The early bird
“gets” the worm.
Category Animals, Creatures & Critters
There’s an Elephant in the Room – Self Isolation, Series ON!
If indeed you despair
Isolation needn’t be a bear
Find your own elephant
whose advice waxes eloquent
(not to mention relevant)
And if your friends are petulant
please share!
We’re all about self-care
Click on each image to read Elph’s guidance
First Week of Self Isolation
Second Week of Self Isolation
Third Week of Self Isolation
Elephant in the Room: It’s to dye for
Elephant says:
It’s a new day
time for a new do
a little color, a bit of spray
so the real you shines through
Click here for : The Elephant in the Room , Self Isolation and Self Indulgence
Click here for: The Elephant in the Room, Liven up your environment
Click here for: The Elephant in the Room,Self Isolation Selfies
The Elephant in the Room: Posing
Elephant Says:
Don’t be lame
Get off your bum
Stretch, don’t strain
calm your brain
Yoga-phant by Peggy
Click here for : The Elephant in the Room , Self Isolation and Self Indulgence
Click here for: The Elephant in the Room, Liven up your environment
Click here for: The Elephant in the Room,Self Isolation Selfies
Frankly Freddie – It’s her birthday!!!!!!!!!!
Dear all my Freddie Fans,
It’s Peggy’s birthday today
I won’t tell you her age
But she’s reached that stage
When considered a sage.
Tho no longer a pup
She still whoops it up
Please send her some “licks”
from your ruby red lips
Peggy by Peggy
Happy Birthday Peggy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From Freddie
L, L, L, L, L, L, L, L
L, L, L, L, L, L, L, L(air kisses)
The Elephant in the Room – Self Isolation: Veg About
The Elephant says:
Since it’s only us
Here’s our new plan
No need to cook
Eat out of the can.
Click here for: The Elephant in the Room,Self Isolation Selfies
Click here for : The Elephant in the Room , Self Isolation and Self Indulgence
Click here for: The Elephant in the Room, Liven up your environment
CATegorical Purrrrrspective
Everything I know about men, I learned from my CAT.
Happy cats need to have territory to mark as theirs . . . so . . . 
. . . give a man space to claim as his own . . . he’ll be one cool cat.
Calendar (small) from this series available on zazzle, click here
Frankly Freddie – Guide to World Peace & Goodwill toward All
My 5 simple rules EVERYONE should follow for Peece on Earth
and Goodwill toward Man
- Instead of raising arms, raise your leg. No one ever dies from a squirt of pee.
- Never bark at strangers, greet everyone with a friendly sniff . . . below their belt.
- Raise your tail, not your flag.
- Rolling over is not a sign of defeat, it’s an invitation for a belly rub.
- Don’t wait for others to scratch your back, give love.
Freddie Parker Westerfield, CDT RET
Wishing you a life of treats, back rubs and bowls of plenty.
Frankly,
Freddie Parker Westerfield, Canine Dog Therapist, RET.
“It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world.
The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”
See also: The Hope for Peace and a Prayer.
It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s SUPERMOUSE!
They created a Supermouse.
Superman can see the world in infrared. Humans can’t.
Mouse eyes, like human eyes, are limited to seeing “visible light”,
which makes up just a tiny portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.
SuperMouse by SuperPeggy
Researchers from the University of Science and Technology of China
and the University of Massachusetts Medical School developed an
“ocular nanoparticle” that can detect near-infrared light (NIR).
They injected it directly into the eyes of mice. Their study*
shows that the mice were given “super vision”, allowing them
to see beyond the visible spectrum, without any effects
on their regular vision.
The team ran the mice through a series of water Y-mazes in an effort
to determine whether they could make out visual patterns in infrared
light to find a hidden platform. They trained the mice to associate an
infrared light pattern with the platform and then tested both injected
mice and non-injected mice to see how they fared.Mice that did no
t receive the ocular injections only correctly found the platform 50 percent
of the time, but those with the nanoparticles in their eyes were abl
e to do so around 80 percent of the time even in the dark.
Moreover, the nanoparticles continued to work for up to 10 weeks
without any residual side effects or long-term damage to normal vision.
Because the new technology is compatible with regular vision,
it could provide a new way for mammalian vision enhancement
or even open up new avenues to repair normal vision —
the nanoparticles could be tweaked so they parse different
wavelengths or alter them to deliver drugs into the eye.
Frankly Freddie, Caption It! Part I
Dear Freddie Fans,
I’ve had a lot of time on my paws lately since P&J have not been walking with me because it’s been “raining”. (They are very delicate and don’t like to get their hair get frizzy or their tootsies cold. However, It rarely rains in Southern California. I suspect they turn the lawn sprinklers on.) So I’ve been amusing myself by imagining what the captions SHOULD have been on the pictures they draw.
Play along with me please – Create a Caption and I’ll post them to share with all my fans.
To get you started, here’s a few from my Canine & Feline Friends (who wish to remain anonymous so their humans don’t know they’ve been on the computer)
#1 Mouse and Mouse
“YOU ate my cheese!” “Prove it.”
Who does your whisker extensions?
***
#2 Mouse & Eleph
“Try washing it in hot water”
Post your captions in the comments please, I don’t do e-mail.
Frankly,
Freddie Parker Westerfield, CCH
Certified Canine Humorist & Roving Reporter
Freddie Parker Westerfield, Published Author
Frankly Freddie – Dog O’ Blog, Phineas
Unlike me who is very paws-on, Phineas prefers to manage his blog, doodlewash and all the affairs of his humans, Charlie & Phillipe behind the scenes. Cleverly, Phineas has assigned Charlie to do all the work and be the front-dog.
Water-color by Charlie
I suspect that Charlie tends to click the “publish button” without Phineas’ editorial approval. Why? Because almost ALL the pictures of Phineas are Charlie’s water-color paintings of him rather than photos.
Also, Charlie has jumped to some conclusions about Phineas that we canines would NEVER assume about humans.
Cases in point (I quote Charlie):
“Since he was a rescue found growing up on the tough streets of Topeka, Kansas, we assume he must have a very small town view of the world. This, combined with his rather wrinkled brow that makes it seem like he’s always a bit irritated with something and judging you, led to us deciding he’s also an extremely ultra-conservative Republican.”
Phineas maneuvered Charlie with the very clever ploy that all us smart canines all know:
” . . . this little Basenji has had a wonderfully unique personality from day one. I still remember going to the shelter and seeing a scraggly little dog with hair so coarse it would almost hurt to touch it. I sat down on the floor of his pen to get to know him and within seconds, he leapt into my lap, rolled on his back and stared up at me. If I was at all undecided, it was clear that Phineas had already made the decision for us. I looked down into those mischievous brown eyes that seemed to say, “Dude, let’s get the hell out of here.” And so we did.”
Phineas getting comfortable with Duckie
“Creative” is Charlie’s “gig” . . . we canines just know how to get comfortable
“His first bit of time spent in his crate, he tore the stuffing out of his bed, which doesn’t seem odd for a dog who is bored. However, after pulling out all of the stuffing, he then re-stuffed it into a different shape, which he found to be more desirable. It felt good knowing I had a dog who was also creative. Though already one and half years old when he arrived, he had the energy, curiosity and enthusiasm of a puppy. It seriously wore me out and made me crazy some days, but I couldn’t fault him as these were also traits we shared.”
Water-color by Charlie
Charlie, Charlie, Charlie . . .you are suffering from human naiveté – Phineas doesn’t “ASSUME”, he KNOWS.
“Phineas has quite a rich and complex life that’s quite easy to overlook while simply watching him snoring on the couch. When we have dinner parties, it’s referred to as Phineas Café, not because he actually cooks anything, but because he thinks he owns this restaurant. And he will go up to each guest and won’t leave until they tell him the dinner was wonderful or at least satisfactory. Indeed, his demeanor seems to say that he owns this house and all of its inhabitants as well. When I published my recent book, we imagine Phineas saying, “Oh, no! I’m an author now! How much can one little dog do?” He takes credit for everything that happens in our lives, and assumes he must be in charge of it in some way.“
Charlie O’Shields, Owned by Phineas
“I’m Charlie O’Shields, and I live in Kansas City, Missouri.I started doodlewash in July 2015 to capture little bits of the world in ink and watercolor. Even though I hadn’t picked up a pen to sketch in over 20 years and I’d only just used watercolor for the first time that day, I got super excited about it, and well, Doodlewash was born. (What’s a doodlewash? Click here!)”
“My posts are actually my art journal. . . paintings . . . all typically created in the precious little hour I’ve carved out for myself on a weekend or weekdays after work and before dinner!”
“You can also log into this site with your chosen social media provider and join the club! Doodlewash Club, to be exact. A totally free to join watercolor community where you can get your own artist profile, share your work in our global watercolor gallery, interact with other watercolor artists around the globe, and much, much, more!”
Freddie Parker Westerfield, Editor-in-Canine, Roving Reporter
Jessica SORTING LIFE’S ISSUES WITH JESS.
She is hosting Dogs of Blogs, of which I am one.
Freddie’s Dogs of Blogs Posts:
Doggone Well Done Dogs – Day 1
Phineas earns his badge of distinction
Frankly Freddie – Dogs of No Blogs, Day 2-1/2
Dear Freddie Fans,
Doggone Good Dogs* Buddy and Cookie Klenner
Alas, neither owns a blog.
They must ask their human why they are being deprived of having a public forum.
Can you tell which one is Buddy and which one is Cookie?
Freddie’s Dogs of Blogs Posts:
https://wp.me/pLGhj-aT0 – Day 22
Doggone Well Done Dogs – Day 1
*What’s a “Doggone Good Dog”?
- She or HE has weathered years of human’s life experience.
- She or HE has navigated changes – whether by choice, chance or necessity – and continues to adapt to human idiosyncrasy.
- She or HE contributes to the world by caring for humans, both female and male.
- She or HE is curious and open to having new tasting experiences.
Frankly, Freddie
Freddie Parker Westerfield, CDT RET
Jessica SORTING LIFE’S ISSUES WITH JESS.
She is hosting Dogs of Blogs, of which I am one.
model
Frankly Freddie, EYE with a VIEW
Dear my Freddie Fans,
It’s hard to get Peggy to show her art (she’s more humble than Judy who seems to relish posting nude humans). Peggy prefers nude animals.
She took these photographs at the San Diego Zoo,
a nudist camp if I ever saw one . . .
Peggy, clothed
Frankly,
Freddie Parker Westerfield, Roving Reporter
Fur Fun: Freddie’s Forwarning
You can’t be vain
dancing in the rain
for it’s a sure bet
your paws’ll get wet
your fur will matt
and you’ll looked like
a drowned cat
Survival Of The Laziest
Now, I’m no mollusk but I do know that as I’ve aged I’ve slowed down . . . along with my metabolism. Turns out this is GOOD news:
Less Active Species May Live Longer
“This is what a group of researchers from the University of Kansas found after taking a close look at some extinct as well as living species . . . analyzing the physiology and evolution of as many as 299 species of aquatic mollusks — including present-day snails and slugs — over last five million years.”
“They delved into the occurrences and extinction of different species over the said period as well as their respective metabolic rates or the amount of energy each of the creature in question needed for survival.”
“Much to everyone’s surprise, the findings of the work revealed that metabolic rates make a reliable factor for predicting the likelihood of extinction of a certain animal species or community of species.”
“We found a difference for mollusk species that have gone extinct over the past 5 million years and ones that are still around today. Those that have gone extinct tend to have higher metabolic rates than those that are still living . . . those that have lower energy maintenance requirements seem more likely to survive than those organisms with higher metabolic rates.”*
“Maybe in the long-term the best evolutionary strategy for animals is to be lassitudinous and sluggish — the lower the metabolic rate, the more likely the species you belong to will survive . . . Instead of ‘survival of the fittest,’ maybe a better metaphor for the history of life is ‘survival of the laziest’ or at least ‘survival of the sluggish.'”**
I was going to go for a brisk walk but I’ll take a nap instead and . . .
live to walk another day.
judy
*Luke Strotz, lead author of the study
**co-author Bruce Lieberman
From Freddie – Merry Critters to All
Freddie Parker Westerfield
A CANINE not a critter
Frankly Freddie – Here a nip, there a nip, everywhere a nip nip
Dear My Humans,
I’m upset. Judy & Peggy named their other blog CATNIP because they think catnip makes you feel mellow.
If naming the blog CATNIP isn’t bad enough, they dedicated CATNIPblog to Peggy’s cat Maui*.
Personally, I think catnip makes you crazy, drives cats wild with desire and the blog should be dedicated to me.
Tell Judy & Peggy to read this, come to their senses and see that their CATNIPblog is going to pot.
Maui Cat
DID you know what’s going on in your cat’s mind when exposed to catnip is similar to what happens to human minds on marijuana?
The oil within a catnip plant is what gives kitties the “high” feeling.
“Nepetalactone is a stimulant when sniffed by a cat, producing a “high”that is described as being similar to either marijuana or LSD. (don’t ask us how they figured this out),” veterinarian Jennifer Coates writes in PetMD:
“When a cat eats catnip, it acts as a sedative, but when smelled, it causes the cat to go crazy. It is thought to mimic feline pheromones and trigger those receptors.”
“Control the amount of catnip and let your cats know it’s better to nip responsibly at home rather than on the street and use it only on occasion since frequent use can lead to the loss of a cat’s ability to get “high”.
“Not all cats are affected by catnip. According to Cat Behavior Associates, the “catnip response” is hereditary, and one-third of all cats lack the gene that enables them to feel the high. Even a cat who does have the gene won’t be affected by catnip until they’re at least six months old.”
Catnip definitely won’t get you humans high (don’t even think about it . . . ), and don’t give your kitty a catnip treat for working so hard at protecting you in the bathroom and bringing you presents of mice and birds (we canines would never bring you vermin).
Peggy & judy want to help you find your mellow but if it drives you wild with desire for more CATNIP I won’t be pleased.
Frankly,
Freddie Parker Westerfield, B.E.
Blogger Extraordinaire
*CATNIPblog was inspired by and is dedicated to Peggy’s cat Maui who lived to prove the brain can be rewired and healing is possible.
Maui’s Healing Tale
RATS! Hunger, Chronic pain & Me
Those of you who have followed this blog or CATNIPblog know I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia in 1996. That’s approximately when my battle with eating too much – preferably carbohydrates mixed with liberal doses of refined sugar – began. I eat constantly throughout the day. If I’m bored, depressed, upset, happy, sad, tired, excited, I eat. My theory was I was self medicating, creating a dopamine surge in my brain to dull the fibro pain. Mice are now disproving my rationalization. Mice of all things. Who knew?
The Mouse “Knows” by judy
Penn neuroscientists have found that animals’ brains can suppress feelings of chronic pain when they are hungry.
The study, which was published in the science journal Cell, found that temporarily shutting down chronic pain is part of animals’ survival behaviors when searching for food.
According to a press release, approximately 300 neurons are capable of shifting the brain’s focus to hunger, thus eclipsing the effect of chronic pain.
The researchers apparently didn’t set out expecting that hunger would influence pain sensation so significantly, but when they saw these behaviors unfold, it made sense to them. “If you’re an animal, it doesn’t matter if you have an injury, you need to be able to overcome that in order to go find the nutrients you need to survive.”
The Penn team also discovered that the neurotransmitter NPY is primarily responsible for selectively suppressing pain responses. This research could potentially be applied in humans to ameliorate chronic pain after injuries and serve as an alternative to opioid medications.
Naked Mole Rat sez: “At your service. We rodents are here to help”.
Frankly Freddie, Flash Fiction
Since my human judy fractured her ankle all she does is sit around moaning and nothing I do can get her outside. So I take my Peggy for walks every day where we are inspired by nature which in turn inspires my creative writing endeavors.
P.S. Some of this story is auto-biographical but names have been eliminated so I don’t get sued.
Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a tree.(I frequently start my writing with “Once upon a time” as it lends a universal appeal to readers young and old.) Its trunk was crooked and all its bark was peeling. Big roots spread all around the tree, some deep in the earth and some growing above the ground. The Tree lived in a park with other trees of its own kind on the far edge of town. Every day many dogs of differing sizes and persuasions came to claim the tree as their territory.
One day, after years of being claimed,the tree yelled at a big black dog with pointy ears and a black nose sniffing around its roots, “I am NOT your territory!” The big black dog didn’t care what the tree thought, claimed it for its own and walked on looking for more territory.
Within minutes a little white dog with floppy ears and a wet nose sniffed out where the big black dog had been. “I am a tree not a fire hydrant!,” the tree yelled at the little white dog who ignored the tree, claimed it for its own and walked on looking for more territory.
The tree, ever alert for impending indignities, spotted a medium-sized dog with shaggy brown hair and a pink nose approaching. Finally, after many years of being claimed by many dogs, the tree figured out that actions speak louder than words. So it picked up its roots and walked away.
The end of my tail
Freddie Parker Westerfield, CDN Canine Dog Novelist
There’s a new post on Forest Bathing. Please tell judy she won’t need to take off her clothes or use soap or water. She can wear her big boot that protects her ankle and I’ll help her meander.
If you want to know what I’m talking about click here: FOREST BATHING
Weird Wonderful World – lizards with toxic green blood
Make no bones about it
It’s not easy being green
you must have grit, a bit of wit
and know it’s just your gene
But
if you are a Prasinohaema lizard
it’s quite natural, very easy
to have green blood and gizzard
and never, ever feel sleazy
“In the forests of New Guinea, lizards scurry around with green bones, green hearts, green tongues, and green blood. At least six species share this enigmatic trait, which didn’t originate from one bizarre mutation but evolved four different times, according to new research in Science Advances.”
“These lizards have green insides because their bile carries super high levels of a deadly compound called biliverdin, the product of old red blood cells. People make the same pigment—you can see it when you get a gnarly, green-tinged bruise —but our livers filter it from our blood. Trace amounts of biliverdin cause jaundice, a disease common in infants and adults with liver failure.”
The levels found in these lizards would kill us. But for these lizards, it sure is easy being green
“It’s possible there is no adaptive value,” says biologist Christopher Austin at Louisiana State University, “but it’s hard to imagine.” Over the course of 27 years, Austin, one of the authors of the study, has traveled to New Guinea in search of the bright green creatures. He’s captured hundreds of lizards by clamoring up trees and grabbing the critters. In his fieldwork, he discovered two new species, but he’s sure there are more. “New Guinea is like this black hole for biological discovery,” Austin says. “There’s no field guide.”
“Some species of fish and frogs also have green blood, but none come close to the levels of biliverdin found in Prasinohaema lizards
Austin’s effort to understand the lizards’ evolutionary history might explain why the heck toxic green blood would evolve in the New Guinea lizards more than once. One theory is that biliverdin could help fight off blood parasites, like malaria or blood-born worms, says Susan Perkins, a parasitologist at the American Museum of Natural History, another of the study’s authors.”
Yum Yum – Why you may have been eating insects your whole life
The thought of eating bugs doesn’t appeal to me, particularly if I can identify them on my plate – pulverized, unidentifiable, mushed in my food, doesn’t bother me. Now that I’ve read this article I stand somewhere in-between revulsion and delectable.
Tasty by judy
One of the most widely used red food colorings – carmine – is made from crushed up cochineal insects, native to Latin America where they live on cacti. Farmed mainly in Peru, millions of the tiny insects are harvested every year to produce the coloring.
A staple of the global food industry, carmine is added to everything from yoghurt, ice cream, to fruit pie, soft drinks, cupcakes and donuts. (the delectable part)
It is also used extensively in the cosmetics industry and is found in many lipsticks. (makes me not want to lick my lips)
Image copyright MARK WILLIAMSON/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY Cochineal insects, the white dots on this cactus, are found across Latin America
Here are the facts:
- The bugs, which are about 5mm or 0.2 inches long, are brushed off the pads of prickly pear cacti.
- It’s the wingless females that are harvested, rather than the flying males. (I’m bugged by this discrimination)
- The insects are dried and then crushed to produce the red coloring
- It takes up to 70,000 individual insects to produce just 500g of dye
- The red color comes from carminic acid, which makes up almost a quarter of the bugs’ weight, and deters predation by other insects (and promotes predation by humans)
“I’d love a mouthful”
Look for the word “carmine” on a food product that contains it or “natural red four”, “crimson lake” or E120.
Carmine is a very stable and reliable natural food dye that can be used to create a wide range of colours – pinks, oranges, purples, as well as reds.
Supporters also point out that it is a natural product first discovered and used by the Maya and then the Aztecs more than five centuries ago. They claim that it is far healthier than artificial alternatives such as food coloring, rings made from coal or petroleum by-products. (double yum)
Click here to read the entire article: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-43786055
Monkeying around
As YOU ALL know my favorite things to draw are nudes . . .
Swing from the trees
by your knees
On a whim
go out on a limb
Monkey see, monkey do
I dare you
Why do dogs have floppy ears?
But what’s behind this mysterious change? What possibly could link tameness and ear cartilage? Skunk Bear’s latest episode shares one fascinating hypothesis that ties it all together, and explains shortened snouts and patchy coats along the way.
Why do pets and livestock tend to have “drooping ears?”
“Wolves, for example, have perky, upright ears. But the ears of many dogs are distinctly floppy. Darwin saw this odd trait in many domesticated species — “cats in China, horses in parts of Russia, sheep in Italy and elsewhere, the guinea-pig in Germany, goats and cattle in India, rabbits, pigs and dogs in all long-civilized countries.”
“The incapacity to erect the ears,” Darwin concluded, “is certainly in some manner the result of domestication.”
“A century later, an ambitious (and adorable) experiment in the Soviet Union proved him right. At the time, Vladimir Lenin’s pseudo-scientific dogma had no room for classical genetics. So Russian geneticist Dmitry Belyayev disguised his own research as the study of animal physiology. He retreated to Siberia and attempted to domesticate the silver fox.”
“Belyayev took 130 foxes from fur farms and started a breeding program. He only picked the tamest foxes — those that seemed less jumpy around humans, and less likely to bite — as parents. When their pups were grown, he’d pick the tamest ones to breed again.”
“In just a few dozen generations, Belyayev’s foxes were tame. And, lo and behold, their ears were distinctly floppier. Just as Darwin suspected, the change in behavior had caused an unexpected change in appearance.”
Find Yourself in Hot Water
Rub a dub dub
Curious Critters in a tub
Blood pressure going down
Calories burning up
Meowie, Ant, Elf, Squeak & the pup
Hot tubing by Peggy
Full disclosure: this is a tease
Click here PLEASE
you’ll learn what’s in store
scientific evidence and more
(why hot baths are good for your health)
Easter Pome & “HEALTHY” Chocolate Brownie Recipe
This Easter be a vegetarian
It’s only utilitarian
don’t eat rats
or worms or bats
Celebrate the day
and eat hay
No chocolate covered ants
chow down on plants
No eggs fried
there’s a chick inside
Don’t EAT us few
and we won’t BUG you.
“Be kind to all people, love humanity, consider all mankind as your relations and servants of the most high God.”
Here’s our bribe
It’s hard to describe
Healthy Double Chocolate brownie recipe
Click here to imbibe
Family comes in all forms
My brother and sister-in-law’s wonderful dogs have recently passed. This is dedicated to Duffy & Ozzy and all the wonderful critters who bless us.
Ozzy & Duffy
Thanks LYN!!
“To blessed animals the utmost kindness must be shown, the more the better. Tenderness and loving-kindness are basic principles of God’s heavenly Kingdom. Ye should most carefully bear this matter in mind.”
Celebration, Confession and Happy Anniversary*
Noticed the new header? The critters are creations from CATNIPblog and the magnificently, masterful, murky minds of Peggy & me.
Tweeter, Woofer, Meowie, Squeakie & Grunter the Worm
Prisoner of Love
Here’s whatsup:
After retiring I have more and more time but, as you’ve noticed, there have been fewer and fewer posts on CURIOUS. I have a “tendency” to accomplish things when faced with deadlines and commitments. My other “tendency” is procrastination when left to my own devises.
Peggy, my co-collaborator on CATNIPblog, has provided both – deadlines & commitment. She sets up the posting schedule and my commitment to her provides the impetus.
Because Curious to the Max is my first love – been posting since 2009 – I’ve asked Peggy to help me schedule more CURIOUS posts. She agreed (without completely knowing what she was getting into) to help, although I have not relinquished editorial control. CURIOUS to the Max will stay true to: “Curious STUFF that makes me love, learn and laugh”
CATNIPblog will stay true to:
“Self-care tips, tools, techniques & neuroscience research for MIND, BODY & SOUL – shared with a wink and a smile”
Meowie
*P.S. Peggy and I, grateful for all the support and positive responses we’ve received, are holding a one-year-anniversary drawing from the list of all CATNIP’s subscribers. To get in on the drawing click here:
CATNIPblog.com
Frankly Freddie – Valentine’s Day Pome
Roses are red
Violets are blue
I’m not allowed chocolate
Valentine’s day . . . pooh
The only good thing about Valentine’s day is the candy and I never get any. I sit alone, no valentines, no candy, no romance. The only thing I get is dog food.
If you are sitting home alone on Valentine’s day with dog food you are not alone.
Freddie Parker Westerfield, Published Poet
___________________________________________________
Find out how:
Sugar Increases the “happiness” neurotransmitter serotonin.
Freddie Parker Westerfield, Published Poet
FAITHfully Yours – Anne Frank & Reflection
“One hour’s reflection is preferable to seventy years of pious worship”
Baha’u’llah
“How noble and good everyone could be, if every evening before falling asleep, they were to recall to their minds the events of the while day and consider exactly what has been good and bad. Then, without realising it, you try to improve yourself at the start of each new day; of course, you achieve quite a lot in the course of time. Anyone can do this, it costs nothing and is certainly very helpful. Whoever doesn’t know it must learn and find by experience that: “A quiet conscience makes one strong!”
Anne Frank, The Diary of Anne Frank: The Revised Critical Edition
Cat ‘n Mouse journaling by Peggy
“Prayer is like the spirit and material means are like the human hand. The spirit operateth through the instrumentality of the hand.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the Baha’i World Faith
___________________
One Human Family
The conviction that we belong to one human family is at the heart of the Bahá’í Faith. The principle of the oneness of humankind is “the pivot round which the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh revolve…”
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day-or-so something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
FAITHFULLY YOURS – Boundries, man & dog
“God has created the world as one—the boundaries are marked out by man.”
Earth by God. Woofer by judy
The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens”
“One of the great reasons of separation is colour. Look how this prejudice has power in America, for instance. See how they hate one another! Animals do not quarrel because of their colour! Surely man who is so much higher in creation, should not be lower than the animals. Think over this. What ignorance exists! White doves do not quarrel with blue doves because of their colour, but white men fight with dark-coloured men. This racial prejudice is the worst of all.”
“The Old Testament says that God created man like unto His own image; in the Qur’an it says: “There is no difference in the Creation of God!” Think well, God has created all, cares for all, and all are under His protection. The policy of God is better than our policy. We are not as wise as God”
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Baha’i World Faith
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day-or-so something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
FAITHfully Yours – Patience
“We must not only be patient with others, infinitely patient, but also with our own poor selves.”
‘Abdu’l-Baha, Baha’i World Faith
Judgement by Peggy, originally published on Pawsitively Tuesday
A Tidbit
The “Founder”, Bahá’u’lláh
(1817-1892)
Bahá’u’lláh—the “Glory of God”—is the Promised One foretold by . . . all of the Divine Messengers of the past. Bahá’u’lláh delivered a new Revelation from God to humanity. Thousands of verses, letters and books flowed from His pen. In His Writings, He outlined a framework for the development of a global civilization which takes into account both the spiritual and material dimensions of human life. For this, He endured 40 years of imprisonment, torture and exile.
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day-or-so something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
FAITHfully Yours – Soul Music
We, verily, have made music as a ladder for your souls, a means whereby they may be lifted up unto the realm on high…
We could glean, then, that the reason music is so powerful, whether we are conscious of it or not, is that it has an effect on our soul, and that ultimately its purpose is to uplift us.
Baha’u’llah, Baha’i World Faith
A Baha’i Bit
Baha’is accept the validity of each of the founders and prophets of the major world religions, whose teachings have provided the basis for the advancement of civilization – Abraham, Krishna, Zoroaster, Moses, Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. Bahá’u’lláh, the latest of these Messengers, explained that the religions of the world come from the same Source and are in essence successive chapters of one religion from God.
http://bahaiteachings.org/bahai-faith
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day (or so) something related to or inspired by Baha’i Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
the hashtag #bahaiblogging
FAITHfully Yours – The Truth of Thought
“Your beliefs become your thoughts, Your thoughts become your words, Your words become your actions, Your actions become your habits, Your habits become your values, Your values become your destiny.” In other words, thoughts are most certainly things”
Gandhi
Food for Thought
Baha’is believe in the independent investigation of reality, and encourage everyone to question dogma, tradition and superstition by embarking on a personal search to discover the truth
http://bahaiteachings.org/bahai-faith
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day (or so) something related to or inspired by Baha’i Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
the hashtag #bahaiblogging
FAITHfully Yours on this day of giving Thanks
“Shed the light of a boundless love on every human being whom you meet, whether of your country, your race, your political party, or of any other nation, colour or shade of political opinion. Heaven will support you while you work in this in-gathering of the scattered peoples of the world beneath the shadow of the almighty tent of unity.”
Baha’u’llah, The Baha’i World Faith,
“All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness the important thing is they should be part of our daily lives.”
The Dalai Lama
“But now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”
1 Corinthians 13:13
Sending all of you much love,
judy
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day-or-so something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
FAITHfully Yours – Courage to Love
“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength…loving someone deeply gives you courage.”
Taoism
Courageous Love is the Gift, by Peggy
The Baha’i Faith is the world’s second-most widespread religion after Christianity, spanning the globe and working to unite it. Baha’is have no clergy or churches, gathering together in democratically-led communities and welcoming everyone.
The millions of Baha’is in the world come from every ethnicity, nationality, tribe, age, racial group, religious background and economic and social class. Diverse Baha’i communities exist just about everywhere.
http://bahaiteachings.org/bahai-faith
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day (or so) something related to or inspired by Baha’i Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
the hashtag #bahaiblogging
FAITHfully Yours – Reflect on this
One hour’s reflection is preferable to seventy years of pious worship
Baha’u’llah, Baha’i World Faith
Refection, Woofer Sitting Pretty by judy
A Morsel of Baha’i
Baha’is follow the teachings of Baha’u’llah, (the Glory of God) who proclaimed the Baha’i Faith during the middle of the 19th Century, and who taught world peace, the oneness of all humanity and the essential unity of all religions.
http://bahaiteachings.org/bahai-faith
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day (or so) something related to or inspired by Baha’i Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
the hashtag #bahaiblogging
FAITHfully Yours – War no More
“Peace demands the most heroic labor and the most difficult sacrifice. It demands greater heroism than war. It demands greater fidelity to the truth and a much more perfect purity of conscience”.
Thomas Merton
Antiquated & Outdated by judy
A Baha’i Bit
The Baha’i Faith has no clergy. Instead, a distinctive system of democratically-elected councils at the local, national and international levels administer and guide Baha’i communities.”
“This unprecedented administrative order, fundamentally different from any other system of religious or political authority, has now become the first functioning system of democratic global governance, vesting power and initiative in the entire body of the believers worldwide.”
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day-or-so something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
FAITHfully Yours – More than one way to pray
“Prayer need not be in words, but rather in thought and attitude… words without love mean nothing.”
Abdu’l-Bahá
Loving Touch by Peggy
Baha’i Tidbit
The Baha’i Faith, the world’s newest independent global belief system, teaches the oneness of God, the unity of humanity and the essential harmony of all religions.
During the month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day-or-so something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
FAITHfully Yours – The Heart of it All
“God does not look at colours; He looks at the hearts.”
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, (Baha’i World Faith)
Soul Mates by Peggy & Judy
We think it fitting to start our November blogging challenge* with”Heart”.
A Bit of Baha’i
“Every human being possesses an immortal, rational soul that passes through this world for a brief time and continues for eternity to advance towards God. Our life’s purpose is to progress spiritually by serving our fellow human beings. In doing so, we acquire the divine qualities we will need in the life to come.“
http://bahaiteachings.org/bahai-faith
www.bahai.org
*During the remaining month of November, Baha’i Blogging is hosting a post-a-day (or so) something related to or inspired by Faith. Because so many of you follow both this blog and CATNIPblog Peggy & I will post our “dailies” here and Sunday “retrospectives” on CATNIPblog.com
The hashtag is #bahaiblogging.
Frankly Freddie – Halloween Orange Alert
To all Human-beings: It’s time for my Halloween ORANGE-ALERT.
This Halloween
Don’t be mean!
Don’t you dare
make others stare
Dressing up
your precious pup
Please be fair!
just let us wear
our own hair.
Example of suspicious clothing
To All my Canine Cousins:
Be on the look-out for your human coming back from the store with suspicious articles of clothing and paraphernalia that is NOT THEIR color, style or size. If they start sweet-talking you or offering you treats RUN for your life & HIDE.
Example of humiliation.
No matter how many times I HAVE TOLD HUMANS not to humiliate us because they want to be amused it happens every year. I prefer to think that Humans just aren’t very smart and have no memory retention beyond a few hours rather than the possibility they are simply insensitive creatures with no regard for our feelings.
Frankly,
Freddie Parker Westerfield, PIC&C
Protector of Innocent Creatures & Critters
and Kittys & Witches
Happy HALLOWEDeen
Hocus Pocus
Let’s all focus
No room for mean
on Halloween
Fly’n High by Peggy
Let love fly high
and fill the sky
reposted from http://CATNIPblog.com
a judy pome
a peggy picture
Inktober Unmasked
Mardi Gras Meowie
Oct 31 Prompt MASK
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
INKTOBER – THE END!
Inktober – Happy Halloween
Lost and Found
Oct 30 Prompt FOUND
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Inktober Conga Line Kitties
United We Stand, United We Dance
Oct 29 Prompt, UNITED
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Inktober is “Falling”
Falling (literally & figuratively) Asleep
Oct 28 Prompt FALL
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Inktober – Climb
Up a Tree
Oct 27 Prompt CLIMB
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Squeaky Inky Tober
A Squeaky Mouse Gets the Cheese
Oct 26 prompt SQUEAK
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Ink Dinky Dinghy
I Spy Matey Meowie
Oct 25 Prompt SHIP
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
One Blind Mouse
Oct 24 Prompt BLIND
Posting a drawing a day on Curious to the Max with a once-a-week Sunday-7 Day Retrospective on CATNIPblog for those of you who just want to click- off the dailies!
http://mrjakeparker.com/inktober
Inktober – Saucy is as Juicy Does
MEEE YOW EEE! Meowie
Oct 23 Prompt JUICY
CURIOUS to the MAX 