Showing posts with label Cats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cats. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Pilcrow & Dagger vs. McWhiskers, Softpaws and Fluffybottom

Well, the folks over at Pilcrow & Dagger can't say I didn't warn them not to mess with the Law Offices of McWhiskers, Softpaws and Fluffybottom.


An Open Letter To Our Readers

Dear Readers,
On Monday, October 29, 2014 the Pilcrow & Dagger posted on their blog a cease and desist letter received from McWhiskers, Softpaws and Fluffybottom, attorneys for Miss Clio, Rocket J. Squirrel and Jake “The Snake” Plissken. These are the house cats who share their dwelling with Mr. and Mrs. Melissa Snark. Apparently, the cats have a copyright on their correspondence in their lawsuit with the Snarks and were disturbed by the posting of the letters.
The new “investigative” reporter for the Pilcrow & Dagger News, Snoop Cubby, “uncovered” the historic cat lawsuit and the letters written by the representing attorneys for both sides. One of our readers, Crank Curmudgeon, was quick to point out the letters were dated in 2013 yet Mr. Cubby failed to notice. The cease and desist further demonstrates the lack of investigation that occurred.

Sunday, October 12, 2014

"Shameful Lawsuit" My Backside

Pilcrow and Dagger Sunday paper 10-12-2014 has reported on my family's legal dispute with our family cats under the title "Shameful Lawsuit Brought". Reporter Snoop Cubby writes:

"In this exclusive report, seen only here and on the Pilcrow & Dagger blog, the uncovered story is about the merciless and cruel disturbances these poor house cats have had to endure at the hands of the Snarks."

To which I respond: Poppycock! 

Mr. Snark and I wish to make an official statement that we are shocked and disturbed that the "newspaper" (and I use the term loosely to include slander sheets) has chosen to drag our family's legal matters through the mud once again.

At the time of the lawsuit, our cats were young and impressionable, and fell under the unscrupulous sway of the ambulance chasing shysters at the Law Offices of McWhiskers, Softpaws and Fluffybottom.

With the reminder of this disagreeable event, Mr. Snark and I will now be forced to restrict the Internet usage of our kittehs until such a time as the fervor has died down.

Thank you,
Melissa Snark

Sunday, June 29, 2014

Snark Bites: Today's Epiphany

I realized this morning that I need a Scottish Fold so I can name him MacGuffin.

Future Snark Cat "MacGuffin"


MacGuffin (a.k.a. McGuffin or maguffin) is a term for a motivating element in a story that is used to drive the plot. It actually serves no further purpose. It won't pop up again later, it won't explain the ending, it won't actually do anything except possibly distract you while you try to figure out its significance. In some cases, it won't even be shown. It is usually a mysterious package/artifact/superweapon that everyone in the story is chasing.  (Quoted from T.V. Tropes.)

Monday, May 19, 2014

The Mystery of the Missing Fish

Miss Bear has a Siamese Fish. It is blue and lives in a bowl in the kitchen. She got it for her birthday last year. She likes it a lot but I take care of it.

On Friday night, Mr. Snark returned to bed following a downstairs excursion. I was sound asleep, so obviously, he thought it was an appropriate time to drop a bomb.

Mr. Snark: "Do you know that the fish isn't in his bowl?"

Instantly, my eyeballs popped wide open. Mind going a million miles an hour, I shook his arm.  "If he's not in his bowl, then where the hell did he go? It's not like he went out for cigarettes and never came back! Are you sure you just didn't miss him?"

Mr. Snark:  Snore

I remained in bed for a couple minutes, having one of those He's-Got-To-Be-Kidding moments. He had to be screwing with me. It sounds like just the sort of thing Mr. Snark would think is funny at 1A.M.  The other possibilities were that he had simply suffered from a bout of MPB or I'd dreamed it.

After failing to return to sleep, I sprang out of bed and dashed downstairs to the kitchen. Upon throwing the overhead lights on, I discovered the following at the scene of the crime:
  • an empty fishbowl
  • a splash of water
  • a torn aquatic plant leaf beside the bowl
  • a glass bead from the bowl on the tile.

The house was locked and the Snark boys were away for a sleepover. Miss Clio had refused to come inside, leaving the following residents inside the premises: Mr. Snark, Miss Bear, myself, Jake the Snake, and Bolt (the new kitten).

I'm going to assume that no human ingested Miss Bear's fish as a quick midnight snack.  And the new kitten is too small to jump up onto the counter where the bowl was placed.  Either a cat ate him or an unknown fishnapper broke into our home without any sign of forced entry and abducted him.

My primary suspect at this time:

The empty bowl is still sitting on the counter. I still haven't told Miss Bear. My options seem to be going down to the pet store and buying a new fish or continuing to pretend to feed an invisible fish. What do you think I should do?

Be sure to leave a comment and enter my May Giveaway for A CAT'S TALE!


Tour giveaway details:  Shipping restricted to the continental United States.

(1)          Jewels of the Moon Pendant for Clairvoyance and Psychic Ability by Nordic Lights Collection by Maelstrom Odssonn


a Rafflecopter giveaway






"With a starting phrase 'somewhere between Virginia and California'; you know you are in for a treat with A Cat's Tale. Jared is so much fun, a true Alpha male who knows when to keep his Alpha tendencies down and hidden." 
~ Just Erotic Romance Reviews

Alpha werewolf, Jared Kohl, wakes up in a vampire’s dungeon, swearing revenge upon the wily Siamese werecat who lured him there with her sultry lips and the sweetest tail. To escape his undead captor, all he has to do is seduce the skittish puss and show her that trust is often a hot and hard lesson to learn.

Enslaved feline shifter, Josephine Young, has learned the hard way not to believe in anything or anyone—not men, not love, and certainly not the blood-sucking mistress who tossed her into the cage with the hungry beast she’d betrayed. But Josephine does what she must to survive, including tempting the dominant werewolf to give her more than promises.

Imprisoned for their blood, Jared and Josephine fight for survival and discover a passion that neither can walk away from. Can these two predators survive long enough to prove that cats and dogs can be more than enemies?


Monday, March 10, 2014

The Write Pet: Reducing Stress with Your Cat by Melissa Snark #Giveaway


Cats have been an important part of my life since I was four and my parents gave me a white kitten with blue eyes that I aptly dubbed "Snowball". I adored that cat. He was so mellow and good-natured that he tolerated being dressed in baby doll clothes. He would even nap in the cradle in my playroom. Sadly, Snowball lived a short life and was killed by a car. 

I didn't have another cat until I turned eight and a feral mother cat had kittens in our backyard. I adopted a female Calico kitten who survived many years and moved with us from California to Arizona. Taffy never entirely overcame her feral origins. She was always reserved and standoffish.

In college, I adopted a trio of kitties who moved from Arizona back to California with me. As I entered my late-thirties, my college kitties started to pass away of health problems associated with old age. Hyperthyroidism claimed Sabbath, a wonderful black cat who was very outgoing and friendly. Dante and Piggy both lived to over twenty but eventually they also crossed over the rainbow bridge.

Mr. Snark and I are both cat people. Another of the many shared characteristics that make us compatible.  So we have adopted cats together and these felines are active and important members of our family. They are bright, energetic and litigious.

Cat Therapy versus Therapy Cat

My ex-MIL once gave me a book called Purr-Fect Shiatsu: Tender Touches for the 90's Cat. I still have the book, which offers advice on cat therapy AKA cat massage techniques. Being naive at the time, I actually tried it out on Sabbath. (He scratched/bit my hand to shreds.)

Age brought wisdom, so I now practice a relaxation technique I call "Owner to Cat Stress Transference" (OCST).  If you wish to try it, then choose a time when you are really stressed out and locate a relaxed cat. It's important to find a sleeping cat that you can sneak up on, so I recommend practicing OCST during the day to maximize your chances of success.

Your therapy cat's posture should look something like this:  

Quietly creep up on the sleeping kitty and carefully tuck your hands beneath his body. Be sure to support both his body and head. Then gently lift him from his bed and cradle him against your chest. Maintain a firm but gentle grip and stroke his head or back. Close your eyes and envision the stress flowing from your body into the cat.  

Complete stress transference from owner to cat may happen quickly or may take some time, depending upon the temperament of the feline. If OCST is performed correctly, then you will feel your body relaxing and experience a sense of inner peace. Conversely, your cat will stiffen and may start to meow or growl.

However, once you set the cat down, he should look like this*:
Voila!  Success!
 
*Put that cat down fast before he scratches the shit outta ya!


This post concludes The Write Pet series. Thank you to all of the wonderful authors who participated and to all of the readers who enjoyed hearing stories about our furry friends.

To celebrate the release of the second edition of A CAT'S TALE, I'm sponsoring a giveaway for a Kindle or PDF copy. Leave a comment along with your email address for a chance to win by the deadline, Monday at midnight PST.

~Melissa 

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Snarkology: 1st Birthday, Halloween Blog Hop & Keeping the Nip Flowing

The State of The Snarkology
10/20/2013 Edition

The Snarkology is a year old. Technically, it was created on 10/19/12 but I'm holding an impromptu birthday party for my blog today over on Facebook starting at 12PM PST. Drop on by and say hi! There will be door prizes and a few party games.

Snarkology Paranormal Blog Hop

Signups close tomorrow for the Snarkology Paranormal Blog Hop. If you've been thinking about joining and haven't yet, do so! Time is running out.

Simply go to my left sidebar and click on the blog hop button. It will take you to the Blog Hop page where there is a signup form at the bottom of the page.

<--The button looks like this!








Oct. 21-26th

Exciting things in store this week! 
  • On Monday, I'm blogging about the mythology and superstitions surrounding vampires.  
  • Tuesday and Wednesday, author Lyndi Alexander is visiting with me, talking about her paranormal romantic suspense novel. And I'll be reviewing: LOVE ME, KISS, ME KILL ME.   
  • Thursday, Book spotlight of Susan C. Muller's THE WITCH ON TWISTED OAK.
  • Friday, Author Kris Brock is giving writing tips on the difference between elements of suspense versus surprise with a book spotlight for  WHISPERS IN THE DARK.
  • Saturday, Author Sarah Bella talks about life's writing lessons and her novel, 14 Days of "Ohs!"

25 Days of Christmas Stories


I still need Christmas Stories for my "25 Days of Christmas Stories" promo to run Dec. 1-25th. Again, the link to the event blog page is in the left sidebar.
 

<--Looks like this!


Leave me a comment to signup or shoot me an email at melissasnark at gmail.com.


 






 

 

Finally, bonus feature! A couple snippets from the Snark Family: 

(Like most writers, I keep a notebook. These are things that made me laugh but haven't evolved into a post.)


The Gym Parking Lot:



As Mr. Snark zips along, Mrs. Snark waves her arms in agitation. "You just passed a perfect front row parking spot!"
Mar. Snark (sneers):  "It was a compact space."
Mr. Snark then heads for the back of the lot in Bumfuk, Egypt.
Mrs. Snark:  "This is a very compact minivan!"
Mr. Snark:  "No it's not."
Mrs. Snark:  "Yes, it is. Have you ever seen the width on a Sienna?"
Mr. Snark:  "It's not width that matters. It's length."
Mrs. Snark (rolls eyes):  "Pffff. Only to a man. Ask any woman and she'll tell you that it's girth that matters."
Mr. Snark: "Are we still talking about parking spaces?"
Mrs. Snark:  "I am. But I know what you're talking about."

On Litigious Kitties:

Mr. Snark walks past an octopus of hyper cats wrestling on the floor.
Mr. Snark:  "Cat nip again?"
Mrs. Snark: "You didn't ask any questions when the cat lawsuit went away. Move along."


Come by the Snarkology's 1st Birthday Party on Facebook!


Monday, June 24, 2013

Meow's Meowifesto


Meow meow murm meow meow mrr mew Meow's Meowifesto.

MEOW
  
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  • Meow meh-meowlogical meow meh meow or meow meh meow mewwn. Meh meow meows, meow MEOW mrroow meow mew mewl mewl mrr meow meow meowlogical meow meh, mrrm meowly meow pmeows meh meow mew meow meow mewy mehful meow mrr cmurms meow meowly meh murm mew mewo mrr meowingly meow meow mehs meow mmeow meow meh murmms meow meowed mew meow meow meh meh mew murmc meh. Meow, meh mew meow meows, mew meow meow meow meh meowable: Meow murm mewl mrr meowmeh mehr meowify meh mew meow murm meow meow meow meow meow meh humans mrr meowy meow meownomy. 
  • Meh mew meow meows mew mew meow meow meow meow mewy mehful. Mrrm mew meow mew meow meow mew meow murm meow murms mew meow mrr meow meow mew meow meow, murm meh meow murm meow meow mewwn meow meow meow meow mew murm meocw meow meow meow. 
  • Murms meow mewl Meowlution meow meh mew meh murm meow. Murm Meowlution meow meh mor meh meow make murm mrr meow: meow meh meow meow or meow meh meow me meow meow meow meowing mew meow meows. Murms mrrr mrrr meow mrr meow. Mrrm murms mew meh meh mew mewy meow mewl mew meows meow mewmew meow murm mew meh murm meow mewl meow meh meow meow meow mew mewl mew me Meowlution meow meh meow meow mrr humans. Murm murm meow meow meow me MEOW Meowlution meow. Mews meow meow meow meow meow meow meow mrrm mew meowomic meow meowlogical meow murm mrr mew meow humans.

MEOW!

MRRR-WOW-WOW

Lady Lion
Rawr
Lady Lion
Meooow
Lady Lion
MROAR

Friday, June 14, 2013

Sad Cat Diary

Shared today in honor of my cats who are also quite sad...

 
One of my fuzzy beasts happens to be a midnight howler. She sits downstairs when the rest of the house is in bed and sings so all will know of her great sorrow.







Monday, April 22, 2013

Cat Physics 599 Graduate Seminar


My lovely and talented wife has posited The Law of Open Portals:

"When presented with any kind of open doorway or window, cats will be irresistibly drawn through the portal whether the feline wishes to go or not. This force does not appear to affect either people or objects, only cats."


Duty Calls by xkcd       

alternative textNow this proposition is clearly false. It is false because there are experiments that contradict it. A sample:
  1. A cat sitting outside a door, apparently waiting anxiously to enter, will in fact stare, nonplussed, into the open portal, feeling no force at all. 
  2. Dogs. They are neither people nor mere objects, but somewhere in between. Nonetheless, dogs only see one direction for any given door: they are drawn to the side they are not supposed to be on. My three year old daughter, who is a person, and who often pretends to be a dog, exhibits the same behavior. Does this mean something?
  3. If true, this proposition would imply that cats oscillate across the threshold of an open door.  Whenever they crossed they would be pulled back. Ok, that happens; but it doesn’t ALWAYS happen. 

Point is, the world is complicated. Which is why pretty much every graduate program has at least one first year course that might have been named “Awful Truths about the World”, had the University been inclined to honesty. Christopher Columbus, genocidal super-villain: graduate topic. Calculus of Variations: graduate topic. You get the idea.

Another of these terrible truths is Murphy’s First Law of Biology.
"Under any given set of environmental conditions an experimental animal behaves as it damn well pleases."

And so it is with cats. It’s just that sometimes, perhaps often, what pleases the cat is messing with your head. So when they dash through that door, it isn’t that they want to be on the other side, per se. It’s that they want to bask in the sweet glow of your consternation, and being on the wrong side of that door is a means to that end. Miss Bear is similarly motivated. In the physics biz, we call this Grand Unification.

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Cat Physics 102

Law of Open Portals:  When presented with any kind of open doorway or window, cats will be irresistibly drawn through the portal whether the feline wishes to go or not. This force does not appear to affect either people or objects, only cats.


Case in point: when the Snark family room sliding glass door opens, all three of the family cats are sucked through into the back yard.  The force at work appears to have the greatest affect on the least massive feline.  

Invariably, Rocket Squirrel, the skinniest of the three cats, goes first. In fact, much like his namesake, Rocket experiences a high rate of acceleration and explodes into the outdoors, departing in a blur to parts unknown.

A short time later, Jake, the second heaviest animal, is pulled through, although usually at a much slow speed. Finally, Clio, the fat gray kitty, is sluggishly sucked outside and deposited on the patio in a furry heap.

Desire to remain inside does not appear to negate the irresistible pull of the open portal. Although all three cats always wind up going through, at least one of the felines winds up sitting on the other side of the patio door.

The cat stares soulfully through the glass with huge emo eyes. How did I get out here?
she seems to ask. Why, oh why, am I outside where there is fresh air and sunshine?

Help me! Please, help me!

Opening the portal a second time usually results in an opposite but not equal reaction. One cat will return, maybe two, but never all three.

An important and notable exception to the Law of Open Portals appears to exist, which Mrs. Snark has not been able to adequately explain.

Miss Bear appears to be affected by the same force as the Snark family cats. When a door is opened, Miss Bear winds up outside.

Logically, I must conclude either Miss Bear is a cat or the law is incomplete.

Monday, April 15, 2013

Cat Physics 101

The laws of physics as applied to cats. Originally posted here.


Law of Cat Inertia
A cat at rest will tend to remain at rest, unless acted upon by some outside force - such as the opening of cat food, or a nearby scurrying mouse.

 
Law of Cat Motion
A cat will move in a straight line, unless there is a really good reason to change direction.


Law of Cat Magnetism
All blue blazers and black sweaters attract cat hair in direct proportion to the darkness of the fabric.

Law of Cat Thermodynamics
Heat flows from a warmer to a cooler body, except in the case of a cat, all heat flows to the cat.


Law of Cat Stretching
A cat will stretch to a distance proportional to the length of the nap just taken.


Law of Cat Sleeping
All cats must sleep with people whenever possible, in a position as uncomfortable for the people involved as is possible for the cat.


Law of Cat Elongation
 A cat can make her body long enough to reach just about any countertop, that has anything remotely interesting on it.


Law of Cat Acceleration
A cat will accelerate at a constant rate, until he gets good and ready to stop.


Law of Dinner Table Attendance
Cats must attend all meals when anything good is served.


Law of Rug Configuration
No rug may remain in its naturally flat state, for very long.


Law of Obedience Resistance
A cat's resistance varies in proportion to a human's desire for her to do something.


First Law of Energy Conservation
Cats know that energy can neither be created nor destroyed and will, therefore, use as little energy as possible.

 
Second Law of Energy Conservation   
Cats also know that energy can only be stored, by a lot of napping.

Law of Refrigerator Observation
If a cat watches a refrigerator long enough, someone will come along and take out something good to eat.


Law of Electric Blanket Attraction
Turn on an electric blanket and a cat will jump into bed at the speed of light.


Law of Random Comfort Seeking
A cat will will always seek, and usually take over, the most comfortable spot in any given room.


Law of Bag / Box Occupancy
All bags and boxes in a given room must contain a cat within the earliest possible nanosecond.


Law of Cat Embarrassment
A cat's irritation rises in direct proportion to her embarrassment times the amount of human laughter.


Law of Milk Consumption
A cat will drink his weight in milk, squared, just to show you he can.


Law of Furniture Replacement
A cat's desire to scratch furniture is directly proportional to the cost of the furniture.


Law of Cat Landing
A cat will always land in the softest place possible.


Law of Fluid Displacement
A cat immersed in milk will displace her own volume, minus the amount of milk consumed.


Law of Cat Disinterest
A cat's interest level will vary in inverse proportion to the amount of effort a human expends in trying to interest him.


Law of Pill Rejection
Any pill given to a cat has the potential energy to reach escape velocity.


Law of Cat Composition
A cat is composed of Matter + Anti-Matter + It Doesn't Matter.


Law of Selective Listening
Although a cat can hear a can of tuna being opened a mile away, she can't hear a simple command three feet away.


Law of Equidistant Separation
All cats in a given room will locate at points equidistant from each other, and equidistant from the center of the room.


Law of Cat Invisibility
Cats think that if they can't see you, then you can't see them.


Law of Space-Time Continuum
Given enough time, a cat will land in just about any space.


Law of Concentration of Mass
A cat's mass increases in direct proportion to the comfort of the lap she occupies.


Law of Cat Probability (Cat's Uncertainty Principle)
It is not possible to predict where a cat actually is, only the probability of where she "might" be.


Law of Cat Obedience
As yet undiscovered.


My research has led to a newly discovered law of cat physics. Tomorrow I will be talking about how the gravity  of open portals affects cats...