New kitty book by Lewis Blackwell coming out October 1.
“As good as Blackwell’s text is (and it’s quite good—an approachable, informative, and appreciative study of cats of all breeds), the true appeal of the book is the stunning images.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
Seen on PopSci, the robot cheetah, developed by Boston Dynamics, set a new land speed record of 28.3 miles per hour –
The article also says that while the Cheetah runs tethered to an external power supply, they are about to launch the Wildcat which needs no external support. I have included the photos of the real cheetahs because this is Sappy Cat Blogging.
photo credit: Smithsonian
A little art history this week featuring:
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841–1919) was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty, and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that “Renoir is the final representative of a tradition which runs directly from Rubens to Watteau.”
In addition to feminine beauty and sensuality, he was also frequently painted cats.
Juliet Manet and Cat
Woman and Cat
Sleeping Cat
Reference:
Wikipedia
We often talk about the Dog Days of Summer, but August 17 marks the beginning of Cat Nights, which come with wonderful stories about witches and their cunning ways.
The Farmer’s Almanac describes Cat Nights:
The term “Cat Nights” harks back to a rather obscure old Irish legend concerning witches and the belief that a witch could turn herself into a cat eight times, but on the ninth time (August 17), she couldn’t regain her human form. This bit of folklore also gives us the saying, “A cat has nine lives.” Because August is a yowly time for cats, this may have prompted the speculation about witches on the prowl in the first place.
In addition, there are a number of feline constellations in the night sky at this time – Leo Major, Leo Minor and the Lynx all appear. More here at space.com.
Leo Major
Oh, yeah, my cats need this. More here at designer Seungji Mun’s website.
I found this cool chart of cat colors. Not new, but I found it interesting.
CATS IN SPACE – A Little Whimsey for Friday
Notice that they are all wearing red shirts – too bad about that. Thanks to Katie for this reference.
Thanks to Robb and Regan for this reference.
I have posted before about craft-cat connections. I do know someone who has knit objects from dog hair. In this book, the projects incorporate or are totally composed of hair that your cat is no longer using. Crafty recycling.
Firearms, fibers, any news or behaviors that make me say, "hmm, let me take another look at this."
I still miss my man, but my aim is getting better.
Gunsmoke and Knitting 