Cat Sitter in the City

This Birthday Cake Is The Cat's Meow!

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:55:00 +0000

Today is Whoopi Goldberg's birthday, and she was surprised with the best birthday cake ever on The View. Knowing how much Whoopi loves her cat Oliver, Duff Goldman of Ace of Cakes and his crew made her a cake that looked a little sloppy so it appeared as though Oliver had nibbled on it.
As regular readers of Cat Sitter in the City will recall, my cat Charlotte (pictured above) recently helped herself to my birthday cake when I wasn't looking. What is it with cats and cake?
Whoopi's cake took five days to make and includes layers of carrot and chocolate cake.
The cat isn't edible, by the way. I couldn't quite make out what was said when Duff was asked what the cat was made of, but he wisely noted, "You make an animal, you don't really want to cut its head off and eat it. It's your cat."

Cat Sitter In The City Purchases A Work Of Art

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:01:00 +0000

I somehow stumbled across artist Helen Dardik's Orange You Lucky blog yesterday and fell in love with her colorful illustrations. Many of them feature cats, so I made my way over to her Etsy site and purchased this "Make Time for Tea" print. Isn't it adorable?

A Suitor Comes A Callin' For My Cat Charlotte

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:00:00 +0000

Charlotte was sunning herself in the kitchen yesterday when a visitor appeared at the door to the deck...
"Hello. I'm Rolf. Is anybody home?"
"Come out, come out, wherever you are."
"HELLLLOOOOOOO!"
"I heard you. You don't have to shout. What do you want?"
"I want to love you. PYT. Pretty young thing..."
"You've got to be kidding me."

The Whole Kitten And Caboodle

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:16:00 +0000

Like many felines, my cat Charlotte loves cardboard boxes. Every time I order something from Amazon or Zappos, Charlotte lays claim to the cardboard boxes my purchases arrive in. But I hate having cardboard boxes strewn all over the apartment, so I think I just might invest in Caboodle corrugated (by the way, I just noticed that corrugated is spelled wrong in the image next to this post, and it is driving me crazy!) cardboard habitats for cats. I stumbled upon the Caboodle site this morning and was impressed. You can stack Caboodles, which are made of heavy gauge corrugated cardboard, to create different structures, and you can also customize them with your own art work.

This Is Why Cat Owners Can't Sleep Late

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:12:00 +0000

Moz' mom posted this "Life With A Cat" video on Facebook today. It makes me laugh every time I watch it.

Meet Japan's Famous Hatch-chan

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 23:48:00 +0000

How gorgeous is this cat? His name is Hatch-chan, and he writes a blog that is incredibly popular in Japan. Despite the fact that I can't understand a word of it, I plan to keep visiting his blog just so I can look at the beautiful photos of Hatch-chan. This former stray cat actually has his own line of merchandise and has appeared on Japanese talk shows.

Don't Let Them Eat Cake

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:10:00 +0000

I left the kitchen for one minute and returned to find my cat Charlotte eating my birthday cake!
When I confronted Charlotte, she said, "Sorry. I thought the cake was for everyone."

Then she quickly added, "Happy birthday, Mommy. I love you...even if you won't share you birthday cake with me."

Happy Birthday, Hello Kitty!

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 13:27:00 +0000

Sanrio's Hello Kitty turns 35 today. According to her bio on the Sanrio site, Hello Kitty was born on November 1 and lives in London with her parents and her twin sister Mimmy. To be honest, I think she's a little old to still be living with her parents, but maybe her cut of the Hello Kitty product line profits is a lot smaller than I thought.

Anyway, today is also my birthday. Could it be a coincidence that Hello Kitty and Cat Sitter in the City share the same birthday? I don't think so!

Cat Sitter In The City Casting Update

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:45:00 +0000

I would like to alert Cat Sitter in the City readers to a potential casting change in the inevitable Cat Sitter in the City movie.

I have long said that Saturday Night Live's Kristen Wiig would play me in the inevitable Cat Sitter in the City movie. I have no doubt that Kristen would be interested in the role of a busy New York City cat sitter given that it would allow her to show off not only her comedic chops but her dramatic flair. It would also give her a chance to work with cats.

But I now worry that Kristen might be too busy to play the part. After all, she is doing tons of movies these days, most recently playing a starring role in Drew Barrymore's directorial debut Whip It.

So I have decided that if Kristen cannot commit to the Cat Sitter in the City film due to scheduling conflicts or even the sudden onset of cat allergies (and this happens all the time in show business), I would like to offer the role of me in the inevitable Cat Sitter in the City movie to Ellie Kemper (pictured above) of The Office.

Ellie, who only joined The Office last season, is really starting to shine in the role of Dunder Mifflin receptionist Kellie "Erin" Hannon, and I think she has the wit and charm to play me much more convincingly than I could ever play myself.

What do you readers think? If Kristen can't play me in the inevitable Cat Sitter in the City movie, do you think Ellie would be a good choice for the role?

Killer Cats Go On The Attack In The Uncanny

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:50:00 +0000

If you are looking for a scary movie to watch with your cat on Halloween, try to get your hands on a copy of The Uncanny.

Shot in Montreal where my cat Charlotte and I are spending the next few weeks, the low-budget horror film from 1977 centers on an author who is trying to sell his publisher on a book of stories about killer cats.

One of my favorite lines from the trailer: "There are millions of them everywhere...spying on us...watching...waiting. When will they pounce?"

According to a review of The Uncanny on Canuxploitation, a guide to Canadian B movies, "If time spent with cats is never wasted, then truly, The Uncanny remains one of the most extraordinary feline horror films ever let out of the bag."

Rumi Service For Two At The Saint-Sulpice Hotel

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:38:00 +0000

As I noted in my last post, my cat Charlotte and I have temporarily left Manhattan for Montreal. Montreal is the second-largest city in Canada, although my father has apparently never heard of it. When I told him I was coming to Montreal for a few weeks, he asked, "Montreal...is that in Toronto?"
Anyway, I was sad to leave my New York City cat sitting clients behind even for a little while (thankfully, my best friend/partner in cat sitting T is taking care of all of them). But I was thrilled when I found out that one of my cat sitting clients, Rumi, would be coming to Montreal with his parents. They were just here this weekend, and they stayed at the pet-friendly Saint-Sulpice Hotel (pictured above) in Old Montreal. The hotel is situated right behind the Notre-Dame Basilica (you can see it in the picture), which is where Céline Dion and her husband René Angélil were married. I am sure the beautiful basilica is famous for other things, but that's pretty much all I know about it.
Back to Rumi, I hung out at the hotel with my handsome little friend on Saturday and Sunday while his parents visited friends and attended Alana and Rob's wedding. (Congratulations, Alana and Rob!) I loved that Rumi was staying in a hotel where pets are truly welcome. He looked like he was so at home in the room.
I also loved the "Meow" tag hanging on the door to the room, alerting hotel staff to Rumi's presence. What a great idea.
Rumi and I had a lot of fun hanging out in the hotel room. He brought one of his mouse toys with him, and we played with it in the bathtub just like we do when he is at home in New York City.
I also let him drink water out of the sink just like I do when he is at home. As you can see, he stopped for a moment to check himself out in the mirror. I bet he was thinking something like, "I love my cat sitter. She's the best."
We wanted to do something really Canadian during our time together, so we watched curling on TV. I thought it was interesting, and I would love to take curling lessons while I am in Canada if that is possible.
Rumi wasn't as interested in the curling as I was (okay, even I lost interest after awhile), and he passed out on the couch while we were watching the match.

Bonjour, Cat Sitter In The City Readers

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:04:00 +0000

We couldn't afford to spend the fall/winter in Tahiti, so my cat Charlotte and I have come up to Montreal for a few weeks.

I was having a great time until I fell down a long, exterior flight of stairs (Montreal is famous for them) last night while clutching Chico the schnoodle to my chest. (Remember Chico? He stayed with me and Charlotte in New York City last summer.)

I whacked my head.

My butt is black and blue, and I am sore today.

But I think I am okay.

Luckily, Chico emerged from the accident shaken but unscathed.

Meanwhile, Charlotte is having a fantastic time. In fact, I've never seen her so happy.
I bought her a cardboard cat cabin (made right here in Quebec) so she'd have a special place to call her own.
Still, she enjoys napping with her friend Chico, who was shocked but happy to see her.
Jinga, the cute kitty who lives next door, recently stopped by to introduce herself. Jinga's mom J.J. is a famous baker known all over Montreal's Mile End for her delicious bread. She was recently profiled on a great blog called Mile Endings.
While Charlotte gets to know Jinga, I am looking forward to seeing an old friend from New York City tomorrow. Rumi the adorable abyssinian is on his way to Montreal as I write this. His parents just sent the picture above from the road.

They are coming up to attend a wedding, and I get to spend the weekend hanging out with Rumi in a hotel in Old Montreal.

I can't wait to see him!

All Hail Martha Stewart's Gorgeous New Kitties

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:17:00 +0000

Congratulations, Martha Stewart. The domestic doyenne and famed animal lover has added two kitties to her brood. The calico Persians, whom Stewart recently introduced via her blog, are named Empress Tang and Princess Peony.

What regal names. I wonder if I should give my cat Charlotte a title. How does Queen Charlotte sound? Or maybe Duchess Charlotte?

On second thought, forget the regal name. I've never been a big fan of royalty anyway, and I am still smarting after being snubbed by Prince Charles when I visited England last year.

Cat Sitters Say The Darndest Things

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 18:44:00 +0000

I accompanied a friend last night as she met a guy who wanted to buy some items she had for sale on Craigslist. They were making small talk, and she asked him what he did, and he said he was getting a PhD in English literature.

I interjected, "I have a PhD...in cat love."

After an awkward silence and uncomfortable glances my way, they continued their conversation.

I kept quiet the rest of the time.

The Things That Cats Will Eat

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:57:00 +0000

If you are missing any ponytail elastics or Easter grass, you might want to take a look inside your cat's stomach.

Humo, a cat sitting client pictured here, ingested six ponytail elastics and a clump of old Easter grass, all of which was removed from his stomach during a surgical procedure that cost his parents $2,500.

I once swallowed a quarter when I was a kid. Thankfully, I didn't require costly surgery because the quarter came out in my poop.

Nikki Finke's Feline Earns A Mere Mention In Lengthy New Yorker Feature Story

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:49:00 +0000

If I find any fault with The New Yorker's profile of entertainment biz reporter Nikki Finke, who writes Deadline Hollywood Daily, it's that the story doesn't go into any detail on Finke's relationship with her cat Blue. The cat is mentioned, but we don't find out how long Finke has had Blue, how the two came together and, most importantly, the role the cat plays in Finke's writing and reporting.

Meanwhile, the author of the story, Tad Friend, goes to great lengths to include anecdotes and quotes from the likes of Imagine's co-chair Brian Grazer, Universal president and chief operating officer Ron Meyer and David Geffen.

But hardly anything on Blue. That's just lazy reporting.

That said, the piece does feature a beautiful color illustration of Finke and Blue.

Feline Chocolatey Goodness From Godiva

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:25:00 +0000

Doesn't this milk chocolate Godiva cat look delicious? The feline dubbed Lucky is being sold as a Halloween treat, but I think he should be available all year round.

Who Knew The iPhone Was Feline Friendly?

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:28:00 +0000

My cat Charlotte sent her first text this weekend. R. left her iPhone on the table and returned to find Charlotte standing on it, moving her paws up and down.

Charlotte had sent the following message to R.'s friend A.:

Savvy)lpoo

I wonder what this means? A. does have an adorable 7-week-old son. Could it be that Charlotte was trying to tell her to check his diaper for poo?

I'm Keeping A Secret From My Cat Charlotte

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:15:00 +0000

I just made an appointment for my cat Charlotte to get her yearly physical and dental cleaning done in a couple of weeks. She has no idea that I have made the appointment, and I don't plan to tell her until the last minute because she'll give me a hard time about it like she did last year.

Two-Story Tall Charlotte Disappears

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:06:00 +0000

I have always loved this mural, which is near my East Village apartment. It was painted by the muralist Chico, whose amazing work is all over the neighborhood.

I love how the cat in the mural looks so much my cat Charlotte. Every time I see it, I feel a twinge of pride even though, technically, the cat isn't actually Charlotte.
Do you see the resemblance? Or is it just me?
Unfortunately, this mural is no more. One of my favorite East Village bloggers, EV Grieve, who took the photo above, reports that the mural was whitewashed over the weekend.

Farewell, Two-Story Tall Charlotte. I'll miss seeing you every day.

Cat Sitter In The City Meets The Wise One

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:31:00 +0000

I was walking down Avenue A in the East Village when I spotted a gray cat who was offering readings. I dubbed him The Wise One.
"Where's your crystal ball?" I asked The Wise One.

"I'm sitting on it," he replied. "I like to keep it warm."

"Oh, I've never heard of anyone doing that."

"I'm not your typical psychic," The Wise One said. "Come closer, and I'll tell you what your future holds."

"Not today. I don't have $5."

"I'll give you a freebie," he said. "You look like a cat lover."

"I am a cat lover. In fact, I'm a cat sitter."

"Yeah, you look like one."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just come closer so I can do your reading," The Wise One said.

A few moments passed.

"So what do you think? What do you see in my future?"

"Hold on, I'm looking," The Wise One said. "It's hard to see your future through all of the cat hair on my crystal ball."
"Wow. Wowweee! Whoa!"

"What do you see?"

"Nothing. I'm not a psychic. I'm just the cat who belongs to the psychic. Sucker!"

Calling All Laser Cats

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:19:00 +0000

I had an eventful Labor Day Weekend. Yesterday, I saw Andy Samberg as he sat in front of a bakery on Ninth Avenue. I love Saturday Night Live, and Andy appears in those Laser Cats skits on SNL. I wanted to stop and tell him that only a few days before I was holding my cat sitting client Rumi like a gun and pretending that I was shooting lasers out of his left arm, but, well, you can't really share that with a stranger without looking insane, so I decided it was best to keep that information to myself.

I could have used a laser cat on Saturday when I was threatened in the West 4th Street subway station. I had just gotten off the F train and was waiting for the E train on my way to visit Juba for breakfast. It was early, and there weren't a lot of people around. I spied a woman at the end of the platform, and I decided not to walk down her way because I had a bad feeling about this chick. My friend R says I have the instincts of a jungle cat, and apparently I was right about this woman because she made her way toward me with two men and announced that she was going to take my bag as she approached. She didn't actually tell me she was going to take my bag. She loudly told her friends while she stared at me. "I'm going to take her bag," she said. "I wonder what she's got in it."

Of course, my first thought was, "She can't take my bag. I have keys to my cat sitting clients' apartments in it!"

I quickly sketched out a battle plan in my head, deciding I would grab her by the little hair she had on her head, then shove her onto the subway tracks, knowing full well that it would never go down that way. This woman stood at least three inches taller than me and outweighed me by fifty pounds.

Thankfully, her two male friends talked her out of robbing me, and I didn't have to fight for my cat keys. Yes, I would have lost, but I would have put up a good fight. If only I really did have a laser cat.

Ziti Cat Turns Attention To Undergarments

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:00:00 +0000

My cat sitting client Rumi aka Ziti Cat isn't just interested in stealing food. He will also swipe undergarments if given the opportunity. My best friend/partner in cat sitting T, who did a sleepover with Rumi the other night, informs me that the adorable abyssinian stole her bra. "I was getting out of bed, and Rumi jumped up on the dresser, and I saw him knock all of my stuff to the floor," T reports. "Later, I realized my bra was missing. He had dragged it into the living room."

Rumi isn't he only animal interested in bras. His mom reports that a monkey stole her bra when she was in the Peruvian jungle last year.

Charlotte's Fountain Finds A New Home

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:47:00 +0000

As regular readers of Cat Sitter in the City know, I bought my cat Charlotte a Drinkwell fountain hoping she would drink more water. I thought it was a nice thing to do for my cat, but Charlotte was terrified of the fountain as you can see in the photo above. She approached it as if a land mine was buried underneath, wouldn't get closer than a foot to it and never drank from it.

So I finally packed up the fountain and sent it to my friend Nancy's cat Nermal, and he loves it. I am glad someone is enjoying it!

Cat Sitter In The City Captures The Kiss

catsitterinthecity@gmail.com (Cat Sitter in the City) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 17:23:00 +0000

Every time I go to visit Moz, the sweet, soulful little guy greets me with a kiss. I walk in the door, I bend down, he puts his two front paws on my knee, and he stretches upward, pressing his little mouth against mine. It is so cute. I have long tried to get a picture of him in the act, but it is tough because I have to hold the camera out with my right arm and hope I get the timing and the angle right. Also, Moz will only do the kiss once, right at the start of the visit, so there aren't any second chances. Today, I finally captured the kiss.
Here is another picture of Moz so you can get a better look at his handsome face. I kiss this cat...and I like it!