Friday cat post - Guest Edition!

Today we have a special treat - the cats of the organist at my church, Sylvia Berry, and her husband, Dale! Sylvia has a few words about the background of the cats, with references to the pictures which are below:

Malachi & Amicus

Both cats belong to my husband of 3.5 months, Dale Munschy. Well, as part of the marriage deal, clearly they now belong to me too. Malachi (pron. Ma-la-key) was born in 1996. (Just think - Bill Clinton was still in office! Feels like a century ago!) He turned 14 in August 2010, which makes him a senior citizen in cat years. He is shy, but is actually quite affectionate once you're sitting still and HE can approach YOU. However, since moving to Somerville from Rhode Island, he is getting bolder all the time. Witness his "take no prisoners" attitude when it comes to trying to get some of our dinner. (See "I want some chicken!") Unfortunately I couldn't get a photo of him running his paw along the table while Dale wasn't looking, trying to find his plate from under the table! OR, actually grabbing food in his paw like a primate – Malachi is polydactyl, and thus as a “thumb.” It’s incredible to see him do this. Yes, he occasionally eats table food. Please, don't anyone yell at us! Clearly he's healthy. And when you get to be his age (around 72 in human years) maybe you deserve some treats. Amicus doesn’t like table food, but always wonders what Malachi is up to.

Amicus (pron. Ah-mi-cus) is a shelter cat. True to his name, he is indeed very friendly. Dale got him in 2008 when he was about 3 months old, meaning that he is still a rather rambunctious toddler kitty. But this is probably also in his nature as he seems to be part Maine Coon. Maine Coon cats are notoriously nutty and talkative, which is Amicus to a T. They also like to scale heights, and it is common to find Amicus on top of various things... the stove hood, the refrigerator, any of our keyboard instruments once they're on their sides about to be moved, etc... just any place where he feels some height. Witness him in the cupboard, which was open for about 10 seconds before he managed to get in there while my back was turned. Gah! Crazy cat!

Because Amicus does more silly things, there are probably more pictures of him. Malachi is extremely handsome though. Eventually we'll have some goofy pictures of him too, since some friends of ours gave us a toy he LOVES called the Cat Dancer. Strange: he's never played with anything, but he loves this thing. Dale says he's a brand new cat these days, and this is more proof of that. Maybe Malachi's getting his groove back! Or... picking up a groove he never had. Good for him. On the flip side, we hope Amicus will eventually calm down a little, even though he makes us laugh so much. Who knows though. Maybe his youthful antics have inspired Malachi to let loose!

One nice thing is that they often sleep together. If we leave an instrument cover on the floor and forget to fold it right away, invariably they will make a little nest of it, which is what you see in "We Love Canvas." Sleepy cats are always cute, eh?

Malachi and Amicus in Temporary Repose

I want some chicken!

Naughty kitty!

Is this a painting by some old Dutch master or a photo?

Yes, he's IN the instrument. That is a Stodart Compensator Grand fortepiano that Dale rebuilt.

We want some steak!

We love canvas!

I am happy to feature guest kitties! Musicians, send me your cat pictures!