There is nothing better than a dripping tap. The sound is in its self is enough to drive a cat crazy.  Some of us are a little more crazy than others about water.  Faith, for example, enjoys watching the water come up in the shower tray and will stand in the tray waiting for the hoomans to pull the plug in the sink.  She then gets all excited, tippy toeing around the tray waiting to spot the bubbling water.  She then scoops the little removable silver plug guard and runs off with it.  Ususally one of the hoomans stands on it whilst Faith laughs her head off. 

I like water, especially a nice fresh glass of water left out for a hoomans lunch.  My head is straight in the glass with my licker in and out before they notice me.  That's how I like my water.  All this stuff with dripping taps and plug holes is not my bag.  However, I do have a fancy for the loo flushing ceremony.  There is something just so exciting seeing the water go around the rim of the loo pan, I have to get my head right in there and watch every second until the soft close seat catches the back of your neck and you have to get out quick before it squashes. 

Pearl really enjoys water. So apparently do all her siblings.  We have reports that Astrid enjoys playing in the bath, the sink and any water left in mugs anywhere in the house.  She has also broken a few glasses. Oops.  Pearl gets all excited when the tap in the kitchen is turned on.  She can not wait to get her little face under there and lick away at the dripping water.  She loves the noise of it and enjoys watching it trickle away.  She will watch it for hours if someone would just leave the darn tap on for her.  My Mum Gracie is a water baby too.  Pearl is her double in this way.  Sometimes Momma even calls her Gracie sometimes by accident.

Lillibet couldn't care less about water.  She doesn't mind having a bath though. Not like the rest of us.  We are like wild creatures when being washed.  Flaire likes water, she is interested in the loo like me or sometimes when the sink is running she will have a quick look.  But that's about it. 

Faith gets uber excited if ManSlave gets the ice machine working and takes iced water from the fridge.  She almost drools waiting for a glass just for her for her, unless I beat her to it.

Here is to fresh water and clean whiskers.

All my love and fluffy stuff from Queen Vee =^..^= 

It just doesn't seem possible.  Where has 14weeks gone? The Minicats are leaving home and we are now looking past our Winter and into Spring.  It seems so warm and like Spring has come early.  It seems strange right now to think snow could make a further appearance and as  Punxsutawney Phil, the furry rodent, has predicted six more weeks of winter after seeing his shadow at dawn on Friday 2nd.  I always go by him, even if the birds are shouting "PICK ME-PICK ME" as the days get longer and the sun rises earlier.  Maybe he will be right?  I know Spring is on it's way because I feel frisky again and my loins are calling "PICK ME-PICK ME".  It seems I have a date booked to see Otta again.  Hopefully, this time I might just entice him good and proper and be a bit more grown up about it all.  It seems he couldn't wait and has taken another girlfriend.  A sirex number, with pretty blue eyes. An older woman it seems.  Apparently, he knows what to do now to impress a girl and quite fancies himself as a real stud now!

Pearl is being difficult.  No one is quite sure what is wrong with her?  Momma took her to the vet for a check up and a scan on her tummy.  They found nothing.  She is so growly and is on antibiotics.  When she takes those, she is ok again.  The sooner we can get her to see her boyfriend Picket, the sooner we can figure out if it is just hormonal like her Grandma Gracie.  They are very similar My Mum and Pearl, it is quite uncanny how it can skip a generation.  Of course, we are all hoping she doesn't have the mad 'eat your children gene' like Grandma Grace.

Winter seems to have created some rather fat critters here at Maystar and even though Momma brought a very pricey exercise wheel for us - no one, as yet, has used it!  Momma has found it hard bending over in the last 6weeks, but now she is feeling a bit better, it seems we are going to be trained.  Some need it more than others!  Mentioning no names. LILLIBET & FAITH... uhh-herm. They are a tad rotund around the middles and Faith is rather flappy about her lower belly and Lillibet is allowed to be a tad fatter because she can stress that right off in a week.  You can feel Faiths ribs now at least as Momma has them on a 'LITE' version of our food.  That part is working.  Momma also has to weigh out the food now too, because Lillibet is a gannet and will scoff the lot.  These electronic feeders are fab, but you can eat your weight in kibble if you want to!

Flaire is a little sad that her children have left home now.  Two have gone this week.  Lionel and Tilly Tickle.  Tilly was meant to stay here of course, but not all things have worked out so well there. She can only hear in one ear.  Good enough to hear food and toys tinkle. But not good enough to have babies from it seems.  That's fine.  I am Queen Vee here, we don't need any more Minicats - I shall make Momma a special chocolate one that doesn't get grubby like those white ones!  It doesn't help Flaire though. She is moping about and not eating very well.  She can be quite a brat where food is concerned.  She has to have special food too for her silly belly.
She will come around. She always does.  These Minicats have been so much fun, lots of games and now it's all change.  Poor little Elly is all alone until she can take her trip to Holland and her new family.  It is better too to travel in the Spring time as it will be warmer for the crossing. 

The only issue with me going to stud now is it will eat in to the Parentals Summer trips away.  We may all have to go caravanning together with kittens - that could be fun or a crazy disaster!  Watch this space.  For now, we will keep and eye on the birdies and the Horrible Horrace troupe of squirrels. They have grown to 7 of them now and so much gravel has gone missing. Our garden is more like a mud forest than a pretty woodland garden.  They munch our bulbs and take our food and drink from our water fountain.  But all in all they are fun to watch and play games with my Sister as though one is a squirrel one is a wild cat.  It lots of fun and quite exhilarating.

Well, this Queen must go and get ready to meet her man.  I need a milk bath and a manipedi before I go. I want to smell and taste my best for him.  Wish me luck!

Your loyal and loving Queen Vee.   =^..^=



​ 

Currently, Pearl and I are trapped in the kitchen at night times.  It is mainly for girl bonding because she didn't like the smell of me when I returned home from seeing Otta last month.  It has taken a whole month to make her confident after the big fight between her, Lillibet & Faith.  So with Faith and Lillibet removed from the mix at night time, everyone sleeps much better knowing Pearl isn't getting a pasting. 

The other night, Pearl and I had the rice cereal all over the floor. They are funny and stick to your lips. (do cats have lips?) I am not sure if that was an accident or not.  Seems these things just happen around here and no one really knows why?  Then a few nights before that Pearl got herself trapped in an upside down cardboard box.  Don't ask, she is so clumsy that just happens too. She managed to eat her way out of that.  It took her a few hours, I watched in deep fascination as she chewed her way through the side leaving a rather XXL hole behind her. The kitchen floor had card confetti all over it in bite sized pieces.  Momma has been very busy in the mornings with the sweepings up. Another free for all - CHASE THE BROOM!  When we were little, we could all fit in the dustpan, now, we stand one paw in, holding it down for those really hard to get bits.  We are training the Minicats in the art of sweeping and pinching any tasty morsel that might come our way.   It is an important part of being a cat, it must be taught and passed on down the generations.

This morning, and I blame Pearl, there was rice noodles and egg noodles all over the floor. What a waste really, but oh what fun.  We ate most of the egg noodles and just played hard with the rice ones.  Most of them went under the washing machine and the cabinet on wheels.  No doubt they will show up when Momma does a deep clean. Until then, we can lay on our sides, fighting to get a bit out to play with.  Some of the bags were done up with big elastic bands. I am a dab paw at munching through things, so I nibbled the ends of the packaging until those little sticks of rice were set free to play with. 

ManSlave was the first one down, he passed Momma on the stairs saying "You can clean that up." Momma just fell about laughing and put all of ManSlave's half chewed egg noodles back in their packaging and threw her rice noodles away.  "That will teach him, hey girls?" She said smiling at us as we sat sweetly among our haul. Pearl had eaten most of the egg noodles as she wasn't hungry at breakfast time.  I was, I am always hungry, like I have worms. I eat and eat and gain tremendous muscles and run on my new wheel and get fitter and fitter.  Pearl is built differently, like an oompaloompa Momma says. She has more puppy fat according to Faith to can't talk at all.  Her and Lillibet are on strict diets ready for their yearly check ups. They have to lose 500g each by April. Me, I am getting ready for my visit to Otta again, so I need to be in peak condition for that.  Pearl said that Picket, her beau, likes his ladies a little more cuddly.  

Today is a beautiful crisp winters day with bright sunshine and singing birdies.  We are all off outside for a ramble and watch Mrs. Wren sort her nest out. She does like to tease us, nesting just out of reach of our paws. She is great fun to watch. Horrible Horrace and the magnificent seven are churning up the garden and poking gravel all over Momma's pots. They have ruined ManSlave's lawn too.  The rats have dug tunnels everywhere and running wild out there.  There is much to see and do and these easy sunny winter days are harsh of wind so we sit out in our heated cat pods just watching the day go by. Waiting for Spring to arrive and a flurry of critters to chase and eat.  More gifts for the hoomans and more roughage for us!

Your loyal and efficient rice Queen.
​Queen Vee =^..^=

It occurs to me that I am not being treated quite right.  It seems that these Minicats are getting everything they desire and more, but why?  I was never offered such tasty morsels and take advantage anywhere I can to pinch a bit of this of that.  Today's delights were sardines and pilchards. Boy do they stinky stink stink, but Oh boy do they taste yummy and quite refreshing after a packet food.  Pearl and I were delighted to be offered the roe from the sardines. This is THE very best bit and I am happy to add that both of us smacked our lips for ages afterwards and blew our breath into Lillibets face, she hates fish.

Fish is easy, it comes out of a tin, one pull, a quick drain and squished on a tray and sloshed down with a side of scales and extras that stick to your licker. We all spit out the little teeny tiny white bits that run down the middle of those little fishies.  The only reason we do is this is because Momma detests cleaning up these gritty little suckers.  Takes her back to salmon and cucumber sandwiches on the lawn, with the left over bits of salmon middles around the plate.  Shudder.  See, runs in families!

Meat is a bit harder to get sorted unless Momma buys it minced already, but those big beef chest thumpers and lambs tickers don't come neatly diced and packaged, she has to chop those.  So, on Sunday a new machine arrived, a mincing machine.  It looks rather fancy and makes more noise than the vacuum but less than the hair dryer, so it is worth investigating for sure and the fact that meat goes in one end and mince comes out of the other end just makes it better than any other household item in my eyes.  

It hadn't been here for more that 10minutes and it was already put to good use.  There was an old brisket lounging about in the freezer, it had been lost in the far reaches of the deep freeze and with a light trim all over from frost bite it was more than edible for us felines.  I tasted a few trimmings, they were fine, maybe a little lacking in the vitamin department is all.  Momma cubed it and started to push it down a long silver tube, this in turn took it to a bowl where it was ready to eat.  Well, it would be rude not to try some, so Lionel being the bravest nipped in for a taste.  It was a thumbs up from him.  His Sisters joined him and everyone was soon tucking in.

I was getting worried.  This is not the behaviour of Maystar felines.  We are NOT to steal or beg or borrow even.  But there they all were, all three of them just chowing down on a bit of fatty brisket.  I must work out just how this contraption works as it looks to be running low at the exit.  I try to feed more meat in the top with my paw and at one point I tried to push it about with my licker as it was slippery and I couldn't get a grip.  Down the hole it went. Blimey, good job my paw didn't follow that down the silver tube or else I might have been cat meat!  Momma said I was a chump as it was turned off and unplugged and I was a drama queen.  Pfft.  Nothing like a bit of drama to get your shin stuck on the blade.  Ignore the pun before I chuck another at you!

Momma has now minced everything in sight and even sent ManSlave  out for more supplies.  The freezer must be full at all times with at least one tray of meat in rotation. One tray is equal to 900g. It is quite a science you know.  That 900g lasts us approximately 2days so it it very important not to let stocks run low.  It is also important to have variety.  At first Minicats are all fed just Turkey, minced beef and a little pork for fat, then the pork is removed to make sure they don't get too fat. Miced lamb is added, but slowly at first, it has a strong flavour.  Especially that favoured Welsh Lamb.  That can blow your brains out.  We don't much like the Irish beef, not that we will be very popular for saying so, but you can really get your teeth stuck in that stuff.  I swear the Irish keep the best cuts and send us Devon's the scrag end.  We shall ask Jaz and Jamie to investigate. As far as turkey is concerned it has to be Norfolk and nothing else will do.  Nothing with too many air miles on it that's for sure!  None of your Alpaca, Buffalow, Camel or Crocodile here, just good British Stock.  Momma is a stippler for happy meat and that extends to ours too.

That's why we have to eat the JWB particular brand of food.  It is made in the UK and no import duties will be added if we ever get that Brexit thing.  I think that is a type of kibble?  I am not really sure what importing is either.  I thought that was something to do with the computer or is that in-port?  I think I misheard?  Export we can do... we do lots of that in the form of chocolate gold.  It is imperative to export all this good quality meat so that Momma knows just how much we appreciate it.  Ahh, I think I just figured out importing - that must be where the food goes in!

With lots of loyal and loving whiskery kisses from your Queen and Countryside.

​Queen Vee =^..^=