, sitting there under the tree and stubbornly refusing to come out for anything but his own basic needs. I suspect that he believes the tree is a present for him, one big pine-scented cat toy that we've placed in the house solely for his amusement.