Oscar

2004 - July 3, 2012

Oscar passed away yesterday, suddenly.  One minute he was fine and the next he had a seizure and died.  We are all very sad.  He was a funny cat and always managed to make me laugh.  When I made myself a piece of toast this morning, Oscar was not there to beg for a small morsel.  I had to sleep by myself last night.  Oscar was not there to curl up by my feet.  And when I came home from taking him to the vet's, he was not waiting for me at the top of the stairs, waving me in like  'Hello Kitty'.  I will miss him.

Flowers on..What Day is this Anyway?

I had no energy today.  We have had so much rain lately.  I feel dull and sluggish and just not much like doing anything.  The sun tries its best to come out, but with no luck.  So I needed something to get me started today.  I took the 15-minute challenge that whoever is doing in blogland and I made 10 tiny 9-patch blocks.  That's Felix's tail so you can see how small they are.  Thanks for being there for me Felix!

 

 I have also been working on my hexies.  This section will have a lot of yellow flowers in it.  I guess the hope of spring is on my mind.

Even though it has been dark and gloomy, there is lots of colour in my real garden.  Besides the hyacinth I showed you a couple of days ago, I have Scilla Siberica, violets , early tulips, Hellebores, pansies and daffodills.

Oscar is also feeling lazy this morning. 

Sitting in the Dark

It was raining very hard this morning.  I could hear the wind blowing things around out in the backyard.   It was because of all that wind and rain (I guess) that our power went out.  I was composing some emails on my computer when there was a huge 'boom' and everything went black.  It was only around 8:00am.  But without power there is not much I can do. So I cut some little scraps for my OMG quilt. 

And when the power did not come back on, I went back to bed and fell asleep.  Kind of like Oscar here.  But he is faking it.  He's awake. Really he is! He just doesn't want to get up.  Kind of like me. 
But now I am going to do some kind of quilt-related activity.  Otherwise it would be a waste of a day. Wouldn't it?

Yellow Flowers

It's still winter outside, but it is spring in my solarium. I bought these yellow tulips a couple of weeks ago. Yellow tulips are my favourite. They have been keeping my spirits up throughout this messy weather that we have been having - rain, freezing rain, snow, sleet. It's a mess out there.


I have also been working on my hexagons. They are all done by hand, so I didn't need my machine. And that's a good thing because it is in the shop again. Something is wrong with the needle alignment. I hope they can fix it. So here are my yellow flower hexagons.

This the section I have been busy with over the past week or so. I am really glad I have this project to work on because I could get very depressed with the weather, the mess of the reconstruction in my kitchen (my house is covered in dust) and having my machine give up on me.
Oscar likes it too. He is the only one who is not afraid of all the banging and sawing in the kitchen. He's a laid back kind of dude. And he stops to smell the flowers leaves.

"Meow!"

One Flower Wednesday and Other Stuff

I have been busy with my hexagon quilt. Last Friday I showed you the inside of this block. This is all I got done this week. Once the piece gets bigger, it takes longer to go around. Six more hexies are needed for each round. This is where I am at now. Still lots more to go.

It has been snowing every few days since the beginning of the year. My backyard is covered in snow. I took these shots from the doorway. It is too icy today for me to walk outside. I am too afraid of falling. It's dark and gloomy. The snow just keeps on falling - tiny flakes that are almost invisible.

I started a new BOM. I know that I promised myself I wouldn't do that, but I just couldn't resist this cute block. I am going to do it all in black and white.

And speaking of black and white... Here is Oscar. He kept putting his nose into my camera lens until I finally relented and took his photo. Now he is purring! He's so vain.

My internet provider is acting up lately. If it seems that I have not been visiting your blog or not leaving any comments, it is because I only have a few short moments when it works. If this doesn't get better soon I guess I will have to phone the cable company and find out what is going on.

Company's Coming

Day 15 of Blogtoberfest. I am almost half way through.

I baked cookies this morning. Chocolate chip! A friend is coming over for coffee today.

My charity quilt is ready for quilting. Oscar helped me sandwich it. I couldn't have done it without him. Good kitty!

My Name is Oscar

"Meow! Hi blog friends. My name is Oscar and I want to thank all of you for saving my life yesterday! Can you believe it? My owner mom was trying to poison me! If I had eaten any of those raisins which she forced on me, I'd be a goner now. "
"Gosh! people can be so dumb! Don't you agree? Just because I sniff at something doesn't mean I want to eat it. I mean, I am always sniffing my.......oh, oh."

"Oscar, what are you doing?"

"Nothing. Sorry, got to go my friends, Thanks again. I'm meowing off."

Mysteries

I feel as if I am surrounded by mystery today! First off I want to show you the 'Mystery Doll (or preemie) Quilt'. We made these at our last Bee Night. We were told how big to cut the strips of fabric beforehand. Then at Bee Night we were told how to put the strips together, re-cut them and sew again. It took less than 2 hours to sew this top. I quilted it (in the ditch) and put the binding on at home. It measures about 22in. by 22in. I think mine will become a cat quilt. (No mystery there!) The pattern came off the web. You can find it here.

The next mystery is my cat. Why does he always want to share my toast - even raisin toast?

"Go away you silly cat. That's my breakfast. You already had yours. "

"Hmmmm, meow, but it smells so good. Can I just have a little piece. Please, pretty please. Meow!"

"Okay, but will you go away then?"

Another mystery. My other Christmas cactus. I know, it looks just like the first one, but it isn't. This one was sitting on a shelf by the window. When I went to water it today, I noticed a lot of pink on the back. I turned it and.... look at all those flowers! It's a mystery to me how these things keep on blooming over and over again this year.
And here is the mysterious Oscar, napping. He finally did go away and left me to eat my breakfast in peace. I think he sleeps with his eyes open. I can never tell if he has them open or closed.

And lastly, this is called 'feeling like spring' or 'spring fever' and it's really no mystery. All us gardeners get it! Especially if the sun is shining as it is today. I decided to re-plant some of my succulents. It is too early to plant anything outside, but I can 'garden' indoors in the meantime. And that's no mystery!

Edit: I just put a new post on my Art of Fibre blog. You can see it by clicking on the peaches on my sidebar or just go here.

Feeling Sorry for Myself

I guess I'm just feeling sorry for myself right now. I had root canal work done this morning. When I got home I didn't feel too bad and decided to make up this week's Friday Block Party block. I must have been totally drugged when I put the colours together.
Now that I look at the finished block the colours are clashing so badly that I am beginning to feel sick. Combined with the clashes of pain in my jaw, I think I need to take a nap. Oh..... this block is called 'Sickle Variation'. I think I'll call mine 'Sickly Variation'. It is an 8inch block.

Oscar has been lounging in his cat bed all afternoon as I was sewing the block together. Here he is licking his tail. What kind of silly behaviour is this?

No Time

Blogtoberfest day 14. I don't have much time for blogging today. No time either for blog reading or following of the Blogger's Quilt Festival. I have a doctor's appointment this afternoon. Also I am still busy quilting the two quilts I sandwiched yesterday. Mimi is nowhere to be found. So Oscar is helping me today.

Strike Outs and Underlines

I promised a few people that I would do a little tutorial on strike outs. Underlining something is done in a very similar way, so I will show you how to do that too. If you want bold or italics you just have to click on the 'b' or 'i', but if you want to cross something out, you have to give blogger a command.

When you compose a new post, blogger takes you into 'Compose' automatically. But if you look up at the right hand corner of the box, you will also see a box called, 'Edit Html', This is the box you will use to cross something out.

Pretend that you have a list of things you want to finish before the end of the month. As you complete them, you want to cross them out. Type a 'less than sign' (this is a <> sign. Now type what you want to cross out. Then type a less than sign (<), a backslash (this is a /) followed by a 'greater than sign' (>). I have tried it several times and I found that I could just type those things into my 'Compose' section and then click on the 'Edit Html 'box and back to 'Compose' and the word or words were crossed out. Actually now that I have been playing with it for awhile I have discovered that you don't even have to go to the "Edit Html' box. You can just type everything, command and all, in your 'Compose' mode and blogger will do the rest.

But I have also found that it will cross things out even if I just add a photo or post it. This is making it very difficult to show you exactly what to do. Every time I type the command it crosses everything out, but the command can only be seen in the 'Edit Html' mode. So I am going to direct you to a site I found on Blogger. I have seen them use the word 'strike', but it worked just as well with only an 's' or the word, 'del' instead of 'strike'. Try it and let me know if it worked for you.

Notice that there is a backslash at the end of the command. This tells the computer when to stop the command. If your whole post is crossed out, you may have forgotten to put in the backslash.

To underline something you have to do the same thing. Use a similar command, only change the 's' to a 'u' for underline. Don't forget the backslash at the end or everything will be underlined.

I hope this helps everyone who wants to learn how to do cross outs and underlines. Look! Even Oscar got into the action! Without those little crossed paws I probably would never have figured it out!

Start of Another Nine Patch

It was a dark, rainy day here in TO! I had to turn all the lights on in order to see what I was eating for breakfast. I decided to spend the day in my sewing room, putting the borders onto my nine patch from the Nine-Patch Quilt Along. It is finished now, but I will not be able to photograph it until tomorrow. It turned out quite big! I need help to hold it up and photograph it.

So in the meantime, I should have gone through my UFOs and picked out something else to finish, but NO! I did not! I actually started another Quilt Along! Same place, different fabrics. I have decided to do this one in Christmas fabrics. I will make it a bit smaller than the first one - maybe just a lap size quilt.

I didn't just start this today. I have been working on it for about a week now as soon as I learned that Crazy Mom was doing another quilt along I am only doing a couple of blocks a day and I have 14 blocks done. When I placed them on my design floor Oscar immediately took possession! I think he likes them!

"Purrrrr! Yes! Love them! Thank you for making these especially for me! Meow!"

"Actually Oscar. they are not for you. But I am pleased that you approve."


Then I asked him nicely to get off. But he wouldn't. So I left the blocks on the floor and continued to sew another border strip onto the first quilt top. When I came back into the solarium awhile later, Mimi had taken possession.

"Thanks for making these for me! Meow! I love rolling on them. They are so pretty. Christmas stuff is my favourite! Meow!"

Mimi is not telling the truth. She actually doesn't care one bit about Christmas or any other celebration for that matter. She just loves to roll around on quilt blocks! Go figure!

Feeling Better

I think I can finally say that I am feeling better. This cold lasted a long time - over a week. Not only did I blow my brains out and cough up a lung, but I also had no energy. Sewing was a waste of time. I could not follow a pattern. But I did find a very easy quilt pattern on Bee Square Fabrics. It was this pattern by Crazy Mom Quilts. The whole thing is done in long strips which were then cut and sewn back together. I started it sometime last week, but made the mistake of placing it on my 'design floor' and forgetting about it. When I got up the next morning this is what I found!

I am sure this is Mimi's handiwork! She just loves to pounce on my blocks and push them around. She also likes to hide under them if they have been sewn together into strips. But I could not get her to confess! No way! Oscar pleaded innocent too. He says he just likes to sit on anything I make. Open your eyes, Oscar! I want to see if you are telling the truth!


I redid my 'design floor' and sewed some of the blocks together, but I did not have the energy to finish the quilt. Another UFO! Oh, well.

I did finish the Friday Block Party block for this week. It's called the Queen's X. It is another 10-inch block, so I did it in batiks. This one was an easy block, but with my lack of energy it took me three days to complete!

Foto Friday!

Oscar

It's me, Oscar!

To All of My Blog-Reading Friends!

Meow! It's me, Oscar, here! Aren't I unbelievably adorable? Thank you all for being so patient while my owner gets her act together! I know that you are all waiting anxiously for another post from her. But it seems that she is having some medical problems or something. Her projects just sit here and aren't being finished! Oh, well, as long as my food dish stays filled and my littler box is cleaned daily, I don't have any complaints! I also like a little scratch behind my ears every once in awhile. Meow! And I heard her say that she is going to buy me some cat grass the next time she goes shopping. Gotta love that! So in appreciation I will write a blog or two in her absence. Talk to you later! Meow! Love, Oscar

Pedicure, Anyone?

The First Day of Autumn!

Oscar is enjoying those last warm rays of sunshine for this year. Isn't he cute?

Hypnosis?

Look Into My Eyes!

You are getting sleepy! You will obey me! You will buy me Fancy Feast grilled chicken! Just go! Do it now, and don't ask any question! I, Oscar the Magnificent, have some words of wisdom for you.

"Never let a day go by without a dream"

I have a dream! It's a good one! Meow!
This is a photo of me. I found it in my owner's Zoom Browser. Good thing I know how to use a computer! Cute, aren't I? See that hand, scratching those hard to reach areas at the back of my neck? Purrrr! Well, that hand belongs to one of the Japanese students who came to stay with us a few years ago. And guess what? More students are coming this summer! I can hardly wait! More scratching and patting! Oh, boy! I can't wait to sleep on their beds! Well, I can dream can't I? Meow!!!
Purrrrrrrrrr! Love, Oscar

I'm on Top of Things!!

Okay! Okay! Now for my inspirational, philosophical and intellectual views of life! Has anyone got any catnip? Can have cheeseburger please? Cute, eh? I got that from the Meme lolcat website! What? No catnip or cheeseburgers? Okay, I will get on with things then!
Hmmm? You want to know the meaning of life? You are asking me, Oscar, the great philosophical guru? Well, you have come to the right cat! Okay, let me think. I guess I will have to come up with nine of them. Meanings that is. After all, cats have nine lives! Good thing I can count. I can count, can't I?

Number 1 - EATING!
A cat is nothing without food! And don't give me any of that cheap stuff! I want the $40 a bag kind from that gourmet place. Yummy!

Number 2 - NAPPING!
Never miss an opportunity to take a nap! Isn't that right Mimi? Okay! She's napping at the moment!

Number 3 - CHASING!
I know! I know! I look like a fool, chasing those silly things on a piece of string or that stupid laser light. And I see you laugh when I chase my tail! But hey! It's good exercise! You could all take a lesson from me! And anyway, what else am I supposed to chase? I am not allowed to go outside!

Number 4 - INSPECTING!
Every nook and cranny! I need to know where everything is. And when my owner brings something new into the house, it is my duty to check it out! Nothing gets past me! And of course, if she spreads a quilt out somewhere, I am the first to get up on it and check it out. Inspecting is a very serious business! This is what cats do best! No one is as good a judge of a quilt as a cat is! And besides, they are fun to nap on!

Number 5 - WATCHING!
Don't laugh! Watching squirrels and birds is the best thing in life! Who can pass up an opportunity like that? Those little critters are the most delicious, I mean, most fun things to watch! I like to sit where I have a nice overview of everything.

Number 6 - SCRATCHING!
Not myself, dummy! Scratching furniture! Sharpening my claws on chairs and couches. That's what is important! That's life! And don't remind me that some idiot had me de-clawed! It's not important - much! I still like to scratch things. And dig in the dirt of your potted plants. That's pure Ecstasy!

Number 7 - POOPING!
That's the end result of eating! But I'll bet you knew that! I know how eager you are to clean out my litter box each morning. So we both have our pleasures!

Number 8 - BEING CUTE!
I know you love me, unconditionally! But when I practice my cutesy poses, you just melt. Then whatever I have done wrong (according to you) like scratching, chasing, pooping, digging or eating, will seem so insignificant! It is my way of reaching your heart! That's life!

Number 9 - OH, AND DID I MENTION EATING?
Oh, I did! Well feed me already. I can't wait forever! Look at me. I'm wasting away!

And that's Life According to Oscar!

**************************************************************************

Oh, Oscar! You moron! You forgot LICKING! Licking oneself, that is! Not the kind of licking you guys do to each other! Yuck! But maybe that is fun for you! Licking is the most important thing that a cat can do! Nothing is more satisfying than spending time in self cleaning and preening! It calms the nerves and soothes the soul. And it keeps us clean! Just try it sometime! Or would you rather be put into a tub of water? Meow! Mimi

Oscar get mad

Don't piss me off, ya hear!

I'm not hot and I don't want to be called a 'pussy'!

Oscar