Friday 17 October 2008

Basil

Basil hasn't been on this blog much lately so I thought I should rectify that by writing a post about him.

As he gets older he is becoming, in almost every way, an even better cat than he was before. There is an exception and that is his regrettable tendency to pick on Alby and generally be horrible to other cats especially poor Mitzi who lives over the back fence, and even Pudd, who is dumb as a stick and never harmed anyone, usually gets a smack or two in the morning while they are all hanging around waiting for the cat food to descend.

Anger management issues aside Basil is a very good cat indeed. Yesterday we inadvertently left the house without opening the cat door and letting them all outside for the day and after work we we went straight to the movies (to see the new Coen Brothers film, about the merits of which it is enough to know that Jim Schembri likes it). On unlocking the back door at about ten o'clock, I saw Basil dash outside, running for a patch of dirt to piddle in, letting out only the faintest little squeak of pained sorrow as he passed by. He had held on all that time - since the afternoon of the day before in fact - what a legend. (The other cats held on as well.)



12 comments:

redambition said...

<3 what a wonderful kitty.

please give him some love from me. i am catless at the moment and missing kitty smooshy hugs.

Tim said...

My cat would have gone in the sink.

Shame about the Coen flick. I still want to see it. Jim Schembri says nasty things about cats in this week's Green Guide.

Kerryn Goldsworthy said...

I know this has been commented on before and is the obvs point of this photo, but I just have to express my admiration of the way Basil matches the decor and the cleverness with which you/Dorian have/has captured said match.

lucy tartan said...

I gave him a hug and a pat for you Red.

Tim they usually aren't so anally retentive...and I don't want to know what Jim S. said that was mean about cats.

Pav, yes, Alexis noted that matchingness too - in relation to the couch which is also stripey. We did consider getting a white wool rug for the floor instead of this striped one & decided this one would be a better furball camouflager, but apart from that I swear it never crossed my mind to decorate to match the cat. The rug matches the couch and we found the couch in the street.


Although I did make a summer dress a couple of weeks ago that is black & white spotty & thus perfect for not showing all the different shades of cat hair.

It's the cat from over the back who really matches the furniture - she's tabby stripes & white with random patches of ginger.

Ampersand Duck said...

Gosh, Basil's bladder, we salute you [stands]. And the others. I'm sure mine would have found a suitably spiteful place to vent, so to speak.

GS said...

Princess Prissy Paws always favoured the shower as her indoor toilet of choice. She tells me she empathises with Basil's "anger managment" issues, echoing her own story of home invasion of foreign cats who have previously bonded. In fact she'd like to teach Baz a few of her own tactics of revenge - in particular blocking the cat door on the opposite side to where the interloper cat wishes to go. As a zen master she can do this for hours.

lucy tartan said...

He does that too! To Alby especially, who is so terrorised by this that he usually won't use the cat door after dark just in case. Baz and Princess PP could actually be related. It's not impossible.

Anonymous said...

to see the new Coen Brothers film, about the merits of which it is enough to know that Jim Schembri likes it...

I take it that means "bad" :-)

Although SO and I will go and see any movie made by te Coens - Coens Sluts R us.

Maggie is the Mrs Goodbladder of our household, however long she is kept in for she won't piss or shit anywhere. Ollie, on the other hand...!

Kerryn Goldsworthy said...

Helen, I too am a Coen Slut so enjoyed it in spite of everything, but agree that it is not one of their best. I love their vision of America, black tho it be, and it is carried on in this one. And Malkovich has some sublime moments.

In retrospect I think adapting No Country For Old Men was perfect for the Coens: it embraced their signature theme of feral money being chased by assorted desperadoes and nutters, but gave them a different kind of gravitas and a different kind of landscape to work with.

Drewzel said...

Hurrah for Super Bladder Cat! Bless him.

Ann ODyne said...

A gift for dear Baz

Mel said...

Tonight for no good reason at all I was researching different patterns of cat coats on Wikipedia and so feel qualified to identify Basil as a bicolour classic tabby with the mask-and-mantle pattern.