Robert and The Long, Loopy Days Of Summer ~ Original Photography and Short Discussion ~
"Which Way Is Up, Robert?"
Time For A Break
After a long day of weed-whacking, I often take a break when finished, and lay in the freshly cut grass to take in and ponder the slower parts of the waning day. The end of the daytime chores.
Few things in life compare -- the smells of the fresh-cut grass curing in the yellowing warmth of the sun, the bugs buzzing about in the still-tall grass, and in no time at all, a cat, sitting and then laying across my chest as I lie there looking up to the incredible blue sky above and beyond.
Yes, a perfect time to slow down, breathe deep, and reflect on the day's accomplishments. Or lack of accomplishment, whichever the resulting labor has brought about. And of course, commune with one of the many furry, four-legger's that have made me their bowl-filling buddy.
My Life As A Sleeping Pad
And on this day, which cat emerged from the still-tall grass of tomorrows' work, to take advantage of my present position in life? The 'little man' -- Robert. A very sweet, short-haired, Ocelot-looking cat, with four almost too-small paws of white, that pretty much talks a constant, blue-cat streak in the direction of anyone that will listen. It's not usually about anything in particular...I'm pretty sure he just talks constantly because he can.
So there we were, me stretched out on the ground like a mattress, cat sprawled out on my chest, purring away, happy and content as the day is long. And as I looked back up to the sky, I soon found my head swimming a bit. In no time I actually started to get a little dizzy.
For some reason, this view of the world made me lose some orientation towards my surroundings. I'm not sure if it was the jet stream in motion that soon appeared through the dead tree, or just the way I was lying on the grass looking up with all the trees converging into my viewpoint at various angles.
But It's All Kattywhompus
And though this photo looks a bit askew, this is exactly what I saw in the viewfinder. In no time my head started doing slow loop-de-loops as I looked up to the sky. Does this happen when you view this photograph? I printed it this way, because that was the viewpoint, and this is what I saw. Maybe it was just me, after a long, hot day in the sun.
Can We Do This, Pretty Much Forever?
I do know none of this dis-orientation seemed to bother Robert in the least. I'm pretty sure he would still be sleeping on me weeks later, if I let him. Oh, to be a cat on a warm summer's day. Nothing better to do than wander the freshly clipped grass, lounge about on your human for as long as possible in the sweet-smelling grass, dream of mice and snakes to chase and people to talk to whenever they will stop to lay about and have a listen. I'm pretty sure life doesn't get much better than this.
~ Finto ~
Thanks for stopping in and viewing the world askew from the ground up. If you have any thoughts about trees, odd viewpoints of life, cats in the summer grass, weed-whacking, or anything else this post reminds you of, feel free to comment away in the spaces below. I'd love to hear from you.
What a wonderful writing voice you have! You should join us in the SFT writers workshop. (Steemhouse Fiction Trail) You can find it here: https://discordapp.com/invite/t7Yz679
Thank you for the very nice compliment. I really appreciate the thought. I will check out the SFT, though I fear I'm not much of a fiction writer. At least I haven't written too much in that venue. I suppose anything is possible, however...
It's this time of year that I find myself saying "it's too hot to pet the cat" but interestingly I'm usually petting a cat when I say it.
I'm not sure they would allow us to take much of a break in these sorts of cross-specie endeavours...no matter the atmospheric conditions ( :
So many times in life I have had the thought of putting the brakes on the whole cosmos and stopping time to freeze the moment. Ah, maybe it is for the best that it is impossible. I have wondered if paradise would get boring, eventually?
Very interesting thought...
I'm siding more with the idea that it wouldn't get too boring, though if one could slow and stop it all, we might just forget to re-start it with the 'play' button...what with all that leisure time and doing nothing but messing about all the time. Would sure be fun to find out though.
First of all, I'm really happy to read your fresh and good article once again after waiting for long time!
I really love your photo; incredibly beautiful blue sky, soft white clouds, amazing trees and the wonderful jet stream! I would say "WOW"!
Please say "Hello" to your cat, Mr. Robert. He's really cute! It seems that he had a happy moment sleeping on your chest among that nice atmosphere.
Great works! I enjoyed reading your story, as always! This can make me start my days with happiness!
Have a wonderful night! ;)
Thank you, glad to be back on here, though it's going to be hard to keep up for awhile. So little time to produce things. And I will pass your good wishes on to Robert. He is one of my favourite cats. So very funny and nice. And there are few places he'd rather be than laying on me, or standing on my feet.
So glad you enjoyed the little story, and I hope you have a most marvelous day as well.
With my pleasure! It's great that you come back and please keep on your good works here....
Yes, Mr. Robert is really lovely! It would be a lot of fun having him around you! How many cats do you have? I would love to see more photos of Mr. Robert and your other cats and look forward to reading their stories with much interest.
Have a wonderful night, too! ;)
Let's see, there are now five cats that call me important. They are a lot of fun, if not a bit of work. All were feral, live-trapped and fixed and socialized, and some just wouldn't go away. So they are now more of a pet. They do add a nice dimension to daily life. Some day I will write more about them all. A few have been on posts over time, with Stinky the cat being the most 'famous' on Steemit ( :
WOW! That should be a lot of fun and hard work for you, too! I can imagine how these cats make you happy and fulfill your daily life! And you may have a lot of funny stories about your lovely cats to tell here.... Yes, I can remember "Stinky"! I look forward to reading your articles shortly! ;)
Have a nice night! ;D
Excellent practice dear friend @ ddschteinn, I have three generations doing the same, my childhood, those of my children and now with my granddaughter, you are very right nothing compared to the aroma of freshly cut grass, thank you very much for sharing this wonderful work Dear friend
Have a happy rest
Thank you, and to you as well, though tomorrow is coming on fast. Have a nice night.
I love that you lay in the grass and look up to the sky- I have been doing it with my kids and it is really the best thing ever. I've never gotten disoriented like you're describing but from your photo I can totally see why you felt that way!! Gotta love a cat using you as a pillow- so nice!!! Purrrrr
It is very glorious, to just lay in the lawn with the kids, be they two legged or four, and watch the world spin on by. Glad you enjoy this endeavour as well. Though it would be a lot of fun when the kids ask ?? about what is going by above, space and those sorts of things, rather than just laying there purring (though I do fall asleep now and then to it, which is even more glorious. )
Thinking back, I may have been dis-oriented from brain addlement, after hours of vibration and 90 degree temps...hard to say. Well, hope you have a nice night.
Yes!! It was totally the weed whacking! After I'm done weed whacking my hands feel vibraty and actually things feel smooth (I think my nerves get rattled and dulled out so they can't feel the roughness of things) for a WHILE!! Ok no trip to the neurologist for you ;)
I finally got some special gloves (to the tune of $25), that are mondo padded. They do seem to help alot. I guess that is cheaper than carpal surgery. Interesting that the process 'smooths out' your tactile world. Probably right, now too good for us. Then again, how many things do we do that are not good for us. Probably better not to ponder that point too long.
Yes, no more pondering for you (or me). I do think that laying down and looking up at the clouds is one of the few things that is good for us :) So keep on keepin on, friend.
I like your blog for all the different subjects. I'm trying to keep mine to just 3 or 4 different subjects for. Maybe when I am more established I will add other content. You might like my fine art photography. I followed you!
If you spend too much time on your PC, you eye muscles become strained. When you lie on your back, this often results in (sometimes rather strong) dizziness.
I liked this story. Made me drop down a gear or two - I was editing photos in a rush and was rather nervous. This made me relax, especially since I know what it feels like to be a cat mat :)
Robert is cute!
Great post @ddschteinn. Nice read and a really cool image too. I stared at it for a while before actually reading your commentary and it did have me puzzled, good job!!!
What's a wonderful writing my friend. Am I dreaming? but I feel the same way when I am surround by nature and my two dogs laying next to me ;))) Amazing summer idyll ;)) Up my friend and than you