Friday, April 3, 2009

The Truth About Bengals....



I promised a little more information on the Bengal Cat, and what I am doing with them, for those of you who might not have been reading all along. I think the first distinction I want to make is between a "Leopard" and an "Asian Leopard Cat". Two different species. An Asian Leopard Cat, also known as ALC is not a Leopard, as we think of them. You cannot breed a domestic cat to a Leopard (Or a tiger or a Lion). These ALC are very close to Domestic Cats, and can inter-breed.



Bengals are descended, some directly as in Magic, from the ALC. I am not sure I want to debate the right or wrong of people having bred Bengals in the first place. I know they are cats, even the Early Generation, or EG Bengals, so for that matter is the ALC, albeit a wild one. My Concern is for the ones who need help NOW. The picture above is King Lear, one of my Fosters.



Here is Queen Mab, another foster, and friend of King Lear. When I got my first Bengal, Freaky Venus, she came from a horrible breeder with no sense of responsibility. Venus lived in a cage and was terrified of people, it took a long time to gain her trust, as with a feral cat. My second, Mim, came from a lovely breeder, who raises her kittens in her home, with the family, she was as kittenish as one could wish. With EG cats, (or any cats) the experience will be the same. They will love and trust as they have reason to. Responsible breeders make good cats. Sadly, there are a lot out there who are not responsible for the animals they breed. Therein lies the sadness.



I got into Fostering after I learned that there were many Bengals in need of homes and help. No more than any other cat, or breed of cat, but these are the ones I love. Bengals are a lot of cat. They need a lot of understanding. They are very active, and very smart and do have some special needs, and need a certain kind of person and home. If you take one to your home, you need to know about them. (this, by the way is true of ANY animal you take in.) There is a lot of mis-information about the breed out there. Mostly spread by people who do not know what they are talking about, sad to say.

Try these for some true facts.... The International Bengal Cat Society The International Bengal Cat Connection The International Bengal Breeder Association The Bengal Rescue Network Great Lakes Bengal Rescue



Magic is a Rescue, as in last chance here. He started out a loving social kitten, but was then sold on to a series of inappropriate homes where the people simply did not understand his needs, and EG cats do have very special needs. No one who does not understand this should ever have one.. At some point someone de-clawed all four of his paws. He had, and has some litterbox issues. It's his way of telling me something is Not Right in his world. It's my job to make it Right. And I am.

Somehow, I managed to become the Hard Case Foster home, I help the ones who need it the most. My first fosters. Jungle Loves 1&2 had been living in a motel room with a family of four, and were very afraid and would not be touched. They are now the joy and delight of a women in Northern MN. My current fosters (As seen in the four pictures above) had some issues, very frightened, when they came. They are ready now to find their Person. And they will be loved. And they will be someones heart and joy and delight too.

And then I will find another Bengal. And I will make it right for him, or for her. I can help them. I know what they need.

And I can help Magic. I know what he needs, as an F1 Bengal, and I have a lot of help doing it. Magic, by the way, is not a foster. He is home.

If you have read everything you can find, read it twice, and still find Bengals in your heart, and think you might be the Person I am looking for for King Lear and Queen Mab, drop me a note. We can talk.



I'll leave you with a picture of Venus and her Sheepskin. See? A Cat. With Asian Leopard Cat in her background. There's Mim in the background of the shot. Only LOOKING like some sort of Demon from another dimension..

Love and The Truth About Bengals,
Lorraine

141 Comments:

At 23:39 Anonymous Lysandwr said...

Wow. That first picture (although they are all, of course, lovely) is so ethereal..so Bast.

sweet.

Thank you.

At 23:41 Anonymous Lysandwr said...

as in, contemplation of Bast by one of her children, in case I was too abstruse...

At 23:54 Blogger Adri said...

Lovely post, Q

At 23:55 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Lys nailed it - very bast.

At 23:57 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Drat, I didn't mean to post that so soon.
Oh how I wish I could take Lear and Mab, they just sing out to me. Shame I'm in another country with a cat who has already refused to share me with any other cats (the dogs of course just bullied their way in)
Well said all around Quiche

At 00:01 Blogger Fluffy said...

I hope we can follow their new lives when they find the right people.

I know I'm not up for Bengals. And even if I was, not with my two DSH sisters here, for sure. It's not that big a house!

I sure do like looking at them, though.

At 00:16 Blogger Na said...

Hear hear, well said, Q.

Great tiara, Fluffy. ;)

At 00:16 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

That's Mim in the first photo, who is very Bast-like most of the time.

Bast is currently trying to fish a ladybeetle out of her water bowl. Making much more of a production than needed I might add.

Bengals LOVE water.

At 00:17 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Princess Fluffy????? And I thought haveing a Fiend named Fluffy was cool...

At 00:21 Blogger DataGoddess said...

I so wish we could have pets. Given I'm almost always home it would be nice to have a furry companion who isn't worried about writing his thesis. (Some of you saw Dan's hair, you know I'm not joking ;-)

The photos of the bengals are lovely. And Mim projects the Demon Cat look very well.

At 00:49 Blogger R.M. Lupo said...

I know you know it, and i know people have been telling you, and i know your cats tell you, but Lorraine, you do good things for these creatures.

Good luck finding foster homes, i wish we could help.

At 00:52 Blogger Unknown said...

I had the privilege of sharing a home for nearly two years with two Bengals. It wasn't my home, and they weren't my cats, but I adored them and they took to me as if I were their human -- moreso than one of the two humans who owned them. I played with them, for one, and payed a LOT of attention to them. ^_^

Bengals can be a handful, but they're amazing cats. Someday when I'm in a good situation again...

At 00:54 Anonymous Anonymous said...

My neighbor is DVM, looking for a Bengal for me. He has cared for all of my cats.

At 01:13 Blogger Allee Michele said...

My roommate and I really would like to get a pet, preferably a rescue, and our apartment building only allows cats. But she's allergic to cats. It might be an obvious question, but I want to ask anyways since you say that they're different in many ways from normal house cats. If she's allergic to regular housecats, would she still have a reaction to ALCs?

At 01:25 Blogger Clancy Nacht said...

Gorgeous cats, really. I foster mainly stray street cats, but I think I understand some of your pain. they need so much and yet on some levels take so little. I wish I could help, but since I cannot, I'm very proud of what you're doing. It's a big thing to make another's life a better place and quite admirable.

At 01:25 Blogger Unknown said...

Well said. We fostered cats for years, and also became the Hard Luck Shack for a lot of them.

Keep up the good work!

At 01:26 Anonymous Anonymous said...

As much as I'd love to talk to you about adopting one or both of those sweethearts, one of my cats recently had kittens, and we've also, not long back, adopted a dog. That is to say, the house is a bit full at the moment. I do hope you find a wonderful home for them though.

At 01:49 Blogger Brian said...

Wow those are amazing cats. I am going to move soon to a place where I will be able to have a pet again and from what I have read tonight it sounds like a Bengal is the type of cat for me. They sound like amazing animals.

At 01:59 Blogger vampi said...

your pictures do make me long for cats, but i have a paralyzing fear i wouldn't know what to do. you do so much good, and i thank you for sharing the amazing work you do with rescue.

again amazing pictures :) i think mim needs some lol cat action :)

At 02:09 Anonymous judi said...

Alerted by Neil's tweet about your wonderful foster work with our favourite breed of cat. We have two beuatiful girls, and they are truly amazing. We read up about the breed before becoming involved and yes, they are demanding, intelligent, naughty at times, very mouthy (one of them) and incredibly affectionate. It's Bengals forever for us. I do hope these beauties find the homes they deserve. In a country far far away, so cannot help (and two is really enough - they'd get so jealous)but really admire your work.

At 02:18 Anonymous ChristineBeth said...

Thank you so much for taking care of these beautiful Bengals. I have one myself and while he's a bit crazy I am madly in love with him. He is definitely worth the extra time and attention he requires. Best of luck finding homes!

At 03:14 Blogger Lexocat said...

I am laughing at the mental picture the ladybeetle water production conjures up for me. Ah, the joy of water loving kitties with a flair for the dramatic.

Some years ago, our non-Bengal water loving cat used to find subtle (and not so subtle) ways to "fall" into the newly filled bathtub. He was hilarious to watch.

At 03:22 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Well Mim might not be a demon but she sure is impish... Yet, so much fun.
I could really see the difference between the two, last year: Venus a little diffident, Mim all over those ridiculous creatures that we human beings are (I suspect we amuse her).

It is so good what you do with those kitties.

At 04:17 Blogger louisa said...

Morning. Great post, Q, and lovely pics, though that last one of Mim is just a tad disturbing, could be an interesting candidate for a caption competition should you want to judge another one!

At 04:29 Blogger Hera said...

declawing is a terrible thing :-/ much better alternative www.softpaws.com

Nice to see pictures, Lorraine you are wonderful xo!

At 06:52 Blogger Jess said...

Hallo new everyones! Oh, don't make me sing Cabaret again! I don't actually know it that well.

Well said, Q! And while we're at it there's Lorraine's excellent essay on the subject here as well. Go there! Read it!

I love that last pic. Mim looks like she's charging up her lasers.

At 06:54 Blogger Jess said...

Now I understand
why you must chant Ticky
Box
to summon it.

(What a crap haiku.)

At 06:55 Blogger Jess said...

And get this: I didn't tick it. HA! What a maroon.

At 06:58 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Maroon? They've left you on your own on a desert island and you turned a burgundy shade?

At 07:00 Blogger louisa said...

Maroon, a bit like macaroon mmmmmm tasty. Time, me thinks, for a smackerel of somthing.

At 07:12 Blogger Phiala said...

"What a maroon!" - favorite Bugs Bunny comment about idiots.

I'd like to think it's a mispronunciation of moron, done for comedic effect, but I'm afraid it's actually rather racist.

--

I am at home for the first morning in a month, MUCH to the delight of the cat. Didn't have to be at work, and not out of town. I'm still a bit perplexed by the "must make my own coffee" problem, especially since the cat does not believe moving is appropriate.

At 07:42 Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have a snow bengal. She lost her left eye shortly after birth (conjunctivitis infection and a very over-protective mother who refused to let the breeder near her poorly little girl).

Mist is an angel with enough personality for 20 cats. She talks to everything and has boundless energy.

After an operation and several months of trips to the vet (at the breeder's expense), we were able to bring her home when she was about 5 months old - she wasted no time in making sure the other 3 cats in our home (2 moggies and a persian) know that she was now in charge.

She makes certain she is the first to greet me in the morning when the alarm goes off and tends to follow me around when I get ready for work. When I come home, it's a race between Mist and our only male, Horus (long-hair moggie) to be first to greet me and get cuddled.

I'd have more bengals in a heartbeat. They are truly a special breed. My life is richer by being owned by one :)

At 09:27 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Good Morning! Hell Fiends, and hello new people, welcome!!!! Thank you so much for all the love, and for the stories, I love hearing them.

Especially everyone saving kitties, and Bengal stories!

Doing my first tea, and reading thru, again....

Allee "If she's allergic to regular housecats, would she still have a reaction to ALCs?" I am thinking you mean "Bengal" and not "ALC" ACL is short for "Asain Leopard Cat" and those are not what you want, you want Bengal, preferable four or more generations away from an ALC.

But to answer your query, many people who have allergies do not have them with Bengals, oddly enough, she would have to see.

At 09:29 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

I have to run to the store quickly...My team of cleaners is here and they seem to be picky about things like paper towels and floor wax.

(This is the on going Spring Clean. And apparently re-staining of woodwork. Who knew it needed it??????)

At 09:32 Blogger bengalgirl said...

Wonderful, informative, educational, and beautiful post Q. And so nice to read about others who share their homes and hearts with bengals. Thank you doesn't come close to telling Q how lucky Great Lakes Bengal Rescue is to have her as our foster. What started as her New Year's resolution to make a difference has made a huge difference to our organization and the bengals she has helped. Because so many people love her they have also taken our rescue's needs into their lives and we appreciate that. I'd also like to take the time to thank Q's boss for giving bengals and bengal rescue exposure. Janet

At 09:41 Blogger Mishell Baker said...

After my first two Bengals I could never go back. I have my second pair now, and I must say they are addictive, but they are NOT the cat for someone who basically wants "furry decor." Bengals want to be part of EVERYTHING, they want to knock over what isn't nailed down, climb on what can be climbed on, and answer your every question in energetic and surprisingly articulate Bengalese.

On the plus side, it is impossible to get lonely if you live with Bengals. And despite their mischief/energy, mine both scratch and potty exactly where they are supposed to scratch and potty, like clockwork. And with their athletic grace, they are all the entertainment you need in a properly cat-proofed home. About 50% of the time my husband and I have the television on, we end up watching the cats instead.

Advice to anyone considering Bengals: if you want to stay sane, get two. No human being over the age of 25 (or with a job) has enough time/energy to keep a Bengal amused during all its waking hours. Get two who either already know each other (like the two advertised here!) or two young kittens. Both times I got a male kitten, then a female kitten when the male was about 8-9 months old. After the "adjustment phase" both became great friends, and they keep each other amused and properly exercised. You have never seen such pouncing, tumbling, chasing, leaping, and rolling. Again, better than anything on TV.

At 09:44 Blogger Mishell Baker said...

Afterthought - I should also comment that mine are both under a year old. As they get older they do mellow a bit, but it's a crazy ride for a couple of years. In their older days, they always retain their "talkative" and inquisitive quality and continue to be more alert and "kittenish" than other older cats (in my experience).

At 09:53 Blogger Dan Guy said...

Bless you, Lorraine!

Have fun with the ongoing spring cleaning.

(And a ticky box t'boot.)

At 10:58 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Vampi, most of knowing what to do involves loveing them and paying attention to what they tell you. I am not doing this alone, Janet from GLBR and Marilyn Krieger, a cat expert from thecatcoach.com are helping me.

Judi, yes, once you go Bengal, you never go back!

The best advice I can give , if you think you want one is READ everything, and talk to people who have them.

Amulet, Snow Bengals are beautiful! I am so glad your got the care she needed and OF COURSE she rules!!!

Mishell, you got that right, mine are just over 2, Venus and Mim, and well, yes, they are RELATIVELY calmer now...

And the advice on getting two is seriously good. They can entertain eachother, and you are right in that no one has enough time.

I wish I could get a friend for Magic, not sure how good an idea it would be tho...

At 11:07 Blogger Adri said...

Good morning all!

Two bengals are better than one; we got our first bengal as a companion to our very active bengal-mix after we both got 9-5 jobs and didn't have time to play as much as he wanted. It worked like a charm.

They make me laugh every day. :)

At 11:14 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Magic isn't a foster? You mean Magic is yours? This is amazing. And wonderful.

At 11:26 Anonymous Kathleen Forward said...

If you still need a home for a lovely Bengal, I would love to provide one a home.

I have a beautiful Bengal girl, and she needs a friend. She loves other cats, and I was planning on getting another Bengal girl.

Please get in contact with me, if you need someone.

I may be emailed at kathleenforward@live.ca

At 11:32 Blogger Unknown said...

Thank you for posting all the wonderful infomation on Bengal cats. I have a Bengal baby myself and you're very right in that they have special needs and aren't for everyone.
I'm glad there are more people out there posting actual facts about them.
Wish I could help in fostering more Bengals but my girl is very jealous and an old lady set in her ways. I doubt she'd like any usurpers. :-)

At 11:49 Blogger Ticia said...

I love the picture of Mim in the window.

At 12:27 Blogger Wish said...

thank you for this. i've been contemplating a bengal for a while. i've had the pleasure of interacting with a few and have loved them, but i know that right now as a student i can't give any the home they need. one day, though.

At 13:22 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Adri is right about working and the benefits of having two. Tho it is really good to know when another will not work out at the same time.

It is also really good to know when you are not in a position to get one yet, as a student. You and your Bengal be much happier waiting until you are ready.

That's what happened to Lear and Mab, a student who suddenly decided to study abroad, and they found a new home, but not the right one.

Kathleen, I will drop you a note, but Lear and Mab are a pair, they need to stay together, they can't be separated.

Lear has also had some issues with men, I don't believe this would be the case, however with the right man. But they will need a quiet home, with no other pets.

It is SO good hearing from so many Bengal Lovers, and I am hoping, getting the word out about the truth of these Kittles, there is too much myth going on.

(Someone referred to Magic once as an Abomination. I don't believe I have ever been that mad before at ignorance)

Yes Emily, he is mine, with EG's if they bond, you cannot break that bond, it is way too hard on them.

And you are all right, HOURS of entertainment!

At 13:24 Blogger AletaMay said...

Great post. Lovely photos. Ticky box

At 13:26 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

The cleaners are gone, the house is lovelier, and Venus is sitting at the very top of the cat tree explaining loudly her feelings on the subject.

I tried to explain that every two years one HAS to deep clean the house, no matter if it needs it or not..(Mine did)

At 13:28 Blogger spacedlaw said...

How could he be an abomination? Such a sweet creature. If anyone has to be an abomination, then the people who created him for profit and then tossed him aside.

At 13:30 Blogger Xavi said...

Lovely post. I am already mom to a dozen cats, one of whom looks remarkably like a Bengal, or I'd happily take on a Bengal foster.
Those kitties are very lucky to have met with you.
Many growls to the person who cut poor kitty's claws off. That's a terrible thing to do to any cat.

At 13:31 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Venus is telling you off for messing with her playground!

At 13:34 Blogger Phiala said...

Fiends: Should I go spend my tax refund on a new iMac???

At 14:13 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Mistress, is that a trick question?

I know Nathilie, I feel the same way. There was a case of someone out east dumping an F1 at a vet and telling the vet to find it home, and the vet gave the Kitty to a women who wanted a Bengal, keeping mum about the F1 status, the women had NO idea what to do with this un-socialized F1 and called rescue for help...She thought she was getting an F4 or higher regular type Bengal..

The kitties are settled down now, all is serene again. For the moment..

At 14:23 Blogger Phiala said...

Not a trick question, honest.

I left Mac for Linux ages ago, because I need software that at that time was Linux only. I also have some equipment that has windows-only drivers.

But the new iMacs are pretty, and I can run windows and linux on them very effectively now that they're Intel-based.

So... I'm contemplating a new iMac. And did I mention that they're pretty?

At 14:28 Blogger Adri said...

Phiala-- there's lots of pretty hardware out there these days that doesn't have the Apple marketing price attached to it. :) And user-friendly *nix distros like ubuntu and fedora are working hard to keep up with hardware drivers as well, if you don't want to deal with Vista. (I dual boot.) You can even install Hackintosh linux for that Mac OS feel. :D

I'd spend less money for more, if it were me. (And did, I have an HP Touchsmart all-in-one; Dell makes a pretty hot one, too)

Q-- I think a friend for Magic would be fantastic, but would require such special, careful handling. My advice would be a kitten, down the road, but obviously Marilyn and Janet are the experts!

At 14:29 Blogger spacedlaw said...

They ARE pretty. And costly.

At 14:36 Blogger Phiala said...

Adri, I've been running RedHat, Fedora or Ubuntu since, oh, 1996, and spent several years as the de facto sysadmin for a Solaris network. :)

The price on the new iMacs has dropped a lot: a 4gb/640gb/24" all-in-one is just under $1500. The Apple tax isn't what it once was. A similar HP is $1750 at Tiger Direct (though that one does have a touchscreen).

That also doesn't include the need to purchase a copy of Windows whether I like it or not, as I must be able to run Windows-only drivers on this computer.

I like Macs, but they wouldn't do what I needed for a long time, and were too expensive.

At 14:40 Blogger Fluffy said...

iMac. YES! Worth it.

And the advice to get two Bengals applies to cats in general. We've always adopted strays and some of them just don't ever get along, which can be, to say the least, stressful (especially if they are competing for lap space or attention.) The saddest thing, to me, is when one cat desperately wants love and play from another who isn't having any of that.

So, after the last of our elderly three died, we got two sisters who lived with their semi-wild mother in someone's garage. I love watching them sleep together and wash each others' ears.

And I'm not really a princess. Just an all-powerful Assistant Moderator. We got virtual tiaras with our promotions. Mine looks pretty real, no?

At 14:41 Blogger Adri said...

Phiala-- you clearly know the market and options, in which case I say, get what you want. :D Shiny new computers are happy making.

Of course, this is what we all really want:

steampunk all-in-one PC

At 14:45 Blogger Phiala said...

Adri - that's lovely! I'm going to do steampunk decals for the netbook, but haven't settled on the final design.

And yes, I'm pretty familiar with the computer market - I've been comparison shopping for a couple months. I adore my EEE, but it can't be the only computer, and won't drive the plotter (Ubuntu). But I get fussed about spending that much money on something I want when I could get something much cheaper that would meet the minimum requirements. Even if I have the money. Thus, looking for validation in the guise of computer shopping advice...

At 14:47 Blogger Fluffy said...

Haha! "Don't ask me about the pointing device - I cannot speak of it."

Since you are not a noob, Mistress, I will refrain from going on about the Apple Store support. Which I desperately needed in order to learn Pages in time to do a monthly newsletter. Oh, yes - for the Gardening Babes. I believe some of them have tiaras, too.

At 14:53 Blogger Fluffy said...

And Vampi, She is right. They (this actually applies pretty widely, now that I think on it) mostly need love and attention. And any Fiend is capable of the basic care.

Heh, heh. Binky is killing the hell out of a paper dry-cleaning tag.

P.S. I love you!

At 15:25 Blogger Fluffy said...

Everyone is gone. This is a sign I should get dressed, strap the tiara onto my pink, floppy gardening hat and get busy outside in the dirt.

I has me a bunch of plants to get situated.

At 15:26 Blogger Phiala said...

Not gone - still messing about online.

Here it is cold, and extremely windy. I'm pretty sure I saw a snowflake or two earlier. Bah!

Go garden! But think of us in colder climates...

At 15:31 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

I am off for work and then to see Jason Webley my Fiends....

But will check in as I can and certainly Twitter..

At 15:35 Blogger Chantrelle said...

So many new folks here today!

I know I would not be the right person for a Bengal but I'm glad there are so many who are.

I got my basket on my bike (well, hubby did) and rode to the store for the milk we needed rather than driving--yay me!

Now i'll go meet our cousins for wine tasting and dinner (must drive for that, over and up a mountain top)

Happy Spring Saturday!

At 15:57 Anonymous Kate T said...

@FabulousLorraine -
Thanks for your good work. We have had this experience with Siberian Huskies. So beautiful, so challenging as housemates - often abused because they exhibit breed appropriate behavior (they dig, climb, howl, run, chew, and look at you and ask "why?") and they are hard to place in homes.

Alas, as we are a dog haven, we can only add to the positive energy here for finding this lovely pair a new home. Good luck, and thanks for your efforts.

At 16:31 Blogger Fluffy said...

Didn't go out. It's 80 degrees out and I'm against sweat today. Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler.

At 16:36 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Kate T, and surely you did add to the love! And that's exactly it, they do what they are meant to do, and for some reason it comes as a complete surprise to the people who got them...

Yea Chantrelle, way to go, biking. And Fluffy, so sad it is so hot!

I hate you both.

Snow tonight. 3 or more inches possibly out here.

(I don't REALLY hate you, I just wish I was WITH you)

At 16:55 Blogger Fluffy said...

I'm really sorry about the snow, ma'am. I used to live in New England (I know - nothing compared to the Upper Midwest) and generally went bonkers by March. Here I do it in August.

Really, it's not the 80F. It's the getting dressed. I'm not even wearing the tiara. It looks heavy...

At 17:21 Blogger Jess said...

Lots of Bengal people! :)

O Fiends. I'm such an idiot: I sent a lady away from the new writing workshop today (as gently and apologetically as I could, but I'm sure it was embarrassing for her anyway) whom I thought was not registered; we're out of space and I thought she was trying to get in right then. Turns out she was registered after all-- her name just wasn't on the list I'd made for myself. Completely my fault. Ack.

Called her afterward to apologise and straighten things out, even offered to cover her registration fee in recompense. I think she's satisfied, and we're good now. But man, was she mad (rightly so) and I feel like a heel. I want to crawl under the bedclothes and cry. I can't believe I did that. Dumb, dumb, dumb. :(

The rest went okay, at least.

I hope you all have had a much smarter day. Phiala, buy that sucker! Then tell us all about it so I can have Vicarious Mac Thrills. Got an ugly feeling I may be stuck on a Win-doze machine forever-- at last until usng XP is no longer an option. Then we're probably going to run straight into Linux's nerdy, pocket-protected embrace.

At 17:29 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Getting dress is often overrated.

Jess, everyone makes mistakes, at the point where you realized you had made one, and apologized, that is the posit where she ought cease to be mad.

In fact, if he had the imagination to really BE a writer, she ought to have seen that Hello? You, running the group, might now be her new best friend.....

She would be in this group Why?

No patience have I.

But i am dressed and going to a concert soon.

At 17:35 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

So, none of us cat lovers has this kind of $$ lying around, and they are WAY over the top, but I'd have one in a second. May get Hans to build me one...

http://www.ahiddenhollow.com

At 17:36 Blogger Phiala said...

Oh, Jess, I've done stuff like that! With much the same outcome... Sometimes, it just happens... but ick!

I _tried_ to buy an iMac, I really did! The only store in town that actually stocks them changed their mind about whether any were actually there, and the online place I tried ate my order midstream. *grumble*

Jess, no reason not to try out linux now. It's gotten very smart and easy to use, really, and you can download a LiveCD that will let you try it without having to commit to anything scary like partitioning the hard drive. I'd recommend ubuntu as a good place to start.

Now... finishing my taxes. Business accounting: ick!

At 17:36 Blogger Fluffy said...

Wow. Dressed. You pwn the weekend!

At 17:39 Blogger vampi said...

ooh have fun cavorting at the concert:) i am so checking this jaso guy out next time he ventures this way.

it was nice and a bit cool today with the wind. i wish it could be this temp all year. it's that point where there is a breeze, and it is right on the edge of beeing too cool, but isn't. i love spring and fall for precisely this temperature.

after mucking my way through taxes this year, and cursing the state of california for having taxes, my brain is mush. i moved for florida, wiht no state taxes, to california with a lot of taxes. my move coordinator forgot to remind me to update my w-4 to change the with holding the company does for state taxes, so i got a bit screwed. this year should be better me thinks.


i'm off to use your advice on hotels for booking my trip to santa barbara to listen to a lecture by the dali lama. i am soo stoked.

At 17:41 Blogger AletaMay said...

Argg.

I went from two weeks ago being very sure I'd be going to see Jason Webley tonight to it now being only the slimmest of chances that I'll go.

If the slim chance wins I'll see you there Q!

So great to read about all the caring humans doing what they are able to help.

At 17:45 Blogger AletaMay said...

Jess, it happens... none of us gets through mistake free. It is the best of skills to know how to make it right after the mistake. Yup.

At 17:51 Blogger Fluffy said...

I can think of two massive job mistakes that still make me cringe after 15-20 years.

At 18:20 Blogger AletaMay said...

Fluffy -- isn't it amazing, those things that can still make us cringe after years, decades even. Mine are mostly personal but even almost thinking about them makes me shudder.

At 18:41 Blogger Fluffy said...

Oh, fods. I'm going "lalala" so I don't even start to think about the personal ones! Lots more of those...

nonono

At 18:43 Blogger AletaMay said...

Well Fluffy, the good news is we survived.

At 18:48 Blogger Adri said...

Fluffy! I am also sitting around in my jammies. I should be writing (work) or cleaning (pre-sister-visit) or writing (creative), but instead I'm goofing off on the internet. I've barely been out of bed all day and my partner ordered pizza and brought it to me.

Best way to spend a crampy day ever. Now all I need is chocolate.

I'm working too hard on making today a good one to think about past failures that still make me cringe. Instead, here's a funny sign I saw on LSU campus, Beware of Tiger

At 18:49 Anonymous Anonymous said...

More lovely pictures, but I still think that first picture of Magic is my favorite.

Thanks for the welcome, all. Fiend I may be (have to be, married to Lorraine's bro's Evil Twin) but new I am not, having known Lorraine for many years.

I think it is time to point my sister at info on Bengals...

At 19:53 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Good evening, Fiends; just got back from a trip to Barnes and Noble, which always helps me to feel good. I so enjoy that place.

Lorraine, I must say, I am so glad to hear Magic is YOURS; I kept worrying about the day he would have to go.

At 21:17 Blogger amarygma said...

If I didn't have large parrots already, I'd consider a Bengal. I have a 17 year old Siamese.

At 22:17 Blogger Jess said...

Thank you lovely peeps. I am grateful to have wise and sensible people in my corner. :) I think I've got a grip now. Did everything I could to make it right, and that's the main thing. (I'll probably be cringing and kicking myself well into next week anyway, but that's me. I do that.)

Lady in question wasn't nasty about it-- just angry, I think, for having shown up only to feel foolish over something that wasn't her fault. I don't really blame her for being upset. But she seemed happy enough once she understood it was a mistake and that there's still a place for her.

She's in the group because we take anyone who wants to write-- first come, first served. I get all kinds of people-- this time round I've got a couple of women who've been journalists for 20-odd years but never attempted fiction, and another two with no experience at all. Also a couple of people who just haven't written anything in a while and want to try to get going again. The way I see it, whoever it is and whatever their experience, if they're willing to work I'm happy to teach, and I don't much mind whether they turn out to be publishable geniuses or not. If I can get them to appreciate the discipline for what it is and keep at it, that's what matters.

Ramble ramble. Anyhoo.

How's Webley? Hope you lot are having a fine old time. :)

At 22:20 Blogger Jess said...

Also. Manwife took one look at the cat trees and said, "No. Just...no."

I think our girls would love them. I'm disappointed.

At 22:32 Blogger Ticia said...

I loved those cat trees. And I too hope you're having fun with Jason Webley. He is an entertainer everyone should see. And he's a very nice man to boot.

I had some excitement today with a hummingbird (in my house) and a cat. It took 3 of us to get the bird away from the cat and outside. ::shudder:: I LOVE hummingbirds.

I can't be upset at the cat because she was just doing what comes naturally to a cat. I just wish she hadn't been so evil about it.

At 22:38 Blogger AletaMay said...

I will most definitely catch Jason W the NEXT time he is in town. Tonight just did not work out for me.

Wow. A hummingbird. That seems kind of impressive. But also traumatic.

Time for me to get off line I think. Get some of the things done that must be done before bed!

Night Fiends.

Oh and yeah... I love you.

At 22:39 Blogger Fluffy said...

Not evil, highly skilled! Our cats brought in just about everything but coyotes and they never caught a hummingbird! And I usually have 6 or more feeders up by August.

I was really nervous about putting the first feeder up, but I think it kept the birds up higher than the garden flowers, to the frustration of the cats. The regular bird feeder cut down on the casualties, too - my guess was that with the birds so concentrated any alarm was more effective.

At 23:39 Blogger Ticia said...

Nighty-night Aleta!

At 00:18 Blogger ariandalen said...

Such lovely pictures of Their Majesties! :)

Hope you're having/had fun at the concert, Ms. Fabulous!

Oo! Oo! Oo! Lots and Lots of NEW FIENDS!!!

Hi, Tricky, d00mpixie, Allee, Clancy, Kath, ostia, Brian, Judi, ChristineBeth, Amuletwebdragon, Mishell, Kathleen, Miyabi, Wish, JC, Kate T and Amarygma! I'm sure you'll find a pile, or three, of nice white jackets with lots of lovely buckles. :)

::SNIIFFFF::

Oh. I may be in spicy brain overload.

NEVER!
MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

At 00:55 Blogger vampi said...

the spicy brainz must flow...

At 02:09 Anonymous kali_licious said...

That last picture of Mim and Venus..Mim looks like she's arming her Laser Weapons. LOL

Yesterday was a complete wash, thanks to FedEx deciding to close my center despite us being #2 in the country in terms of productivity. So I only have a job until the end of May:/. Thinking maybe I should just take severance and go to school.

At 02:59 Anonymous Lysandwr said...

Kali--I TOTALLY hear you. Decided that was what the universe was trying to tell me, as well. We will what happens, come September.

Vampi-Email me, please! I've misplaced your email.....want to talk to you before you make your SB reservations (if it isn't too late).

ps I love you

At 07:57 Blogger Unknown said...

Buy the Mac because not only are you buying a lovely machine, a forward thinking company AND you won't have to deal with all the viruses, etc, that pc people have to deal with.
Macs rule!

At 09:59 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Kali, Lys is very wise in such matters....Hugs to you, no fun.

Morning all.

Didn't get home until LATE, nasty driving home from the show,but the show ROCKED. I had no idea he was THAT good. I mean I thought he would be good,but this was amazing. I think he is my new favorite performer.

More tea. Obviously.

At 10:12 Blogger vampi said...

kali, much hugs coming your way. school sound like a way to make lemonade from that lemon.

At 10:29 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Second cup of tea not working any better than first.

Lear played "Beyond Thunderdome much too early. It's a game he plays involving his door hen he feels breakfast is not coming fast enough. I don't give IN to it, but it does wake me UP...

Must nip thru dreaded but lovely snow to work now. The ride home last night was NOT FUN,, as full a storm as one could wish...The world is lovely tho, may take some pics for a post later this afternoon.

At 10:30 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

WAIT! Watching weather ANOTHER "Slushy 1-2 inches?"??????

Excuse my Sunday morning language but WTF???????

At 10:40 Blogger vampi said...

such abbreviations Q, i'm shocked. lol

sorry about the snow.

At 10:49 Blogger Ticia said...

Kali ((hugs)) and Lys ((hugs)). Too much stress. Lys, you don't talk about it much, but I'm always sending good vibes your way. Good luck to both of you. And Kali, I won't say it as often as I think it, but I'm putting out good vibes to you as well. This is a horrible time in our country and I hate that it's not the politicians and bankers that are doing the true suffering. ((hugs))

Now, Jason Webley, Lorraine, wasn't he INCREDIBLE? I think he's the best live performance I've ever seen. AFP puts on an awesome show, full of theatre and brilliance, but Webley holds the audience in his hand ALL BY HIMSELF. And gets everyone to participate. I've never seen anything like it.

At 10:58 Anonymous Kathy Savas said...

Hey Lorraine,
I grabbed your link from Neil's Twitter (I'm a friend of his parents). My good friend has a lovely Bengal kitten who she totally adores and understands. I sent her your link so she could contact you. Keep up the good work!

At 11:11 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Hi Kathy, Many thanks! Once you go Bengal they say, you never go back. They are truly wonderful, and the things a lot of people might think of as "Bugs" well, if you are a Bengal Lover, they are really "Features"

Ticia,

Agreed on all counts, I am still in awe (tho I feel compelled to add that AFP can also hold an audience all on her own, and rock doing it.)

At 11:19 Blogger Ticia said...

Oh, don't get me wrong, I love AFP. She can totally hold an audience on her own. She is just a different, more exotic animal to me. The theatricality she brings to a performance is stunning.

Both are artists in their own rights.

I can listen to AFP for hours on her Cd's... Webley comes alive for me more in person.

At 11:42 Blogger Jess said...

Ah, Kali, that stinks. :( But it sounds like you've got good plans. Going back to school's no bad thing.

Good morning, Q! Hooray for great shows-- I may need to check this out. You did not steer me wrong with AFP after all.

I've just bought a big sturdy bag for keeping porch furniture cushions in. This pleases me. Ahh, Target therapy.

At 12:21 Blogger Na said...

I love coming to the blog and looking at all the Mim-and-Lear pics again as I scroll down to click on comments.

Don't know this Webley character but from fiends. Will have to keep my ears open.

I saw an amazing musical event last night, too. Los Angeles Opera doing Die Walkure. OMF. Wasn't sure at first - deconstructionist costumes and set, with bits of interpretive dance mixed in. But Placido Domingo and Anna Kampe. And the Valkeries themselves. OMF, is 'bout all I have. Won me over.

And may I say, lovely to be warm for a few days!!!! Thinking of LA Fiends everywhere, but haven't reached out, trip planned mostly around Valkeries and retreat-and-reboot with family, although I did get to see some nearly-long-lost high school friends. The feeling I have is that I am better stitched together then in past weeks.

Adri, Phiala, tech-savvy fiends - I wish to do Linux, but what's the learning curve like, would you say? I am time-deficient with a touch of tech-phobia. From a family of computer experts, who seem so disappointed when I ask them these things. ;)

Kali and Lys - I feel for you. Went through all that job loss insanity in 2008. Surely it's paving way for something better, is my wish for you.

At 12:21 Anonymous kali_licious said...

Thanks for the good wishes everybody, it means a lot to me. It was just such a shock. The silver lining to taking a mental health day that day was that I got to visit the Hoosier Horse Fair. Fresians and Arabs and Miniature Donkeys are good for the soul.

Glad you made it home ok Lorraine..more snow is Just Not Fair.
We're supposed to go from pouring rain to 30 degrees overnight.

Must check out Mr Webley now. This many good reviews can't be wrong.

At 12:29 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

It is rare here I correct someone strongly, but Jess, there is no "May have to check him out" You NEED to see this show. He is one heck of a one guy and accordion show. And a Master storyteller to boot.

Ticia is right, it's all about the live show with Jason.

Just took snow pictures with Boss and Jason, which was fun and blinding. Because of the snow, not them. (yes, posting later on today)

Horse shows are very good for the soul. I am going back to riding tomorrow myself, hurrah!

At 12:59 Blogger Jess said...

Okay, Q: check. Must see. Tell him to come out to Pittsburgh! The nearest he'll be is Circleville, OH next Saturday, and I won't be able to make it. Thanks to the workshop my Saturdays are shot for the next five weeks, unless it's somewhere local. :)

At 13:13 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Not more snow ... I keep trying to think of something nice and comforting and sweet to say to you, but all I can think of is "I hope snow isn't contagious."

At 13:43 Blogger Chantrelle said...

I 2nd (or 3rd or 4th) the MUST SEE Jason recommendation! Hubby was absolutely blown away by him as well when he played her a few weeks ago. He had the whole crowd sit down for storytime in the middle of the show and we were all enthralled with him! Great ghost story. Then he jumped right back into rockin' the accordion and/or guitar. And he's incredibly nice to boot!

We were talking with him at the santa cruz show, they were playing an absolutely awful (yet hilarious) movie on the screens over the bar. What was it, Death Race 2000 or something like that?? David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone. Luckily it ended before jason's show so he didn't have to see it while playing (we had the luxury of turning our backs to the screens to watch him, he would have had to face the tvs!) :P

At 14:06 Blogger dabbler said...

So, I'm wondering what Jason Webley has against the East coast. that Ohio show is the closest he gets to me, as well, and I'm a good 300 miles further east than Jess.


Went and listened to a couple of samples, and agree he sounds worth hearing.

At 14:49 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Methinks I must look into this Jason Webley.

At 14:51 Blogger Chantrelle said...

Jason getting everyone f'ed up at the end of the santa cruz show:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54ZL6JyPY_c

good times :)

At 15:58 Blogger Chantrelle said...

I don't think I mentioned this here, I set up a twitter account for foodporn so I can post 140 character summaries of meals
http://twitter.com/FoodPorncom

Hubby is brewing today, may have some Barely Legal updates ;-)

At 17:01 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Chantrelle, do you ever write about vegetarian meals? Benjamin and I are vegetarian.

At 17:12 Blogger Chantrelle said...

I do still cook vegetarian stuff so that will show up too. It's so much easier for me to quickly post a little summary than write up a whole recipe/post on the site so hopefully twitter updates will happen more often. Ideally they'll link to more in-depth articles on the site but not always.

At 17:31 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Thunderdome...perfect description of what Tysie was just doing...how can relatively small dudes be so noisy?

I wonder if Jason is coming to our fair shores anytime soon. Must look.

Its going to be a cool day here, and the pilot light on our heating system has gone out and I can't get it going. *sulks*

At 18:44 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Chantrelle, very good plan! Indeed. Of course, I am all for Tweets....

New blog up. I don't even whine about the snow.

Much.

Well, ok, I do.

So there.

At 20:20 Blogger CarolAnn said...

Good for you, FL. I foster cocker spaniels and I am also one of the homes for the hard cases. I have adopted four special needs cockers and I am fostering a "retirement" guy - at least 14 years old, colitis, heart murmur, arthritis...no one wants him. 'Cept for me. :)

At 20:20 Blogger CarolAnn said...

Good for you, FL. I foster cocker spaniels and I am also one of the homes for the hard cases. I have adopted four special needs cockers and I am fostering a "retirement" guy - at least 14 years old, colitis, heart murmur, arthritis...no one wants him. 'Cept for me. :)

At 22:56 Blogger ariandalen said...

Yes, Vampi! In the new Fiendocracy the spicy brainz will flow!

Speaking of which...
Hi, Claudia, Kathy Savas and CarolAnn! Lots of comfy attire to be found.

Heh heh heh heh

::sniff::
::sniff sniff::
Nice and spicy!


MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

At 10:54 Blogger Claudia said...

Beautiful! Wow. Can't imagine having a pet I couldn't touch... you're a special soul.

At 11:01 Blogger Chocoholic said...

Found your blog through Twitter. I already have 4 cats that were either rescued or they adopted me. (Cats sitting on my patio, mewing until I open the door and refusing to leave is a common occurance with me.) Seeing the rescue links make me want more kitties! Must resist.

At 00:35 Anonymous Brigitte said...

Lorraine,
Your blog is "fabulous!" Thanks so much for the great read-- just wanted to give you a heads up-- The Bengals Illustrated website has been fully updated! There are some great article on the page, too-- ck them out! Thanks Lorraine!

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