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The Melville Cat

From the Melville Cat: Happy Birthday to Me

From the Melville Cat: Good day. I must confess the title of this post is rather misleading. Today may very well be my birthday. Then again it may not. (Felines don’t bother remembering birth dates.) But the dear Ms. M, my original human caretaker, told Heather she believes I was born in or around December 2007. I am now at or near the age of 12: the equivalent of 64 years by human measurements. I am a venerable older gentleman and ready to enjoy my golden years. Hence I have chosen today, Friday the 13th of December, to celebrate myself and my accomplishments to date. Accomplishments of the Melville Cat December 2007 (or thereabout): I am born somewhere, to someone. I do not remember the circumstances of my birth or who my parents are. I have many siblings. February 2008 (or thereabout): Ms. M discovers me in a cage inside the dreadful veterinarian’s office, capering about with a brood of gray siblings. Ms. M can not resist my charms and brings me to her home on Melville’s 6th Avenue. I live a pleasant life with Ms. M, accompanied by a large family of humans, felines, and canines. August 2010: As […]

December 13, 2019 by 2summers

From the Melville Cat: The Midget Fluff Ball Menace Turns One

From the Melville Cat: Forgive me friends, as it has been many months since my last update. I’ve been busy. For a while I was spending most of my time outdoors in an effort to escape the insufferable badgering of the Trixie, the Midget Fluff Ball Menace. She has grown larger and her harassment progressively more tiresome. I was away so often, Heather frequently worried about me. This was by design, of course. In one instance I stayed away for two days and two nights, and when I returned Heather was just about to publish a blog post announcing my disappearance. She welcomed me with tears in her eyes, held me tightly, and fed me a full packet of moist kibble. Mission accomplished. Then winter came, temperatures dropped, and I grew bored with sleeping outdoors. I decided to swallow my pride and start sleeping in Heather’s bed again, despite the Menace’s constant presence there. Fortunately the Menace has enough respect to remain at the foot of the bed and yield to me my rightful place beside Heather. The Fluff Ball’s Birthday Heather asked me to write a post this week because the Midget Fluff Ball Menace is now one year […]

July 31, 2019 by 2summers

2019 Update From the Melville Cat

From the the Melville Cat: Good day, dear readers. I would like to update you on recent developments. Trixie, the Midget Fluff Ball Menace 1. The Midget Fluff Ball Menace continues to play an active role in my day to day life, for better or worse. She is no longer a kitten but rather a half-grown cat. The Midget — I suppose I won’t be able to call her that much longer — is still rambunctious, forever scampering and tumbling about. Trixie is still a menace, but fortunately she has become a bit more respectful of my boundaries in recent months. I hope this trend will continue. A Gift for the Melville Cat 2. I recently received a beautiful ceramic food bowl from Cape Town. The bowl has gray spots and feline ears and Heather says it was made especially for me by one of my fans. Thank you to Zelda at Soenchie for crafting this lovely Melville Cat accessory. Instagram Stardom 3. I am the “Instagram Star of the Month” in the January/February issue of Pick n Pay Fresh Living Magazine. It makes perfect sense that one of South Africa’s most trusted retail brands chose to recognize me in […]

February 3, 2019 by 2summers

The Melville Cat: I Am a Cat Food Spokesperson

Good day, friends. Here is some important news from the Melville Cat: 1) Trixie, the Midget Fluff Ball Menace, is still in my home. She keeps growing larger. I’m tired of her and yet she continues to be present. Hmph. 2) I have been hired as a spokesperson — a spokescat, if you will — for the local cat food company, Montego. Montego has recently made some changes to its range of cat foods and they have hired moi to tell you about it. As I dictate this post to Heather, she insists I tell you the Midget Fluff Ball Menace has also been hired as a Montego spokeskitten. I can’t explain why. She is a child, barely three months old, and has virtually no experience as a social media influencer. The Fluff Ball tried to open our Montego gift hamper before I even arrived home. How rude. Hmph. But fine. I will include the Midget’s input, if I must. Montego Cat Food: A Spokescat’s Review (and some input from an inexperienced Midget Fluff Ball Menace) Montego has unveiled new adult dry cat foods in tuna and chicken flavors. I should mention this new food contains “Hairball Assist”. I personally do not […]

October 31, 2018 by 2summers

From the Melville Cat: A Kitten in My Castle

Dear readers, A kitten has invaded my home. Please help. Sincerely, The Melville Cat Yes, I’m sure you find her charming. But I assure you, this kitten is a terrible menace. Several days ago, Heather came into my house with a large crate. I peered between the bars and hissed with disdain: Inside were several piles of squirmy, dun-colored fluff. Four young felines? Five? I couldn’t count. Dirty, dun-colored baby felines in my house. Ha! “They’re from Hillbrow,” Heather told me. “Remember the other kitten I brought from Hillbrow, many years ago?” I have never been to Hillbrow. I do not remember, nor do I care. An hour later Heather left the house and took the crate with her. I was relieved. Alas, she returned the next day. This time she emptied the crate of Hillbrow fluff onto my bathroom rug. Three squirmy piles of feline fluff on my bathroom rug. Two filthy fluff balls. The kittens’ eyes were dirty and runny when they arrived from Hillbrow. There were three young felines. I could see their noses and paws through the crack under the bathroom door. Heather spent lots of time in the bathroom. Sometimes she took other humans in with her. […]

September 24, 2018 by 2summers

The Melville Cat: My Favorite Feline Instagrammers

From the Melville Cat: As many of you know, I am an Instagrammer as well as a blogger. You can peruse my Instagram photos at @TheMelvilleCat. This photo, which portrays me relaxing thoughtfully on my bedroom floor, recently appeared on my Instagram feed. Heather shoots all of my photos, with active direction from me. I also enjoy following the adventures of my fellow felines on Instagram. The feline Instagram community is prolific, perhaps because cats are so obviously photogenic (especially me). Since you haven’t heard from me for a while on this blog, I thought I would drop in and share with you my five favorite feline Instagrammers (in addition to myself, of course). 1) @LudwigoftheLofts @LudwigoftheLofts is a Johannesburg native like myself. Not only is Ludwig a beautiful cat — with a snow-white coat, one blue eye, and one green eye — he also has a very entertaining personality. Ludwig enjoys escaping outside through the window of his loft in pursuit of female love interests, reclining upside-down amidst flowers, and squeaking at flies. Ludwig. Be sure to watch Ludwig’s Instagram videos as they are particularly inspired. 2) @BadCatPhotos @BadCatPhotos is perhaps my favorite of all feline Instagram accounts because it […]

April 6, 2018 by 2summers

From the Melville Cat: I’m a Work of Art

From the Melville Cat: Heather enjoys animal-inspired art. She has a beaded giraffe, for example, as well as a clay porcupine. But until recently she did not have any art inspired by the most important animal in her life: me. I’ve been dropping hints about this omission for years — by sleeping on Heather’s art books and refusing to admire the beaded giraffe despite multiple prompts. Apparently my hints finally worked. Last week Heather came home with this: My beaded likeness. I’ve named him Melville Cat Deux. I didn’t think much of my beaded likeness at first. After all these years of waiting, I suppose I’d lost interest in the idea. Also his front legs are a bit short. Ho hum. But then I took a closer look at Melville Cat Deux and realized his resemblance to me is quite remarkable. We have a similar posture. A man named Shepherd made Melville Cat Deux. Shepherd makes a living creating beaded animals on Melville’s 7th Street. He has sold Heather several beaded animals in the past. Shepherd with Melville Cat Deux. Shepherd has been making beaded animals in Melville for many years — longer than Heather can remember — but he […]

November 9, 2017 by 2summers

From the Melville Cat: A Breakup

From the Melville Cat: I’m writing this post as a favor to Heather. She’s been trying to write it for days — I’ve been watching her — but today she gave up and asked me to do it for her. Unlike my usual light-hearted feline musings, this is a serious post indeed. Ray does not live in our house anymore. Heather says it’s a breakup. I wasn’t familiar with this term before and I still don’t understand completely, as nothing is broken as far as I can see. I never saw any pieces of glass on the floor — something I always make sure to scamper away from. I don’t see any cracks in the furniture. All I know is, there used to be three of us and now there are two. A breakup? What exactly do you mean? It was confusing at first. Heather went away on a trip — she was already sad before she left — and while she was gone Ray carried some things out of the house. He seemed sad, too. On one particular morning during this time, Ray was very sad indeed. He carried some more things out of the house. I followed him […]

September 20, 2017 by 2summers

A Hillbrow Cat Becomes a Melville Cat

Before reading on, I suggest reading Part 1 of Abby the Tiger’s story. Humans call me Abby. But they used to call me Tiger. Abby, formerly Tiger, a well-traveled cat. Some of you may remember me — I’ve told my story here before. I was born in Hillbrow and I used to live in a boxing gym there. Back then, when I was still a young cat, Heather (the human who owns this blog) asked me to write a guest post for her. She thought my life was very interesting, and I suppose she was right. This is me, more than two years ago, when I was a young cat in Hillbrow. The man in the photo is George, my original human. My story has become even more interesting since then. I recently bumped into Heather and she asked me to write an update. I will pick up where I left off. Two years ago (that’s about 10 cat years ago), I was a happy cat in Hillbrow. I slept at the gym and roamed the streets, wherever and whenever I pleased. I was small and fast and vicious and I knew how to take care of myself. I was Tiger, the […]

July 6, 2017 by 2summers

The Melville Cat: I’m a Columnist

The Melville Cat is a published columnist. Please read his column below. I was invited to write an opinion piece for the Melville Residents Association newsletter. This comes as no surprise. I have resided in Melville for a decade and I am the most famous and well-respected feline in the suburb. I am also an experienced blogger. I’ve lived in three Melville residences during my life. In 2011 I resided in two homes at once, unbeknownst to the humans involved. I convinced the humans of each home that I lived in their home only, thus procuring double the food (including chicken treats) and double the stroking of a normal cat. The humans eventually discovered my ruse but it was lovely while it lasted. Since 2012 I have resided exclusively with a human called Heather (2Summers), and later with her human partner Ray. Life in the 2Summers household has been pleasant; I still receive a larger than average amount of stroking and chicken treats. I experienced a hiccup in 2015 when the household moved from one side of Melville to the other, and the humans deceived me into coming along. I was displeased with the move at first, as this new Melville […]

April 5, 2017 by 2summers

A Melville Cat Photoshoot

From the Melville Cat: This is a periodic update for my fans, to tell you that I am doing well. It is springtime in Johannesburg, the weather is fine, and I am spending lots of time outside, calling to my feline friends. I especially enjoy calling to my feline friends late at night, just outside the bedroom, with long, dramatic, mournful meows. I think Heather and Ray enjoy my calls as well. Heather conducted a photoshoot with me last week, which I quite enjoyed. Here are my favorite photos from the shoot. That is all that I have to say. Heather asked me to tell you that she is going away for a week and may not have time to blog during her travels. She will update you on her experiences upon her return. In the meantime, I will be at home enjoying extra servings of roast chicken and catnip with Ray. Thank you and good day. Meeoow.

September 2, 2016 by 2summers

My Favorite Joburg People: Michelle de Villiers

I recently announced a storytelling project I’m working on called My Favorite Joburg People. I chose four people in Joburg, each of whom has an amazing story to tell, and interviewed them and shot their portraits. I’ll be presenting the stories and portraits at an upcoming event called Translating Joburg – Storytellers, and also publishing them on my blog. This is the first of the four stories. These stories are longer than my normal blog posts. Michelle de Villiers Michelle at Junkie Charity Shop, May 2016. I met Michelle through a cat. When I first moved to Joburg in 2010, a gray cat started hanging around in my back garden. My neighbor’s cat chased the gray cat mercilessly and I chased him too, trying to rid our garden of the incessant feline fights. But the gray cat kept coming back. My boyfriend Jon and I finally started feeding the gray cat, who we called Squeak. Jon was not a huge cat fan but Squeak won him over. Squeak started sleeping in our house. We took Squeak to the vet and learned that Squeak was a he, not a she, as we originally thought. We began to think of Squeak as ours. One day […]

June 14, 2016 by 2summers

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