Thursday, February 25, 2010

Mystical Cemetery Garden Cat Musings

EXT. CEMETERY - NIGHT - EST.

A dark silent night. Not a blade of grass is moving, so still is the air. The only sound that can be heard is the distant rumble of traffic. An occasional horn blows. A train brakes. A car door slams. But in the cemetery, it is silent.

SLOW PAN UPWARD TO THE SKY

It's black velvet, but the stars are barely visible. It is, after all, the big city. A waxing crescent moon splits a corner of the sky.





BACK ON THE GROUND

A black cat walks silently through the blades of grass, slipping around tombstones as if they make up a feline obstacle course which the cat navigates with ease.



PUSH IN ON THE GROUND

Where the cat has walked, eerie blossoms are opening. Roses...



and tulips...



and eerie hybrid flowers of all descriptions



PANNING THE GROUND

But all in deep cemetery night black with just a hint of moonlight.



Is it the work of some magical cat?





Or just a trick played by the moonlight?



PUSH IN ON BLACK CAT

He blinks. Only he knows the answer.



But if you want to figure it out, the answer might be here.


Monday, February 22, 2010

How Long the Bracelet, How High the Moon?


They are right here.

Where Shamrocks Come From

Monday, February 15, 2010

Esmeralda's Excellent Adventure

(in which she did not meet Bill and Ted).

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

How the Calico Cat Got Her Colors

Once a long, long time ago lived a very nice gray cat named Gilda. She was very, very nice.



Her mother shook her head. "Gilda is not as big as her brother George," she remarked. "Whenever I need to make sure something doesn't blow away, George is there to sit on it and help."



"She is not a jumper like her sister Gracie," said her mother.



"And she cannot catch her food in water, like her brother Eugene."



Gilda did not mind the criticism. She did not feel like less of cat. She kept busy, helping the other animals.

When the birds needed a warm nest in the winter, Gilda game them some of her fur.



When the horse was bothered by flies, Gilda was there to brush them away with her tail.



When the dog had no one to chase, Gilda was always happy to help.



While her brothers and sisters caught mice and fish and jumped and climbed and ran and stalked, Gilda kept helping the other animals. "Gilda is not quick or a good jumper like her brothers and sisters," said her mother. "But she is a very nice cat."

One day Gilda grew ill. She had no energy. She did not want to eat. She did not want to drink. She curled into a ball and hoped to heal. Her mother licked her fur. Her brothers and sisters caught her tasty mice.

All the animal friends came by to visit.

Finally, Gilda started to get well again. She ate a little. She drank a little water. She was very weak. And she had lost all her fur. Poor Gilda was a very naked cold little cat.

That's when he friends came to the rescue. Each brought Gilda fur and feathers, in all the colors they had. The dog gave Gilda some white fur from the fluff beneath her tail. The horse gave her dark fur, as dark as night. The birds gave her feathers of deep orange. They wove it all into a coat for Gilda, that covered her from head to tail.



"She is not big like her brother George," they agreed.



"She is not a jumper like her sister Gracie."



"She cannot catch anything in water, like her brother Eugene," they said.



"But she is a nice cat, a sweet cat, and a cat with many colors."



And they it was right that Gilda, who was now a calico cat, was the nicest kitty a cat can be.

Monday, February 8, 2010

Thursday, February 4, 2010

By the Light of the Wolf Moon



According to some Native American tribes of the Northeastern United States, the first full moon of the year is known as the Wolf Moon.



Actually, each full moon has a name. Tribes kept track of the months and seasons by giving a name to each full moon. The name applied to the lunar month that followed, so we are no in the month of the Wolf Moon. A lunar month is 29 days long, so the dates, according to the traditional calendar, shift each year.

The Wolf Moon is called that because, during the cold snowy days, hungry packs of wolves would howl outside the villages.

Since the Wolf Moon deals with two of my favorite themes ~ wolves and moons ~ it was clear that a bracelet was necessary to mark the occasion.



There's a sterling howling wolf at the center



and two wolves carved of opalite flanking him.



There are four full moons: two of pewter



and two of pressed glass.




Between you will find rounds and disks of moonstone, quartz cubes, and opalite ovals.



The wolves on this bracelet aren't really hungry. I gave them itty bitty bags of wolf chow. Honest.


Here are some cool shots of this year's Wolf Moon, which was also the brightest moon we'll see this year.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Panda Earring Giveaway

How? Easy! Watch the panda slide show here on my blog. Then leave a comment and tell me where Tai Shan and Mei Lan are going, and why.



Want to enter twice? Become a follower, or leave a comment that you're a follower. Want to enter three times? Leave a comment on another one of my blog posts.



All answers must be submitted by midnight February 7th.



Good luck!

Tai Shan and Mei Lan Tell All... With a Little Help from Their Friends