Bob (the cat). 15 second videos.

I grew up a dog person. We raised English Springer Spaniels when I was a kid. Burpee was my first dog. What was he named after? I don't know. I never really thought about it. Anyway, that was his name. He was around till I was about 16.

Now our household pets are all Amy's: Cubbie, the Chocolate Lab; Rama and Bob (the cat).

Both cats came from animal control centers. They were lucky. Living with Cubbie, they act like dogs in a way. In the morning they would rather wait by the door to be let out than use the litter box.

Catch them in the right mood and they actually will come if you call them (okay, sometimes). But in the end, they still are cats and usually follow the beat of a different drummer.

Bob (the cat) in 4 acts on a Sunday afternoon:

Part 1. Bob (the cat) sunning by the front step.

Part 2. Bob (the cat) says hi to his (something going on there) friend, Cubbie.

Part 3. Brushing him out while he "air guitars". So much hair. So much cat emotion. You should see him do the Blues.

Part 4. Brushed out, Bob (the cat), the epitome of balance, almost falls off the picnic table. Ha.

The music was excellent Sunday. It was live from the archives weekend. Mostly live performances from appearances on WXRT or local concerts. This noted, I can keep track how long it will be before they do it again.

15 second video. Sunday nothing...

Sunday was warm and Monday, today, was even better. I'm told I should expect freezing weather this weekend. Typical.

I spent most of Sunday taking down my remaining Christmas decorations. Needed a ladder. I was waiting till it got warm. No one wants to see icicle lights hanging from the gutters when Spring approaches. Where did the time go?

While taking down and boxing the lights carefully for next year, I stepped into my next chore. Dog crap. Nothing like melting snow; a beautiful layer of white slowly revealing a forgotten yard and a winter's hidden treasures coming back to view for cleanup. That done, I took a break to watch the Nascar race. Boring video included.

By the way, son Clint went down to Atlanta area where tornadoes hit a couple of weeks ago. I lent him a camera and hope he took some good pictures. Coming soon, maybe... (he went down with someone that might be contracted to help clean up the mess.) There is still a lot of work needed down there.

15 sec vol 1
15 sec vol 2 and 3

15 second videos, vols.2 and 3.

I used to take pictures with an 8mm camera. Two and a half minutes of film time, developing took about a week for five bucks or so. They are in a shoe box somewhere. ??? I later got a VHS tape camera with a two hour capacity. That made for really boring videos. It's nice to tape relatives at family gatherings, but watching them age before your eyes during the taping translated into a long and boring video.

My latest camera has a fifteen second video setting. Quick and easy. You always have a start but most times no ending - just a cut off point. I like it because it is a bookmark of some time in my life. I can see what was happening on a particular day, what the weather was like, how big the pets were - months or years after taking it. And it is short enough most people can endure it.

Volume 1.

With the cold and snow, Cubbie and I haven't played ball for quite some time. Usually I can hit a softball as far as possible (hundreds of feet - ha); he'll chase it down, run back through my legs, turn around, and give it to back to me (through my legs again). Time obviously didn't permit here.

Rama, the cat was watching us. I threw a ball in his direction, almost hitting him. I didn't say anything because I was laughing (alot, but silently). Cats don't fetch. He just wanted to go inside. Ha. (By the way, Amy ran out of gas in the driveway that morning explaining the gas can and other junk on the porch.)

Gone Baby Gone.

Sunday quickie. Gnarles Barkley doing the Femmes. Saw them this summer. On the shores of Lake Michigan with Chicago as a backdrop. Ah, summer.

Gone Baby Gone

Beautiful girl lovely dress
High school smiles oh yes
Beautiful girl lovely dress
Where she is now I can only guess
Cause its gone daddy gone
Your love is gone
Gone daddy gone
The love is gone away
When I see you
Eyes will turn blue
When I see you
Thousand eyes turnin blue
Tell by the way you that you switch and walk
I can see by the way that you baby talk
I can know by the way you treat your man
I can love you baby til its a cryin
Beatiful girl lovely dress
15 smiles oh yes
Beautiful girl lovely dress
Where she is now I can only guess

In case you don't know Gnarles, this was the song of the summer of 2006:

Crazy.