From north to south

We’ve gone from the tip of the North Island down to the top of the South Island. It’s been lots of driving from Kerikeri, with two stops: one in Hamilton and one in Wellington.

Then I got to take a big boat. We drove onto the boat, and it was like it was going to eat us up. Then we got out of the car and explored inside the big boat. There were lots of different levels. Our car was parked on dick five. On dick seven there were food courts and a souvenir shop.Dick eight had a bar and a special club where you could pay more to be away from screaming children. I’m not sure why Mom and Dad didn’t spring for that. Although near the end of the trip they finally saw the sign I’d been pointing at: $40 to upgrade to the club class and you got snacks, drinks and free Internet. Maybe next time.

Happy Waitangi Day

After yesterday’s boogie board adventure, I wasn’t sure what to expect today. I stayed in for the morning until Mom and Dad came back at lunch. Then Mom brought me in her purse as we headed over to Waitangi.

Dad parked the car in a huge lot near the highway, and we took a bus down a bumpy gravel road that wound its way around a hill, past areas that used to have trees. I think it might have been a logging road. As we came out from what remained of the forest, we crossed through a golf course and finally reached our destination: the Waitangi Treaty Grounds.

I’m a bear amongst kiwis

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, but I’ve been so busy it’s kept me exhausted.

We’re in New Zealand now. Highlights so far have included a ferry ride from Auckland to Waiheke Island, where Mom and Dad rented bikes and rode around the island. We stopped at a vineyard, which was very pretty, and a few beaches. It was strange to me though because we are now traveling on the left side of the road.

After the Island, Mom and  Dad rented a car and we headed north, toward the equator. We stopped in a forest and saw a really big tree called Tane Mahuta. He’s the king of the forest and really tall, fat and old.  The government protects these trees now, but almost 90 percent had been cut down by early settlers.

Now we’re in Kerikeri. Today we traveled by bus along a really long beach. The bus went quite fast and I got to ride up front for a while. Then we stopped at the sand dunes and Mom took me boogie boarding. It was loads of fun, except for the walk up the dune. I kept getting sand in my face.

Then we went to Cape Reinga, where we all thought about Timbit’s spirit swimming with penguins. The Maori believe this place to be sacred because where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean is believed to be where spirits leave this world. It was an appropriate moment to honour my old pal.

After that we stopped at the gum diggers where we walked through forest of tea trees, learned about bees living in holes in the ground, really old kauri trees being dug up for their gum and rediscovering old forests.

Then I spent my time sitting on the floor of the bus, while Mom and Dad visited a shop and then a cafe. When they came back all I could smell was fish and chips. The whole bus smelled like a fishery and chippy all combined.

I’ll sleep well tonight!

It’s February

As you turn Timbit’s calendar (Life is purrfect), you’ll see these photos:

February 2010

The top one was taken during the winter of 2007/08, the year Ottawa almost had the record snowfall. We thought we were going to break the old record set in the early 70s, but somehow when Canada converted to metric the official measurements were confused. In the end, I think we missed by a centimeter.

Timbit loved sunny mild winter days. He saw freshly fallen snow as the world’s biggest and easiest litterbox to pee in. He wasn’t a big fan of winter melts, since this meant re-burying any of his poop, and anyone else that had visited the backyard.

He loved following Dad’s trails made with the big loud machine that threw the snow into the edges of the yard. Unfortunately it became an extension of the kitty winter highway, which meant watching outdoor cats strut their stuff in front of the windows. At least he never got frostbitten ears.

Timbit was also a lover of boxes of all shapes and sizes. The photo on the bottom left is a tray made of local walnut by his Dad. Beside him lies the remote to the fireplace. I swear he figured out how to turn it on when we were away.

He also loved sitting on top of the chair in the morning sun. He’s wearing a little Austrian bell that his pal Timmy II picked up for him on holidays.

February is our first full month without the little guy, but he lives on in our hearts.

Lonely in San Francisco

I spent my day alone in the room, wondering what Mom and Dad were getting up to. Ivy came in around lunch time and cleaned the room. She tickled me as she picked me up off the bed. When she was done making the bed she gently placed me back down where she’d found me.

Timmy II and the Sears Coin --where's the slot machine? I want to win!

When they came back to the room, Mom rubbed her feet for a while and seemed to be hobbling around. Then they went out for supper and came back with a souvenir for me. They disappeared again, leaving me alone for much too long.

The suitcases are out again, so I suppose we’re moving on soon. While they’re down at breakfast, I must have one more snoop around the room, looking for souvenirs.

A day exploring San Francisco

Today we set off to the California Academy of Science in Golden Gate Park.  Dad told Mom that it was too dangerous to take me out of her bag while we were on the MUNI so I spent most of my time having a nap while we were in transit. It seemed to take forever to get there. Think Mom has an explanation on her blog.

Me and Mom at Ocean Beach

First we stopped at the ocean, where I was finally given some fresh air.  I could hear the roar of the thundering waves before Mom brought me out. I was  hoping she wouldn’t take me too close to the waves since I don’t know how to swim.

We walked along the beach for a while, and I noticed that there were “No swimming/no wading” signs every 50m or so.

Timmy II remembers Timbit

I’d been napping on my spot on top of the knickknack display in the master bedroom, when I realized I hadn’t seen my pal Timbit in a while.

Then I could smell him but not see him. So I jumped down and started to search out his location. I didn’t find him, but I did discover a number of cards on top of the bookshelves. I was shocked to learn that he had passed away and wondered whether his parents would still take me with them on vacation.

It’s been a tradition for several years, and I really do love to explore. So when they decided to take me on this vacation, I decided to dedicate it to Timbit. He was the original and the source of my name. And for about 10 years I was his replacement as his parents explored the world.

Today was an exciting day for me. I got to ride in the overhead container on the flight from Ottawa to Vancouver. Mom had tucked me into the water bottle holder of Dad’s backpack carry on. When we got to YVR, she gave me some freedom:

That’s me on Mom’s luggage taking the BART from the airport to downtown

I can see that this trip they are feeling something more than just being away from Timbit, so I’ll have to do more to keep them company.

I do hope you’ll enjoy my perspective on their adventures.

Rainbow bridge

My day didn’t start out well. I had no energy and was becoming more and more concerned about the loss of feeling in my rear limbs. It had been happening since Monday and then disappeared. My back paws were always cold too, which had been frustrating because it’s been relatively mild outside lately.

Mom and Dad left for work today, and it happened again. I bumped myself down the stairs to the basement and tried to make it to my litter box, but couldn’t no matter how hard I tried. I lay on the basement floor for the rest of the day, waiting for them to come home.

Winter health care tips

On bagel day this past weekend, I had the opportunity to stumble across a rather interesting article in the newspaper:

Interesting read ...

The Bad Cat Calendar

Yesterday Mom went out for dinner with one of her old friends. By that I mean she’s now retired and they’ve been friends for a while so that makes her my Mom’s old friend. When they came back from dinner, she gave my Mom a birthday gift called the Bad Cat Calendar for 2010.

At first I thought I was in trouble again.  But it turns it that my Mom really laughs when she looks at the new page for each day of the year. There’s even a contest and my Mom’s friend said that I should enter a photo, but I don’t know if I could compete with this: