“Thou art the Great Cat, the avenger of the gods, and the judge of words, and the president of the sovereign chiefs and the governor of the holy Circle; thou art indeed the Great Cat.” – Inscription on the Royal Tombs at Thebes.
Portrait of an adolescent short-haired tabby Cat
Portrait: Adolescent Short-haired Tabby Cat | Medium: Pen & Ink | Size: 8 inches x 10 inches
Cats have always been considered mysterious by humans. They’ve always mesmerized humans by their poise and sophistication. In fact Fernand Mary, in Her Majesty the Cat,describes our perception of cats in a wonderfully apt manner:
“With their qualities of cleanliness, discretion, affection, patience, dignity, and courage, how many of us, I ask you, would be capable of becoming cats?”
Wondering about the short-haired tabby cat? I’ve already blabbed a lot about it here.
Now to share something new. Here’s something that you probably didn’t know about cats.
Cats are great climbers but they really can’t come down with equal aplomb.
The powerful back muscles that can easily manager her body-weight, make the cat an expert climber. The claws in her front paws help her maintain a firm grip on the surface quite like the mountaineers use hooks while climbing up. The claws of her hind feet help her remain steady while going up. Thus, the responsiveness of her muscles coupled with the gripping action of her feet help helps her climb firmly with ease. However, coming down isn’t easy for a cat. The hind-leg muscles and the claws that now curve upwards don’t help at all. So the only way for a cat to come down is with climb down backwards.
Cats that are Celebrities on the Internet
Hamilton the Hipster Cat
Hamilton, the hipster cat, has become an internet celebrity because of its curly mustaches. Hamilton is black and white in color with distinct white mustaches. Hamilton is a celeb-cat with a rags to riches saga. He was an abandoned cat in San Francisco and was up for adoption by Humane Society Silicon Valley. He was adopted by local standup comedian Jay Stowe. Here is the Facebook Page of Hamilton. According to his Facebook Page “Hamilton is a rescue kitty that was born on the 4th of July. He has a real mustache that is better than any mustache that has ever walked this planet.”
Maru The Celebrity Cat from Japan
Maru is a Scottish Fold cat who lives in Japan with his owner. The cat is such an internet sensation that it has several videos to its credit and according to wikipedia they have been viewed more than 800 million times. The videos have both Japanese and English titles. The owner of this cat has never revealed his/her identity but on YouTube goes by the name of Mugumogu. Here is the YouTube link for Maru the cat. The first video is the introductory video itself has registered more than 20 million views.
Maru whose videos have featured in Entertainment Weekly and The New York Times, appears to have become the darling of the media. He has even done a lot of advertisements in Japan. In 2009 a book and DVD titled “I am Maru” was released in Japan with Japanese and English titles, which was followed by another book release in 2011.
And finally a poem to sum-up this post 🙂
Gentle eyes that see so much,
paws that have the quiet touch,
Purrs to signal “all is well”
and show more love than words could tell.
Graceful movements touched with pride,
a calming presence by our side
A friendship that takes time to grow
Small wonder why we love them so.
(Author Unknown: Source: catquotes.com)
Shafali's Pen & Ink Portrait Art 