Tabby Boy - Chapter Three

 

The warm weather was a sheer delight for me in my new outdoor life. I rested in this family’s backyard on a shiny bright red bench surrounded by trees. My favorite tree was a cherry tree which brought shade to the round metal table on the patio. In June the tree had white blossoms that amazed me when the blossoms became shiny little round red sour cherries. Ben picked the cherries and Ethyl described her canning process, turning the cherries into a compote for a winter dessert. Big red round tomatoes grew in a patch elsewhere in Ben’s Garden.

Autumn (I prefer that 2 syllable word to Fall) is the leaf season in this backyard; it is a color festival. The foliage surrounding the edge of the garden turns into a medley of browns, yellows, oranges and reds. Most exquisite is the small Japanese Maple. All summer its leaves are dark red; in Autumn they turn a fiery red and then a vibrant scarlet before falling to the ground. In the corner, a tall bush reaches to the sky with its abundant clusters of showy red flowers.  

I learn so much listening to the human’s conversation. You will be surprised to read my stories with my growing vocabulary. I am becoming a multisyllabic MEOWER,l earning about alliteration too.When I swat Ben if he doesn’t put my food out fast enough, he calls me a Ferocious Feline So with the knowledge of alliteration I wrote the following poem.

Friend or Foe

Open the front door.

I ‘m watching and waiting.

I’m silently staring.

My thought balloon is saying.

Hey folks! FEEED ME!!

You can’t pet me.

I don’t trust you.

But I trust you will fill

My white paper plate.

Im the mischievous meower

I’m an alpha

I got rid of my competition.

The two calico cats know 

They should stay away.

I’m The triumphant Tabby.

I’m your not so friendly feline.

Hey folks! FEED ME !!!

Once again, I thank my public readership for joining me in The Life and Opinions of a StrayTabby Cat.  My sincerest MEOW!! MEOW!! MEOW!!

Chang E and Moon Rabbit

 

Once upon a time, on the barren and desolate surface of the Moon, there lived a beautiful princess named Chang E. She was an immortal, having accidentally ingested an elixir that granted her eternal life. She had left her home on Earth, tired of the constant struggles and hardships that came with immortality. She longed for a place where she could be at peace and live out her days in solitude. 

One day, as she was wandering through the craggy landscape, she came across a magnificent palace, sitting alone on the edge of a crater. Intrigued, she approached the palace, and to her surprise, it was unlocked and unoccupied. It was as if the palace had been waiting for her all this time. 

Without hesitation, Chang E made the palace her home. She spent her days exploring the palace and its surroundings, finding ways to pass the time. But despite her new home and the treasures she found, she couldn't shake the feeling of loneliness. 

One day, as she was wandering through a nearby field, she came across a small rabbit hopping along. At first, she was startled, as she had never seen any living creature on the Moon before. But as she approached the rabbit, she realized that it was not afraid of her. In fact, it seemed to be quite curious about her and hopped closer to her. 

Chang E was overjoyed to have found a companion, and she reached out to pet the rabbit. To her surprise, the rabbit did not run away, but instead, let out a soft, friendly "thump-thump" and nuzzled against her hand. From that moment on, Chang E knew that she would never be alone again. 

The princess and the rabbit quickly became the best of friends. They explored the Moon together, discovering new wonders and having many adventures. They would race each other through the craters and tell each other stories under the light of the stars. 

As the years passed, Chang E's love for her companion only grew stronger. She realized that the Moon Rabbit was more than just a friend, it was her family. And she was grateful for every moment they spent together. 

As they grew old together, Chang E knew that no matter how long she lived, she would always be happy as long as she had the Moon Rabbit by her side. The two of them were a universe unto themselves and nothing could ever change that. They lived in the palace on the Moon, happy and content for the rest of their days, with nothing to worry about but each other's company. 

Georgia

Tabby Boy - Chapter Two

 

Chapter Two

A Second Chance

Chapter Two gives me a second chance to invite you, my public readership, on this tabby cat’s journey into exploring the past, present and possibly future of my life. Much of my past is vague, so some of my flashbacks may be from my imagination, maybe even fiction.

Mankind, womankind, humans, people, they, them; I’m not sure they deserve a second chance. Sarah, my caretaker left for a Facility. Her children never asked her what will happen to your tabby cat? They never asked her who, what, where or how am I, an indoor house cat going to make it as an outdoor stray cat? Now Sarah’s gone, her house (which was once mine too) is gone. Now, I'm just one of those cats that a roam the street; I’m a pathetic homeless cat looking for a handout; often relying on a torn open garbage bag for my meal. The nice human being David does feed me, but he also trapped me and got my ear clipped. I’ll say thanks to David for the food, but no thanks to David for that visit to the veterinarian. Don’t expect any salacious sex stories in this autobiography. Besides, I’m also hoping my story fits in to the Children’s Books genre.

While I am still looking for a better lifestyle, I told you about this amazing Garden of Eden where I met Ben and Ethyl with a “y”.  I’m not yet ready to fully trust people, humans, they and them; to give them a second chance. When I reach my paw out to befriend them, they think I’m swatting them when they begin to bleed. Listen, cats needed those claws throughout history to make it. Didn’t you ever hear of “survival of the fittest?” Claws were useful for feline survival. I ’m going to give the old man and old woman who own this Garden of Eden a trial second chance to gain my trust.

Hey, before you leave, I want to tell you a cat joke.

A mother cat is walking with her 4 kittens when she encounters a huge Alpha cat. The little kittens shiver with fear. The mother cat says, “Don’t be afraid.” Mother cat approaches the big Alpha cat, looks straight into his eyes and lets out a loud dog’s bark (WOOF!!! WOOF!!!) The Alpha cat is terrified and quickly races away. The mother cat proudly walks back to her kittens and says, “See the value of knowing a second language!”

I want to thank my public readership for the great outpouring of praise Chapter One received in my fan mail. My sincerest MEOW!! MEOW!! MEOW!!

Ethyl H

Colors

 

The tans and browns of the cold steel bridge,
Somebody shut the damn fridge!
Ordinary tan and Queensboro Brown,
Is it this cold downtown?
Blue Q101 bus, please don't make a fuss, be kind to us.
The empty bus is mine, it's nice to get a seat,
My dogs are really barking, said a tired doorman's feet.

Looking down at the cold green-blue river,
Dear Bridge, to my Queens Borough please deliver.
The orange morning sun bounces off of glass buildings,
Reflecting its light and its  warmth, God willing.
City smokestacks belch their colorless winter steam,
Hot sunny days and bikini-clad babes are just a dream.

RM, 1-18-2023.

The Doctor of Broken Dreams

 

If there’s one character trait to live by it would be this; always stay true to yourself. Follow your own path. Live your own dreams, not others. 

Case in point. During the late 1990s, I was introduced to a lady through a mutual friend. On the surface she seemed to have it all. She was married to a doctor. The doctor would never say much. His facial expressions showed a rather grumpy disposition. 

One day the mutual friend and I visited this upscale couple in their Greenpoint apartment. This was in 1999, in the infant stages of Brooklyn gentrification. An hour in our visit, the doctor unexpectedly turns to me, and decides to be candid. He confessed about not wanting to be a doctor. His own dream was to be a musician. Had he followed own path, he would’ve been a drummer. During his youth, he was a fan of many English ‘new wave’ bands such as The Jam. However, this did not sit well with his parents. He caved in and became a doctor. He was living his parents’ dream but not his own. This made him miserable. 

Fast forward to the early 2000s. The doctor’s facade finally breaks when he discovers the rapper Enimen. Living vicariously through Slim Shady, the doctor’s slightly aggressive behavior was making everyone uncomfortable. Particularly since the doctor was a white middle-aged man. My mutual friend was visiting the couple. This same mutual friend called me on my Y2K era cellphone, while I was en-route to Montreal. Begging me to detour back to NYC so I could save him from this toxic absurdity. I was thirty minutes from crossing the Canadian border. My gratitude to the French Canadians was more than just traveling. 

His wife in the meantime smiled as if nothing was wrong, but little did the doctor know, that marriage was also a sham. She only married him for mobility’s sake. They couldn’t even live in the same house together. For a while she had a small apartment in Manhattan while he lived in some Long Island town. During his residency at some Brooklyn hospital, she was patronizing the underground swingers' clubs. That little sublet of debaucheries might as well be a substitute for the loveless bond she entered with her own amateur rapper aka MC Doctor Disaster. How do I know all this information? Hmmm, this mutual friend was also sleeping with the doctor’s wife. 

Eventually those two, the doctor and his wife got their act together and moved to Texas. That’s right, Texas, where American dreams continue to go horribly wrong. It was far removed from the wife’s AA meetings, where she had yet another sordid affair with a fellow recovering alcoholic. In Texas they had two children in-vitro because in the wife’s words “have kids just to get it over and done with.” The last image I have of them was in the year 2011. The doctor and his wife along with the in-vitro kids posed for the obligatory family photo, plastered on Facebook. The smiles displayed were so fake, but most telling was the unconscious body language. Doctor Dysfunctional and the Missus were smiling, but facing two different directions. 

So, before this story becomes a Lifetime Movie of The Week, let it known why you should always be true to yourself. Live your own dreams. Live your own life. If there was a character trait to live by, this would be it. Ask yourself is it worth putting up the facade of the perfect nuclear family, or is it worth it to honor your own true path. 

To be fair though, I would like to thank the doctor and his wife for providing me with some reality show entertainment. Thank you for showing me how not to indulge in such toxicity. 

Michele B.

Self-Improvement

 

It's important to note that these are general suggestions, and everyone's journey to self-improvement is unique. It's also important to remember that self-improvement is a lifelong process and it's important to be kind and patient with oneself. 

Self-discipline: The ability to control one's impulses and delay gratification in order to achieve a goal. To improve self-discipline, one can try setting small, achievable goals and gradually increasing the difficulty over time. It's also important to be self-aware of the triggers that cause you to lose self-control and to have a plan in place to overcome them. 

Emotional Intelligence: The ability to identify and manage one's own emotions and the emotions of others. To improve emotional intelligence, one can practice mindfulness and self-reflection to better understand one's own emotions and triggers, and also practice active listening to understand the emotions of others. 

Empathy: The ability to understand and share the feelings of others. To improve empathy, one can try to put oneself in other people's shoes, practice active listening, and try to understand different perspectives. 

Resilience: The ability to bounce back from adversity and continue moving forward. To improve resilience, one can try to reframe negative thoughts, maintain a support system, and practice stress management techniques. 

Self-awareness: The ability to understand one's own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. To improve self-awareness, one can try to spend time in self-reflection, journaling and seeking feedback from others. 

Gratitude: The ability to appreciate what one has and be thankful for it. To improve gratitude, one can try to focus on the present moment and the things one has to be thankful for, and practice daily gratitude journaling. 

Flexibility: The ability to adapt to change and be open to new ideas. To improve flexibility, one can try to expose oneself to new experiences and perspectives, and practice mindfulness. 

Kindness: The ability to be considerate and compassionate towards others. To improve kindness, one can try to practice small acts of kindness on a regular basis and try to understand the perspectives of others. 

Georgia P.

Tabby Boy (Revised Chapter One)

 

Great Expectations

Chapter One

Did you read Stuart Little? Did you read Peter Rabbit? You probably never read Archy and Mehitabel!  Well, all of these stories were written by animals. They tell the story. Archy was a cockroach who learned how to type his stories. He shared them with Mehitabel, an alley cat. So now you won’t think it peculiar if I, as a Tabby cat write this story.

My recent name is Tabby Boy. A while ago, I had another name and a different life. Now I’m called a “Stray Cat.” Don’t mistake me for a feral cat. I once had an indoor home with an old woman named Sarah who loved and fondled me. I once was an “indoor cat.” I was always well groomed and well fed. Unfortunately, Sarah, the old woman had to go to a place called a Facility. No pets allowed. She opened her front door and out I went. It wasn’t a big, bad wolf who huffed and puffed and blew her brick house down. It was a giant machine. And so begins my life as a homeless stray cat. It was a sad life, but I had GREAT EXPECTATIONS.

I joined up with 2 black and white stray calico cats who led me to a kind man named David. He fed us and we lived outdoors. One day he trapped the three of us and took us someplace where we got injections and our ear clipped. I’m not sure why, but I no longer had any interest in the opposite sex; no longer in a rat race or cat race. The two black and whites were timid; I was the alpha. I took off on my own and sought a home of my own, even an outdoor home. It was springtime.

I came to a backyard, and I wanted to say, WOW!!!!” I just said a loud “MEOW!!!’ Here was a Garden of Eden. There were 2 fountains with cold fresh water. Flowers of all colors were in pots and spread across the edge of the yard. There were begonias marigolds, gardenias. Tall yellow forsythia bushes swayed back and forth, choreographed by the wind. Off to the side was a patch with tomato plants, basil, stringbean's and lettuce. 

Birds flocked to this backyard, singing as they gathered material to begin nesting. Music, color, the sound of the fountain water and the floral smell; truly a Garden of Eden.

An old man named Ben and an old woman named Ethyl (not Ethel but Ethyl with a “y”) lived in the house on this property. Ben made this garden happen and kindly started bringing me food. I had to learn some manners; I had to learn not to swat the hand that feeds you. When I got more secure living as an outdoor cat, I began to trust the man and woman. She softly began to say, “Tabby Boy!, Sweet good Tabby Boy.” I think that’s when I got my new name. I soon felt loved and fell in love.  Their soft and gentle kindness filled my greatest expectations for a better life, for a second chance.

I have so many stories to tell you if you want to hang around.

Ethyl H.

"I Slew a Yak"

 

Writing from the Heart.  Dec. 10, 2022 Assignment. 
“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”  By Samuel Taylor Coleridge. (1798/1834 final ed.) 
From:  Richard Melnick, WftH student, Jan. 2023.
******************************************************************************
The long poem was fascinating.  A very enlightening assignment.       
My goodness, Atmosphere, emotion, and plot are all expressed amazingly well.

I submit a poem, entirely motivated by and indebted to the great Rime by Mr. Coleridge.

“I slew a Yak.”

I slew a Yak on the Russian steppe,
A full-enraged beast was he,
This hairy bull I shall never forget,
His sharp horns fixed 'pon me.
I smartly reached into my quiver,
For a stone-tipped spear to send,
An arrow of love I did not deliver,
For its accuracy spelled his end.
I dragged his carcass on a sled,
'Bout 15 miles to our camp,
We skinned it of all hair and hide,
It's red blood lit our lamp.
The frigid tundra was quick to remind us,
Of harsher times way back,
The skies were full of storm and stress,
Until we honored the mighty Yak.
In ceremony we clothed our frames,
Danced to songs of ancestral days,
The twilight had us end our games,
As night pays an homage to our ancient ways.

RM, Jan. 11, 2023.

Winter Joys

 

One of my favorite winter joys is the sound of snow as I take a walk on a crisp, clear morning. The air is so still and quiet that the only thing you can hear is the soft crunch of the snow beneath your boots. The world around has been transformed, as if by magic, into a winter wonderland. The trees are covered in a thick blanket of snow, and icicles hang from the branches like crystal chandeliers. The sky is a brilliant shade of clear ice blue, and the sun shines down, casting a warm golden sparkle and glow on everything it touches. 

As I walk, the snowflakes whisper secrets to each other as they fall from the sky. The trees seem to be dancing in the wind, and the icicles appear to be playing a game of tag with each other. The world around me is alive and full of wonder, and I am filled with a sense of joy and contentment. 

In contemplation I am grateful for the simple pleasure that winter brings. The snow and the cold may be a nuisance at times, but in this moment, I am reminded that even the most ordinary things can be beautiful if we take the time to appreciate them. And so, as I savor the sound of the snow crunching underfoot, blankets of snow, icicles on trees are a joy that can only be found in the wintertime.

Georgia

A Stay-at-Home-Girl

 

A Stay-At-Home Girl

I’m a stay-at-home girl.

I stay at home for

FaceTime and Facebook.

Friends and family phoning

From Brooklyn, Boston, Columbia U.

California, and Montreal, Canada too.

I’m a stay-at-home girl

Keeping my man’s traditions

Cooking what his mother made,

Potato soup, blintzes pierogi, 

Bow ties, cradled in kashe.

I’m a stay-at -home girl for

Zooming into my painting and writing class.

Friends welcoming friends.

We will never touch.

Though our voices touch, our praises touch.

I stay at home to tend my windowsill garden.

Sadly, my true friend Trudy, no more,

 But gladly her herb gifts keep on giving.

Beautiful, blooming blossoming bulb.

Raising amazing red amaryllis.

I’m a stay-at-home girl.

I Hold the banister, 

Steps require care.

Pay attention, walk with trepidation.

I’m a stay-at-home girl

Surrounded by soft music, 

A snuggly soft granny squares blanket, 

Deep into book, chapter five,

Fictional characters, come alive.

Heavy snow is falling

So, I stay at home.

I look out the front door.

Let the sun warm my face. 

The poet said, “If you keep your face toward the sun,

You’ll never see shadows.”

Ethyl Haber

Inspiration: I Used to Be a Roller Coaster Girl

                    by Jessica Care Moore

Favorite Color

 

Is it really possible to have one, only one, favorite color? As a lifelong artist I go through phases in favorites. For example, shocking pink is perfect for highlights on trees, and it is good to mix with purple for a light periwinkle. 

Purple mixed with green gives an interesting green gray. Quin Gold bursts like fire as a sun. Rose of Ultramarine which is a red purple mixes with green gold for a gray shadow color.  

There is so much to choose from. That being said if I had to pick one color it would be green. I use a lot of green on my landscape paintings. Spring green, very dark green, sap green, olive green, green apatite genuine. They are all so luscious.  

Green is calm and tranquil. Green is associated with luck, money. Green is a complimentary color to magenta, red and blue.  

Green grass, green grasshoppers, green leaves, green gems, green beans, leprechauns, pickles, nail polish, green frogs, green snakes, green parrots, green trees, green M&M’s.  

Yeah, green is my favorite color.  

Georgia

My Blue Ford Mustang

 

 My law office was in a  building located at the corner of John and Pearl Street in Manhattan. I was often engaged in trial litigation and when I had  been out my office for a week I sometimes I went there on a Saturday to catch up on what I had missed.  When that occurred, I drove to Manhattan in my blue Ford Mustang sports car and parked in a parking lot a few blocks from my office. One Saturday, I parked and I told the attendant I will return about 2 P.M.Upon returning, the attendant who seemed all flustered said a man had pointed a gun at him, stolen his money, gotten into my car and drove away using my car as an escape car. I called my insurance company to report the loss and was told I had to wait one month and if the car not returned by then, I would be paid its value.

   About twenty days later, at 2 A.M. I was awakened by a telephone call. Its was a police officer who told me my car was found on a street in Williamsburg and my key given to its local police precinct. At the precinct, I was told two policemen were driving their car in that area and noticed my blue Mustang sports car parked on a street that was inhabited by very Orthodox Jewish people. The officers  decided it would be unusual for that type of car to be there, for Orthodox population to own a bright blue sports cars. The officers called the precinct and determined it had been a stolen car. My name was given to them and I was called. When the next day I went to the precinct  to get my key, I was told about the fact the policemen did not believe a sports car would belong to any inhabitant on that block. It was that correct belief that resulted in the return of my car.

 ,  I wrote a letter to the Police Commissioner to not only thank the  police personnel and to commend them on  their ability to put two and two together; blue sports car? Orthodox neighborhood? No way!!! It was good thinking.

Ben Haber

Red

 

Look into my clothing closet. You would say it is bereft of red. There is only one red silk satiny blouse with black Chinese calligraphy patterned all over. The sight of the blouse brings a smile to my face and sometimes even laughter. You see, I wore that blouse to my bridge game in Great Neck. My partner was this handsome Great Neck doctor who was well known for his sense of humor. He looked at me across the table and pointed to my right arm and in a serious tone said, “Ethyl, that word is spelled wrong!” He got a round of laughter from all at the table, knowing he could read English and maybe some Hebrew, but definitely, not Chinese. I now think of that red blouse as my Ha, Ha blouse.

Last Sunday I had the privilege of seeing the Edward Hopper exhibit at the Whitney Museum. Standing in front of his painting Drug Store, was a young woman clad in a bright red woolen dress. The soft red woolen dress had four covered buttons.  She stood out from the surrounding viewers, all wearing their winter blacks, browns, dark blues, many still bundled up for the rainy cold. The woman in red, carried a black leather shoulder bag and matching stylish black pumps. The red of her dress was similar to the hanging apothecary bottle in Silbers Pharmacy in Hopper’s Drug Store. 

I strolled into the next room and sat down in front of one of my favorite Hopper’s Sunday Morning. The row of tenement houses in this scene are painted green on the bottom floor and red on the upper level. The red in this painting was not the bright red of the woman’s dress. The red was muted, leaning toward terra cotta.  I have given my daughter one of my paintings that they call “Grandma’s Hopper. It might be called Monday Morning, since the woman in my painting is about to enter a store, unlikely to be open on Sunday morning. Standing in front of Sunday Morning was the woman in red. Strange, she no longer had a shoulder bag, but her bag was held with a small strap handle. When she turned around, I saw the front of her red woolen dress had two rows of shiny metallic gold buttons. Same color dress, same fabric, but clearly, a different dress, a different woman. 

Did the two women know each other? Did they phone each other that morning and say, ”Let’s wear your reds.” No, they each left with different partners. The room could never be dull with an exquisite display of Hoppers, but the room lost some of its luster when the women in red left. Why didn’t I wear my red satiny silk Ha Ha blouse that day??

Ethyl H.