Sidelined

Life and circumstance have conspired against me and I haven’t shot anything except pictures of my cats since the weekend in Seattle.  It feels strange.  As if my routine has been disrupted.  I’m not very out of sorts about it, but I am off kilter if you know what I mean.  I’m going to try to get out tomorrow, but until then here are some pictures of cats –

This one is Zaphod Beeblebrox the Nothingth.  My original Orange Menace.  In this photo he was less than a year old.  It was taken in 1988 on T-max film with my OM-1n and the standard Zuiko 50mm lens.  The negative is badly scratched unfortunately and I’m not really good enough with retouching to deal with it.  Someday maybe I will be –

Zaphod looked like this as an adult.  He was seriously gorgeous and had a very weird habit of climbing up onto the porch roof which was just below my bedroom window, and throwing himself at the screen until I let him in.  At midnight it was a treat I tell you.  This one dates from 1990 and was shot on Kodak Gold 200 with either the OM-1N or the OM-G and probably the Zuiko 65-200 f4 zoom.

This next one is Pippen, one of my mother’s cats also now deceased.  She was a sweetie pie and my mom misses her intensely.  Obviously she’s a kitten in this one and the timing of this shot couldn’t have been better.  I think it was the OM-1N again with possibly the Zuiko 135 f2.8, but I’m not entirely sure.  The film is Agfa XRS 400 and the shot dates to 1991.  That stool has been painted more colors than a rainbow, but I’m glad it was in it’s chipped, red glory here.

Now we shall move to the land of the living.  These are my three boys –

This is Chuck (aka The Orange Menace) when he was a robust young man of 3.  It was 1995 and a really hot summer day and he took advantage of some shade under the deck so he could pant and cool down.  I shot this with Fuji Reala with probably the OM-1N and the Zuiko 50mm f1.8.

This is a more recent picture (late 2009) of the old boy who will be 18 in August.  He’s slowed down considerably in his old age and has lost a great deal of his muscle mass, but retains his fiery color and is healthy if somewhat rickety.  He’s become somewhat cuddly, too.  Never before was he a lap cat.

This next one is Thomas, a rescue who came to us in 2005 at about age 6 and missing most of his teeth due to granuloma, the same condition that makes him so skinny although you can’t tell under all that fur.  He’s very cuddly, gentle and somewhat drooly.  We almost didn’t get him because someone put a hold on him at the shelter.  Bummed we went home empty-handed, but a few days later I got a call asking if I still wanted him.  Of course I did and went up immediately to take him home.  He’s mostly or all Maine Coon and has the most intricate coloring – grays, black, reddish brown, tan and white.  He’s a weird little addition.

And last, but not least – Larry.  Another rescue we chose from another after we came away with no Thomas from the first.  Larry was approximately 1 1/2 years old when we got him in 2005.  He’s got his full arsenal of teeth and claws and is a muscular cat with a penchant for pillows and fleece blankets.  He talks a mile a minute and spars with Thomas every morning and afternoon.  Chuck hates him like poison, but we’re pretty glad to have him.

Well, that’s the current crew and some of the old crew.  Such unique little personalities each and every one of them.