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George Orwell - Coming Up for Air
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Books
- Hits: 1554
I like Orwell. He's bleak, bleak as all out, but live in Britain any length of time and you'll know where he's coming from.
In this he takes the character of George Bowling, an overweight self-satisfied insurance agent who recalls the Britain of his youth and comes up with some occasionally sage observations on the turnings of modern society. There are forshadowings of themes that he expounds upon in "1984". Not essential Orwell, but good. Also worth noting are the feelings of displacement, the world of Bowling's childhood being swiftly destroyed by "progress" and the War. Themes still current, more current even, today...
But I've had enough, they're good reads but a trifle depressing. I've had it in my head (where did it come from, I wonder?) to read "Madame Bovary" by Flaubert, thought I had it on my shelves, searched for it and couldn't find it, but then by happy circumstance I stumbled upon an Everyman edition (red Moroccan Leather, although I'm suspicious of the translation...) at a thrift shop down the street.
Which will be the next review....
Living with a Sociopath
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Miscellany
- Hits: 2039
There was the sparrow that Princess brought in. And now there's this.
In the backyard, beneath the crabapple tree, a dismembered robin. Now it could be a few things. Pumpkin for example, although it would be an incompetent robin that flew into his mouth and worked his jaws for him, as that's the only way he could hope to ever catch a bird.
It could have been something it ate, although I wasn't keen to do an autopsy, wasps burrowing into the open wounds upon it's chest. Or old age. There's a rabbit I've seen lurking in the garden, possibly it was that...
Or there's Princess.
I can't prove it was her, but after the sparrow there's a hint of suspicion cast upon her, that maybe, just maybe, I'm living with a sociopath.
Cats Outside, The Love of a Dog
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Miscellany
- Hits: 2290
The Cats are outside and for the moment there's some peace and quiet. Well, not entirely quiet, the rock tumblers are swishing like a washing machine on full, but it's as quiet as it's been.
Pumpkin has chased a squirrel up a tree and is patiently waiting for it to come down, wondering stupidly why the squirrel doesn't want to play, the squirrel chiding him from a branch just above his head.
He's a nightmare. At night, surreptitiously slipping into my bedroom, checking to make sure the other cat is nowhere near, then leaping upon my bed. He's gotten it so he can usually get up in 1 jump now. And he starts the headbutting for attention, so you reach out to pet him and he begins to sprawl this way and that, offering better opportunities to pet him, he's so obviously, unashamedly happy, ecstatic even, licking your hand, your face, worse than a dog until you turn away in disgust and he crawls over you and wants to start again, "Isn't this the best?" he's thinking, "Just you and me and you can pet me as much as you want....". 2 weeks until they're back and they can rescue me from their pet. It's a question of dispositions, mine prefers the restrained affections of my cat, the civilized petting and a scratch under the chin, not the slavering, undying love of a half-witted eunuch. In the morning I catch him half in the litter box, only his back half, he won't all fit, more jumbo turds, the other cat, my cat, didn't in a week fill the litter box as full as he can in a single morning.
He's come back inside. Chasing the squirrel has tired him out, probably it's time for some cat food (because there's no way he'll ever catch a meal for himself...), maybe I want to pet him and he'll just check on that before having another giant turd.....
2 weeks.
Cats
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- Written by: Rod Boyle
- Category: Miscellany
- Hits: 2157
It's not so tough, getting used to a cat. Mind you, there are a few idiosyncracies worth observing, doubtless familiar to any cat owner. Like being led on tours of the litter box and food dish, the mewing complaints that indicate the litter box is full, the dish is full of dry food, the water could be a bit cooler....
And there's the tribute. The other day, the front door open so the cat can let herself in and out, I step out of the office and discover a sparrow sitting quietly on the floor, without moving, the cat within a couple of feet, seemingly ignoring it while licking it's paws.
I'm a bit naive, I know that other cats bring their owners tributes of birds or mice, but I'd hoped mine would be a bit different. I sort of see it more as a partnership. So I speculate that the sparrow must have flown into the house of it's own accord and landed on the living room floor, the cat was merely taking the liberty of guarding it. I pick the sparrow up to return it to the great outdoors, cat watches me with some interest, there appears to be nothing wrong with the sparrow so I set it on a ledge, later it disappears.
Watching from the front porch I can see another sparrow bringing food to a little cleft behind a concrete block below the perch, the little sparrow comes out and allows herself to be fed, she's set up a ground level nest below my front porch.
I'm cautious about letting the cat out now. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't do anything so dastardly as hunt for her dinner, still it's better to be safe. But she slips out nonetheless, and alerted by a squawking din outside I find her slinking up the steps, the sparrow gingerly held in her mouth, and while I'd like to think she thinks it's hurt and is bringing it to me for repair there's a part of me that suspects her of ulterior motives.
I once again free the bird, who promptly flies off to find a new hiding spot, and sternly lecture the cat who pays attention with that indifferent nonchalance of which cats are the master.
Now I've had my cat, what, 2 weeks? So I'm a bit of an expert, and when my daughter goes to leave on her summer vacation with her mother I promise to look after her cat. I know her cat,"Pumpkin" it's aptly called, weighing in at slightly more than 20 lbs it's a giant, easygoing, loveable ball of fur that was neutered and declawed by it's previous owners. Very social, they're concerned that Pumpkin won't handle their absence so well, and so I take him in, and now have a pride of cats....
If that's what they're called.
Now Pumpkin is a special cat. By special I mean in the same way that some people are special. Not just because he's been neutered and declawed and he's clinically grotesquely obese, but there's something about him that suggests "simpleton". In perennially good humour, or perhaps I'm anthromorphizing, the way that we think that fat people must be jolly, but it seems Pumpkins main interests and pleasures in life are eating and being petted. He's a high maintenance cat. My cat, by which I really mean the cat that lives here, is pretty normal, only mewing when she wants me to look into things like the dry food/wet food situation. She will occasionally sit near me and allow herself to be petted, and attempt to trip me up if she thinks I've overlooked her feeding. But Pumpkin is another story, he'll mew, sprawl on the floor and roll with his legs splayed, lick you, head butt you, anything to get some attention. Pumpkin is a high maintenance cat.
And so Pumpkin and my cat (whom I call alternately "Cat" or "Bad Cat", depending on the situation. When the kids are around we call it
"Princess", but that's drab convention. She answers to cat, or as much as any cat answers to anybody...) have found themselves living together for the past few days, and are in a sort of "adjustment period". At first they hiss, spit and wail at one another, Pumpkin going into insane rages just looking at my cat, sitting there with eyes wide open and roaring. He looks insane. His short hair, perpetually matted in some places, like an orange oversized overcoat 6 sizes too big for him, small head, green eyes wide open, mouth gaping, hissing and screaming obscenities at my cat. This is a side of him I haven't seen before.
My cat, ears back, lying low, eyes narrowed, hisses and claws in return. My cat hasn't been declawed.
The first day they sit for hours watching one another, neither one of them moving, occasionally hissing, spitting, wailing....the can't seem to get closer than 10 feet. Pumpkin would have it that he's the master. If he pushes it he'll find he's in for a surprise.
It's been now 4 days. There are few signs they are getting on better together. The maximum distance they can tolerate one another is now about 4 feet. They've developed a few games they play with one another, Cat goes outside, Pumpkin guards the door so that Cat can't get back in. Cat guards food dish, Pumpkin has to wait until Cat goes outside. Pumpkin guards litter box, Cat doesn't care because she'd rather go outside. (Pumpkin, as you would imagine from his size, fills a litter box in a single squatting.) Pumpkin has staked the living room, but will explore the others when Cat is outside. Cat has staked the office and the kitchen. The kids room is so far unclaimed, my bedroom (at night) is claimed by Pumpkin (sneaking in, stealthily checking that Cat isn't around, before attempting to leap on the bed. Several attempts later he finally makes it up and tries, in true dog style, to cuddle up....).
By the time my daughter finishes her vacation they just might be getting along...
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