Looking Forward To Spring: Trixie's Caturday Art and Sunday Selfie

Hallo again, Effurrybody!

We are back to taking turns again for the weekend blog hops - the Caturday Art blog hop hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie, and the Sunday Selfies blog hop hosted by the Predictably Unpredictable Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet.

So, this week it is My turn - Queen Trixie, Furrst of My Name, Empurress of Jerusalem, Israel and the Entire Middle East, Queen of Hearts, Guardian of the Boudoir, Alpha Kitty Extraordinaire.

Since tomorrow, March 21st, is the furrst day of Spring, and since we will be putting the clocks forward the night between Fursday the 24th and Furriday the 25th, We have chosen a Spring-like theme for Our Caturday Art, using LunaPic's Flowers art effect, at 80%:

We even made a jigsaw puzzle: 

99TrixieAfterPurimFlowers80pc

Now for this week's update on the status of the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus here in Israel. After having a few cases of people infected simultaneously with the Omicron and BA-2 variants, yet another mutation has appeared - an Omicron/BA-2 hybrid! And, unsurprisingly, considering that almost all Social Distancing restrictions were lifted, the transmission rate, which had been falling for the last two months, is now on the rise again and as of this morning, it stands at 1.1, meaning it is spreading again. There were 7,783 confirmed new cases in the past 24 hours - and that's when we had got down to about 5000 new cases daily. Mummy is afraid We will be in lockdown again by Pessach (Passover) if something isn't done fast.

We have heard that other countries are also seeing an upswing in the transmission rate. That being the case, before We start out on the bloggie hops, We want to remind you all, once more, to make sure your Humans continue to take all necessary precautions.

Before we go, here are the blog hop badges:

         

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.

More Smiles and More Tears: Caturday Art and Sunday Selfies

Greetings, Effurrybody

It seems there is no end  to the Sorrows besetting Us. Scarcely had We written last week's blog post in which We bade a sad farewell to Winston, when the furry next day, We learned that yet another beloved kitty, sweet, gentle Dolly from the Brian's Home Blog had been called, most unexpectedly, to the Rainbow Bridge. It was a Terrible Shock to Us, and even more so for her grieving pawrents and her fursibs. We are sure most of you have already been to leave your Condolences, but if not, be sure to do so - and to wish Dolly's Cat Daddy, Terry, a full and swift recovery from the emergency surgery he had the furry next day.

It feels somehow out of place to switch so suddenly to one of the most joyous holidays in the Mewish calendar, but this Thursday (or Friday, for those of us who live in Jerusalem) We celebrate Purr-im, when We are commanded to rejoice and be merry. We usually have a Big Pawty in the Enchanted Forest, as you know, but this year,  We are too sad for that, with all the Bad Things that have been happening this month (which isn't even half way through) so We shall celebrate quietly, en famille.

We are, of course, taking part in the weekend blog hops - the Caturday Art blog hop, hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie. and the Sunday Selfies blog hop, hosted by the Effur Unpredictable Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet.

Since Thursday, as We mentioned, is Purr-im (as well as being St. Patrick's Day, for those of you with the Luck of the Irish), instead of picking just one of Us to repurresent the J-Cats in the bloggie hops, each of Us has contributed a selfie, and We have even consented to appear in Fancy Dress, as is the custom at Purr-im, in the artified versions.

So let's start with Queen Trixie (ladycats furrst, naturally).

Trixie is dressing up this year as Queen Esther. A Queen is always a Queen, after all! She does it with real style, don't you agree - although she flatly refused to let Mummy put a dress on her!

We used LunaPic's Floating art filter, at 45%, for the artification process.

Next up is Caspurr.

Caspurr, who keeps forgetting Miaow Like A Pirate Day until it's too late, decided that this year, he would be sure to make up for it at Purr-im.

So here is a pawtrait of the Pirate King - with a little help from Lunapic's Devilish filter at 70%, overlaid with the Dark filter at 45%.

Last - but by no means least - is Shimshi, Our Little Purrince.

In his capacity as Master of the Queen's Mischiefs, it is Shimshi's job to keep Us all entertained even when We are feeling distinctly Down in the Dumps, rather like the Court Jester in mediaeval European courts. Shimshi took his job description as ins-purr-ation and this (using LunaPic's Brave filter at 65%) is the result:

Next, We must add the bloggie hop badges:

                    

Last, but by no means least, a word or two about the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus. Mummy still thinks the daily number of new cases is too high to get back to normal, but She hopes to resume attendance at the rehearsals of her Caterwauling Club after Purr-im. However, now there is another worry. Last week, a case of polio was discovered in Jerusalem, for the furrst time in about a zillion years. About 98% of the population is vaccinated (including Mummy, of course) but this was a four-year-old whose parents, apparently, refused to have their child vaccinated. 

If it's not one thing, it's another, Mummy says!

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.

Smiles and Tears: Caturday Art and Sunday Selfies

Hallo again, Effurrybody!

This morning we learned, with great sadness, that yet another dear furriend has crossed the Rainbow Bridge - sweet, handsome Winston, of the Stillness at Cherith blog. We knew, of course, that he had been feeling poorly, but We neffur imagined that the End was so close and it was a Terrible Shock to Us, when Mummy turned on her meowbile phone this morning and read her messages, to be greeted with this news. So many anipals and humans have been taken from Us over the past couple of years - and not even by the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus! Mummy also lost two friends from her Caterwauling Club, within the space of less than a month.

May you fly free now, Winston Kitty, free from pain and safe in the Paw of the Great Cat in the Sky. Someday, We shall all meet again. Hugs and kitty kisses and purrs of comfort to your Human, Maggie, and to your sisfur, Miss Emily.

We continue to purray for the Humans and the Critters in the Ukraine. It is so terrible, what is happening there. We have a family connection there, because Mummy's Grandpaw (her Mummy's Daddy) was born there, as was Our Step-Grandma.

So this week, for Our Sunday Selfies, all three of Us posed in Our Tunnel, which bears the colours of the Ukrainian flag:

These are Our entries in the Sunday Selfies Blog Hop, hosted by Our Dear Furriends, the Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet.

For the Caturday Art Blog Hop, hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie,  We are honouring Caspurr, the King of the Tigger-Tabbies, whose 9th birthday is Tomorrow, the 7th of March!

We have issued a Gold Coin and a Postage Stamp in his honour:

Here are the blog hop badges:

                               

We haven't heard so much about the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus pandemic since the invasion of the Ukraine, but We do know that yesterday there were still about 5000 new confirmed cases (on the news this meowning, they gave a figure closer to 6000, but the Ministry of Health dashboard which was supposedly updated this meowning at 9:10 a.m. gives the number at 4,562). We have no idea as to the numbers in the rest of the world and We think it's better to be safe than sorry, so before We set out on the bloggie hops, We would remind you to make sure your Humans continue to take all necessary precautions. 

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.

Caturday Art and Sunday Guest Selfie With Uncle Messi

Hallo again, Effurrybuddies!

This week, We have a furry special guest - Our Woofie Uncle, Messi. 

We have featured Uncle Messi several times before, as you will no doubt remember. His Humans just happen to be Our Grandpaw and Step-Grandma, which is how We happen to have an Uncle who is a Woofie (mol)!

We think Messi is furry handsome. 
Well, naturally, he would be - he is Our Uncle, after all!!!
Mummy thinks he must have some feline DNA, judging by the way he wants to go out into the patio-garden, then in again, then out again, then in again, then out again, then in - effurry few seconds (mol).

Messi is Our Guest Repurresentative in this weekend's bloggie hops - the Caturday Art Blog Hop, hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie, and the Sunday Selfies Blog Hop, hosted by the oh-so deliciously Unpredictable Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet.

Here are the blog hop badges:

            

This week's art was created using LunaPic's Grey filter at 65%, overlaid with Quirky (which We don't believe We have used before) at 70%.

The Israel Museum is currently displaying the rough sketches for this pawtrait, which will eventually be framed and loaned to the National Gallery in London, before setting out on a world tour of the world's greatest art galleries.

Kitties, before We set out on this week's blog hops, We want to ask you to put your paws together and purray for all the furries and other anipals caught up in the fighting in the Ukraine. It is true that many of them have been saved by their Humans, who, when able to take only a few of their Most Precious Possessions with them, left effurrything else so as to leave room for their beloved pets. But many others have been abandoned. We have heard of people staying behind and refusing to run away, so as to look after kitties and woofies in shelters.  And We have also heard that many countries opening their borders to the refugees have waived the requirement for pet passports and other veterinary documentation. That is something, at least - but it is all so furry sad, for the furries and for the Humans alike... 

It almost makes one forget the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus, doesn't it? And, indeed, the many countries now welcoming the Ukrainian refugees are, thankfully, not demanding proof of vaccination! 

However, those of Us living in more peaceful zones need to make sure that Our Humans continue to exercise Due Caution.

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.

An Even Rarer Ussie Than Before: Caturday Art and Sunday Selfies

Hallo there, Effurrybody!

Something has been happening lately, here in the J-Cats' Castle - something Really Good!
We are becoming more Ameownable to the idea of posing together, in an Orderly Fashion, for Our Selfies!

See what We mean?

And then there is this! Trixie even felt safe enough to curl up and turn her back on Caspurr - albeit keeping a weather eye open to make sure he couldn't surprise her and pounce on her from behind.  Of course, in these pics, each Kitty's Territory on the sofa is clearly delineated.

But this one is just the Bestest! See how close We all are to each other!

We are celebrating Our New Togetherness by sharing these Ussies in this weekend's blog hops -  the Caturday Art Blog Hop, hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie  and the Sunday Selfies Blog Hop, hosted by the Deliciously Unpredictable Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet.

For Our Art, We used one of Our favourite filters from LunaPic - Art Nouveau at 75%:

We even made a jigsaw puzzle out of Our Art:

98UssieNouveau75pc

And here are the blog hop badges:

          

We suppose, before starting off on the blog hops,  We should let you know what is going on here with the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus. Well, Mummy wrote about it a few days ago in her Own Bloggie and there is no point in going over it all again. The numbers are continuing to fall and Mummy will no doubt keep readers of her Own Bloggie updated. For example, there are now "only" 138,824 active cases, of whom "only" 832 are seriously ill and of these, "only" 317 in critical condition. Of course, you have to take into account that, over the past seven days, 168 people have died "after contracting the virus". Still, that's a drop of 56.9% from the week before.

Alas, there isn't anything We Felines can do about the Evil Virus, except to remind Our Humans to continue taking all available precautions and not to take Unnecessary Risks.

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.

Be My Valentine: Shimshi's Caturday Art and Sunday Selfie

Hallo there, Effurrybuddies!

I, the Mighty Shimshon (Shimshi for short), aka The Little Purrince, Furrst of My Name, Master of the Queen's Mischiefs and Captain of the Guard, am purroud to repurresent the J-Cats in this weekend's blog-hops, namely: the Caturday Art Blog Hop, hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie, and the Sunday Selfies Blog Hop, hosted by those Predictably Effur-Unpredictable Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet!

Like so many of you, my Selfie this week is a half-snoozy one. In fact, sometimes, I think this bloggie hop could easily be named "Sunday Snoozies" (mol)!

The weather today, here in Israel, is bright and sunny and warmer than it's been for many a long while - which is Excellent News for those kitties planning on attending the Valentine's Day Ball tomorrow.

Now who will be My Valentine? Ah, that is the Question!

In My Caturday Art, you can see how much thought I am giving to the subject, as I lie daydreaming about Love and Romance.

 

But who is She? Who is the Ladycat who will be my Partner at the Ball tomorrow night? 

Let me know in the comments section who you think it could/should be.

Before We start blog-hopping, here are the bloggie-hop badges:

          

Finally, before We set off on Our Blog-hopping Journey, a short update on the status of the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus here in Israel. The infection rate continues to fall, although it is still worryingly high, with 18,020 new confirmed cases since yesterday and a total of more than 299,000 active cases - 1,057 of them seriously ill and 328 of the latter, in critical condition.

We don't know how it is where all Our Furriends live, but We suspect the Situation is not so different, so once again, before We sign off, We would like to remind you to take care of your Humans and make sure they continue to take all the Necessary Precautions to avoid getting sick.

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.

Caspurr's Full Frontal Caturday Art and Sunday Selfie

Hallo there, Effurryone!

Here We are again - that is to say, here I am again, The Courageous Sir Caspurr the Caspicacious,  Furrst of My Name, the Snuggle Bug, Commander-in-Chief of the Impurrial Forces, and King of the Tigger-Tabbies!

I am afraid Mummy got carried away again and - as so often happens - has displayed a total Want of Respect for My Meowdesty (such as it is)!

On the plus side, you get two of Me in this Picture, a back and front view, as it were.

As you will no doubt have guessed, it has fallen to My Lot on this mostly grey and rainy day, to repurresent the J-Cats in the weekend Blog Hops - the Caturday Art Blog Hop, hosted by the Wise and Beautiful Athena and her HuMum, Marie, and the Sunday Selfies Blog Hop, hosted by the Deliciously Unpredictable Kitties Blue and their HuMom, Janet.

Here are their badges:

                          

We had a lot of fun artifying my selfie this week. Furrst of all, We tried no less than three different filters from LunaPic.

Furrst, here is the Starry filter (based on Vincent Van Gogh's famous picture, Starry Night):

This is for Athena, who, last week, expressed a desire to see Our Van Gogh Art.

Next, We had a go with the Candy effect, at 80%. It's lovely and colourful, isn't it? Besides which, Mummy says I am sweeter than Candy. I would say that I agree with her, but I don't like blowing my own Trumpet.

Our final piece from LunaPic used the Grey filter, overlaid with the Floating effect at 40%:

This last one is Mummy's purrsonal favourite.

The National Pawtrait Gallery liked all three of them so much, they decided to display them all:

It gets even better, Dear Anipals. The Editor of Cosmeowpawlitan magazine was so struck by these images, she sent over a reporter to interview Me for the next edition.

It will be available at all Mewsagents' shops later this week. Make sure to reserve your copy!

And now for the Evil Mutant Ninja Coronavirus. This week, the Green Pass was mostly scrapped. We don't know why. Although the infection rate is falling, it's still high - and the number of COVID-related deaths is actually rising. Of course - Humans have neffur been known for their Logic, have they?

So it's up to you to keep your Bipeds on the Straight and Narrow and make sure they continue to take all the sensible and necessary precautions. 

Be well. Be safe. We love you all.