Can Kittens Read Kindle?

So I'm reading my Kindle in bed and my Maine Coon kitten is curled up next to me. I get up for something, probably another cup of coffee, and leave the Kindle lying on the blanket.

I return to see my kitten staring at Edgar Allan Poe's face.

Each time the Kindle goes into rest mode, it randomly chooses a portrait of a famous author to display. This time it was Poe.

So she's staring at him. Then she reaches out a front paw and pats his face. Then she pats the white keyboard a couple times. Then she pats his face again.

Clearly she can see him. But why does she care?

As it turns out, this kitten is Daddy's Girl and he's been away on a trip. She misses him, which is why she's with me (normally I don't get the time of day from her). He sort of looks like Poe - dark hair, moustache. Is that why she's drawn to it?

Not only was the kitten patting the Kindle adorable, but I think I've found a whole new market for pet products. You know how there are DVDs that you can leave on for your cat to watch? There's got to be some way to produce an e-picture-book for them. :)

Or maybe we'll find out, now that they don't have to worry about holding the book and turning the pages, that cats have known how to read all along. ;)


Photo above from CatSpotting

Origin of The Big Apple

Ever wonder why New York City is called The Big Apple?

According to Landis MacKellar's book The Double Indemnity Murder, famous evangelist Billy Sunday, pictured here preaching, once said, "If America is the Garden of Eden, then New York is a big, rotten apple."

This quote most likely was proclaimed before his 10-week stint in New York City in 1917, because at the end of that campaign he complimented New Yorkers, saying, "They seemed to want to hear about God. I think New Yorkers are keener than country folk; they are more used to seeing and hearing new things; they catch on quicker."

And New York, apparently cool with Original Sin, turned that initial condemnation into a beloved nickname.

You can understand how such a nickname would appeal during the Roaring Twenties. :)

It became part of a major tourist advertising campaign in the 1970s, and that's probably why we're familiar with it today. I'm betting those ad men didn't know where the nickname came from, though.

FTC Regulates Amateur Bloggers

I snagged this great image from Janet Reid's blog.

If you have a blog and you comment about things you like on it, better read her post here - because the FTC could come after you if you don't disclose your connection to the product.

Yes, it is a brand new two scoops of crazy from a bureaucracy that should have better things to do with its time.

Bizarre Bazaar

This weekend is the Salem Bizarre Bazaar!

From the Salem Chamber of Commerce:
"Fun for all ages, this street festival has something for everyone. Crafts, jewelry, paintings, stained glass, and other unique items will be featured along the Essex Pedestrian Mall. Street performers, face painters, and musicians will entertain all."

Visit Salem's Official Haunted Happenings blog for more images!

Scent of a Coffee

From the archives:

I was watching 1947's Born to Kill tonight and was amused to find a little bit of business about coffee toward the beginning of this film noir.

The private detective (who is the closest we're going to get to a hero in this flick) hears a delivery man comment about how the coffee in the cafe "sure smells good" and "isn't it a shame it never tastes as good as it smells." Our detective takes this comment and goes on to wax philosophical about how life is like that - better in theory than in fact.

I was somewhat surprised that their coffee didn't taste as good as it smelled.
What kind of sub-par coffee were the customers settling for?

Then I remembered that this movie was made back when people boiled the heck out of their coffee. If you let the percolator just run and run, you continually re-boiled the coffee grounds, and you ended up with a very bitter drink. Hence, the coffee smells better than it tastes.

Of course, they could also be talking about instant coffee, this being only a few years after World War II. But I'm betting it was the percolator.

With all our gourmet brands and specialty drinks, we forget how lucky we are just to have a cup of joe that tastes as good as it smells.