Aby-a-Day – 22 Februari: An outdoor adventure (Hipstamatic Monday)

It was a balmy 10°C (50°F) today, so Lorelai, Alfred; Izaak and I went outside for a little bit. This was the first time we’d been out for a few weeks, and I think we all needed it. I also wanted to check out the new “pond” at the bottom of the hill. I wonder how long it will last?

Freddy and Zak checked out their dustbowl tree, but it was too muddy for rolling.

The ground was kind of muddy and slushy, but they had fun reacquainting themselves with the outside.

Freddy and Rory investigated a metal drain cover. Freddy tried to roll on it, but I didn’t manage to catch it with my camera.

Then they had to check out the back of the building.

There’s still ice on the lake, but I think it’ll melt soon. I also managed to include a magpie in the photo.

Rory noticed it when it flew away.

There’s definitely signs that spring is coming. The bulb plants are starting to sprout.

We do still have a pile of snow. Which, of course, Rory had to climb it.

The only thing they do about snow here is throw gravel on it (I really miss the snow melting stuff they used in Boston because gravelly snow is really hard to walk on). I think Rory got a piece of gravel caught in her paw pads.

Since Rory was checking out the snow pile, Zak had to check it out as well.

Finally, we all went back inside…but Rory still wanted to explore. She was the last one to go back into our apartment.

Aby-a-Day – 22 Januari: Feel the Bern! (Photoshop Friday)

The best thing to come out of the Presidential Inauguration on Wednesday (apart from the obvious, of course), was this image of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders in full-on New England winter gear, including mittens made from recycled materials by one of his constituents. The minute the cameras turned on Bernie, Twitter and the internet went berserk (in a good way).

When I saw Bernie, the first thing I thought of was Logan in his coat. I thought maybe Bernie just needed some company at the Inauguration.

But then I realised that the real meme is more about putting Bernie in places, including practically any place on Earth. So…Here’s Bernie sitting in my front yard, watching Jacoby and Olaf.

Bernie loves him some Social Democracy, but maybe Sweden’s a little too far away for him to commute from his day job. Better keep him in New England. He seems like he’d enjoy Rolling Bridge Park. And if you were wondering what Bernie’s reaction is to all this, Seth Myers asked him about that, and here’s what he had to say.

Aby-a-Day – 18 Januari: “I climbed a tree to see the world” (Movie Monday)

When we were outside yesterday, I noticed that Izaak’s tree was looking pretty darn picturesque with all the snow and everything. Zak loves to pose in that tree, so I thought we’d have a little photo session.

I was right.

Since I lost Jacoby, Zak is pretty much my best poser. I can put him in his tree, and he’ll stay there and let me snap photos.

He really likes this tree. It’s just the right height, and it has a little spot between the branches that he feels quite comfortable in.

People were sledding down the hill, and Zak watched them from his vantage point.

For being an engineered purebred cat, he looks really natural in a snowy tree. I love the snow flakes frosting his fur.

I also love that I am reflected in his eyes.

After he got down from his tree. I made a little video of him walking back to our front door.

Aby-a-Day – 17 Januari: Let’s go outside! (Swedish Cinema Sunday)

We went outside with the cats today. Lorelai was the most eager, as usual…

She has zero fat and thin, sleek fur, but she doesn’t seem to feel the cold at all.

The boys, on the other hand, kind of hovered by the door.

Finally, Alfred decided to explore. Seeing as he’s got the most insulation, he should do…

Our upstairs neighbours were outside sledding. Oksana is always happy to see Freddy.

He and Rory explored their sleds.

Eventually, everyone decided they had had enough snow and wanted to go back inside.

I also made a little video of our outing. Enjoy!

Aby-a-Day – 14 Januari: More snow, more fun (Thursday Things)

Since I posted last week, we’ve had a bit more snow here. I took the cats outside again on Tuesday; it was actually rather warm and the snow was perfect and not too wet or icy.

Lorelai, of course, went pelting off into the whiteness.

The boys, however, were less enthusiastic (and yes, I made Dashiell come out with us).

Eventually, Alfred stretched his legs.

Dash even took a little walk around the building.

Izaak…was displeased.

Rory, on the other hand, was playing with the snow.

She was having so much fun out there.

One cool thing happened, though. Watching Rory run, I saw some movement in the background. At first I thought it was Freddy, but it was a hare! I wish one of the cats had seen it, though. I’d love to see what their reaction would be!

Aby-a-Day – 13 Januari: Wordless Wednesday (Magpies and cats in the snow)

Aby-a-Day – 10 Januari: The second day at the Swedish CFA show (Swedish Cat Show Sunday)

The second day of that Swedish CFA show was as much fun as the first, both for us and for Jacoby.

We had a lot of judges come over from the US. At this point, I had only been in Sweden for six months, so it was fun to see some familiar faces and hear some familiar accents.

This judge, Albert Kurkowski, was one of the few non-American, non-CFA judges; he was from Poland, and he was a guest judge from the World Cat Federation.

I really enjoyed watching him handle Jake.

There was a really pretty little Burmilla girl who was frequently benched next to us during judging.

She reminded me a bit of Tessie.

This judge, Inga Balciuniene, was also a WCF guest judge from Latvia.

Pam DeLaBar is a CFA judge who lives in Finland. I actually hadn’t ever seen her at a show in the States. It’s nice having another ex-pat in the cat fancy.

And our friend Russell Webb was there, too. He was always Jake’s lucky charm.

Jake was Second Best cat in Premiership in Russell’s ring.

As we did Saturday, when Jake got a little antsy we went outside to play in the snow. This time, I didn’t bother with the harness and leash. I figured, how far is he going to get in that deep snow.

Famous last words.

He started making off towards a little house. He went pretty far really quickly, too! I was surprised how hard he was to catch.

I finally caught him, though.

The cats we have now are awesome, and a lot of fun to show…but I still miss going to shows with Jake.

Aby-a-Day – 9 Januari: Scenes from a Swedish CFA show (Swedish Cat Show Saturday)

I never did post the photos from the CFA show we went to in 2017 I was reminded of yesterday.

Jacoby seemed delighted to be back at a CFA show after competing in a few FIFe shows.

And our friend Teresa Keiger seemed delighted to see Jake on her judging table again.

Many CFA judges enjoyed showing off Jake’s “hands off” style on the judging table, and Teresa is one of them.

People never got over how he loved to just stand and pose on the table, with absolutely no desire to run off.

Jake really loved CFA shows.

Even so, later in the day Jake started getting a little antsy, so we took him outside to play in the snow.

The snow was fresh and wicked deep.

I think Jake was happy for a break outside…but a little taken aback by how much snow there was.

That didn’t stop him from exploring, though.

He even plowed his way to a chain link fence.

When he got there, he gripped the links and looked out through the fence.

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It was strangely reminiscent of the way he loved to look through the chain link fence in our little park along the Harborwalk back in Boston.

After the first day of showing was over, we settled into our hotel. Jake knew where his food was!

Jake and Björn chilled on the bed watching TV.

There happened to be a documentary about cats on TV that night!

Jake was very interested in it and watched intently. It was so cute!

Aby-a-Day – 7 Januari: Snow day! (Thursday Things)

So, as you saw yesterday, we finally got a little bit of snow.

Alfred, along with Lorelai and Izaak (who haven’t been outside in forever) were eager to get out, even if there was snow on the ground.

Rory, of course, burst out the door. She never seems to feel the cold at all.

Zak was happy to be outside, but he wasn’t happy about the cold. He mostly stuck close to the building.

You can see the difference in their happiness about being out.

Freddy immediately went around back to check out his bush. There wasn’t much to check out.

At one point, Rory couldn’t hold it in anymore, and she burst off in her signature flying joyful bound.

Look at her go! It doesn’t matter if it’s cold and snow-covered or the hottest day of summer…she loves to run outside.

Eventually, she came trotting back to the shelter of the building.

“Well? Was it fun?”

Freddy also took off in his goofy gallop, and Zak followed behind him.

We didn’t stay outside for very long, because it was breezy and felt colder than the -2°C that it actually was.

Markis was also outside enjoying the snow.

As were the neighbourhood children. Despite there being barely enough snow to cover the grass, they were all out there sliding down our hill.

Aby-a-Day – 6 Januari: Wordless Wednesday (It finally snowed…kind of)

Aby-a-Day – 20 December 2020: Surprise! Another final! (Cinema Cat Show Sunday)

Surprise! On Friday, when I posted about Jacoby’s victories in the “Haute Cat-ture” category, I didn’t realise that there were two judges in the competition. So Jake won AGAIN, earning 6th place in Millenial Exhibitors Judge Romain Attard’s “ring.”

You can see him narrating his final on YouTube.

Aby-a-Day – 6 November 2020: Do you want to build a snowman? (Friday Flashback)

Along with everything else going on today, Facebook helpfully reminded me that, four years ago today, we had snow. That made me chuckle; today the high was 13°C (56°F), and snow is nowhere on the horizon.

Four years ago, though, there was enough snow to build a snowman.

So of course Jacoby and I had to go out and look at it.

The kids were clearly trying to make Olaf, the snowman from Frozen. How adorable is that?

Jake seemed to like him. Look at his smile.

I miss how good he was at posing…I could just set him anywhere, and he knew what to do.

I miss that face. I know Dashiell looks like Jake…but I can tell the difference.

Aby-a-Day – 11 Mars 2020: Wordless Wednesday (What’s left of the snow)

Aby-a-Day – 6 Mars 2020: The Big Boston Blizzard of 2015 (Friday Fashion Friday Flashback)

Five years ago this week, Jacoby and Angel experienced what would be Boston’s record snowfall for the first time.

I couldn’t take them in the courtyard as usual because reasons. So I took them just in front of the building.

Of course, they were fully decked out in their coats.

It was…a less than optimal photo location. but we did our best. I am still proud to have lived in Boston the year of the record snowfall.

Aby-a-Day – 5 Mars 2020: It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s SuperFreddy! (Thursday Things)

As you saw yesterday, Alfred went a little bit crazy running around in the snow when we had it. He was the last one who wanted to come in from the cold.

He just wanted to run and run….

It was a little frustrating. I was only wearing a hoody so I would be as cold as the unclothed cats, and I was ready to go in, too.

He broke away from me at the door and made a beeline for the swing set that is always so popular in summer.

He was wicked hard to catch.

And he was super naughty! First, he peed in the snow. AGAIN.

Then he moved on and started digging. I thought he was just playing with the snow…

…And it looked like that was all it was, at first.

But no. And, yes, that is exactly what it looks like. He pooped in the snow, too! I feel a little bad about leaving it there in the play area, but I guess kids won’t be swinging anytime soon.

Soon after, he ran back towards our house. Guess that’s why he didn’t want to go back in. But I have never seen him go to the bathroom outside anytime except in snow. Weirdo.

While I was out there in the “backyard,” I saw some things that I wouldn’t have had Freddy not run back there. Like hare tracks.

And bird landing/take-off prints. This is probably a magpie.

I love bird footprints in snow.

I also love wingprints.

I think this is a jackdaw picking something up.

I am guessing this is another magpie.

Walking and then a take-off. Magpies make tailprints, so this is either a crow or a jackdaw.

Of course, there were also some cat footprints.

As snowy as it looks, it was also melting fast.

Crocuses are already blooming!

And, as you can see, a large area at the back of our building was all green grass. I think we’ll be lucky if we get any more snow this year.

Aby-a-Day – 1 Mars 2020: Izaak and the snölykta (Swedish Sunday)

When we were playing outside in the snow on Friday, I noticed that someone had built a little snölykta (snow lantern) in the yard. I thought it would be cute to take Izaak out to look at it. It seemed about his size.

At first I tried to put Zak in the middle of the lantern, but I couldn’t get him to stay in it without knocking over the snowballs.

You can see his pawprints in the middle of the lantern.

Just because he wouldn’t stay inside the lantern doesn’t mean that he didn’t find the little snowball pile interesting.

(I put the snowballs Zak kicked over back.)

Zak and I hung out for a while. Look at his little pawprints!

“This IS an airport, please announce your departure…”

Then, Zak discovered another use for the snow lantern.

It made a great cover for him to stalk Alfred in the snow.

Look how sneaky he is! He’s doing a heckin stealth.

And then, suddenly, he just gave up his hunt. But it was cute to see him playing in the snow when he usually tends to stay along the side of the building.

Aby-a-Day – 29 Februari 2020: Happy Leap Day!! (Swedish Saturday)

Today is leap day! A very special day that happens only once every four years.

Since it snowed this week, I took the cats out to play in the snow.

As you can imagine, Lorelai loved it.

She is our smallest, lightest cat, so you would think she would get cold out there. I mean, Jacoby would shiver in 10°C.

Not our Rory, though.

She loves to be outside, regardless of the weather or the temperature.

And you know I wouldn’t be able to get her to keep a coat on…

She did a lot of leaping out in the snow…

It’s amazing that a cat can be so athletic and graceful…and so goofy, all at once.

Alfred did some leaping too.

He actually ran more than Rory did…if that’s even possible.

He got some good air. He must have felt like he was flying.

Even Izaak got into the leaping game.

It was so amazing to watch him chase Freddy along the side of the building.

He also got a little airborne at times. It was great fun to watch.

Aby-a-Day – 28 Februari 2020: First Snows (Friday Flashback)

Now that we finally have snow, I was thinking about the first times all the cats saw their first snows. The most recent, of course was the first time Izaak and Lorelai saw snow.

Rory, of course, loved it.

She loves any chance to go outside…and she honestly seems completely immune to the cold.

Zak, however…

…was less than impressed. I never bothered to put coats on Rory and Zak when we went outside, because of what Alfred did the first time he went out in snow

I tried to put a coat on him. Oh, how I tried.

Fred would have none of it.

He preferred to experience the snow au naturel.

Like Jacoby, Logan appreciated having a coat in the snow.

He probably would have enjoyed wearing boots, too.

Jake never went out in the snow without a coat.

That was such a fun thing about Jake. He did love his coats.

Angel’s very first snow did not involve going outside.

But she eventually went out and experienced snow first paw.

She was less than enthused. Well, she was born in California.

But she did seem to have fun out in the snow with Jake. I’ll give her that.

Aby-a-Day – 27 Februari 2020: It finally snowed! Actual real snow! (Thursday Things)

As I may have mentioned before, we’ve been having a pretty crap winter with almost no snow

But on Tuesday, finally, it snowed all day Tuesday!

And on Wednesday morning, when I looked out the window, I saw the cutest thing.

Our upstairs neighbours’ girls were sledding down the small hill in our område, and Markis was just hanging out nearby, playing in the snow.

He really looked like he was happy we finally had snow, too.

He really seemed to be enjoying himself out there.

All the while keeping his eye on his smol hoomans.

Markis’ fun was not unnoticed by Dashiell, however.

Although I am not sure if he was wishing he was out there too…or if he was happy someone else was out there in the cold, wet snow.

Markis really seemed to be having a good time, though.

He just plowed back and forth out there in the snow. It was adorable.

Aby-a-Day – 1 Februari 2020: Finally, snow! (Swedish Sunday)

This has been a really crap winter…

It’s been above 5°C more often than it hasn’t, and while Florida is freezing…it’s only snowed three times here in Sweden all winter. The third was yesterday.

And it’s just now February, and the bulb plants are already sprouting!

And the first two times it snowed, it lasted about a day. And the snow we got yesterday was, sadly, no different.

But as long has we had the little snow we did get…I figured I had better take advantage of it while it lasted.

And that means…I took the cats out! Of course, Lorelai bounded out the door and headed for the slope.

She really seemed to miss running!

But while Rory was running around, having a blast…

…everyone else was pretty much sticking to the snowfree bits.

I did get Izaak to venture out into the deepest part.

(Okay, yeah, I carried him out into the middle of it…)

But once he got used to it, he seemed to kind of enjoy it.

I love cat pawprints in snow…

Dashiell actually ventured out into it on his own!

That’s pretty special, since it was the first time he’d ever seen snow!

Okay, this…now, I know what it looks like he’s doing…but I promise you, it was not yellow when he stood up.

But soon enough, he got tired of the wet feet and joined Zak and Angel on the concrete.

Alfred was out there, too…he was just off doing Freddy things while I was taking all the photos.

And, sadly, as I predicted…the snow is all gone today.