20 February 2008
Artemis has been intrigued by this teddy bear since I first brought him home from a thrift store and washed him. He has spent most of his time in my workshop, making me smile, but during the holidays this year, I put him out on the front porch as part of the Yule decoration. He wore a top hat for Hogmanay, and held the rhyme sign, and then for Mardi Gras we added purple and green and gold beads. For Valentine’s Day he donned a red sweater and a heart necklace and soon, I expect we’ll put a green bowtie on him and something Irish-looking. But, right now, he’s sitting on a bar stool in a corner of our living room. A tall, but tiny little barstool that he pretty much fills.
But, this morning, as I was dealing with some email and drinking coffee, I looked over and there was Artemis, big as life, right between his legs on that same little stool. I was immediately charmed and grabbed the camera to capture the moment. I took quite a few shots, some showing better the small space the cat chose to sit upon. But, this close-up, with her eyes so yellow/green and squinty seemed to best represent her typical personality. She looks to me like she’s daring anyone to mess with the bear! Or, perhaps, as Kelly first stated when she saw the picture, she’s feeling protected by the bear! I suspect that she’s just enjoying a few moments on a relatively high spot—above the dogs. But, then again, she has always rather enjoyed the company of plush animals–some of my earliest pictures of her as a tiny kitten are of her sleeping in a gathering of stuffed animals and looking so peaceful that you have to look twice to see the real cat! It was a regular spot for her. And there’s always the cute pics of her laying on my dashboard as we travel in the summertime. Whatever her motivation, as my photo history will prove, she has never had any problem striking cute poses. And I’m sure that after a few weeks on the front porch the bear smells even more interesting to her feline nose than ever before!
Right this minute, as I write this—she is actually sitting on my lap. As I told someone just the other day, I have waited nearly seven years, but I finally have a cat that will occasionally seek out my lap as a resting place. She is mellowing a bit as she ages—but then, aren’t we all? 
~MB
