Words with Webster: Meow, Plus Friendly Fill-Ins

We have two fun Friday features for you today. First up is Real Cat Webster, who has a real cat word to share. After that, it’s on to Friendly Fill-Ins!

Words with Webster

Hi, everybody! It’s me, Real Cat Webster, welcoming you to Words with Me. I think I picked a really good word this week. It’s one that we all know and use a whole lot: "meow." I’m pretty sure we all know what a meow is, but to get an official definition, Mommy helped me look in my favorite dictionary, Merriam-Webster’s. In there, it said that “meow” means “the cry of a cat” (yeah, we knew that), but it also means “a spiteful or malicious remark” (I never heard that one before; why do people use cat words to say something mean, anyway?). The word can be spelled a whole bunch of different ways too: miaow, miau, or meaow.

Next, we looked in the Oxford English Dictionary, where we learned that “meow” as a verb first appeared in print in 1632. It was in Robert Sherwood and Randle Cotgrave’s A dictionarie of the French and English tongues... [and] A most copious dictionarie, of the English set before the French (not the catchiest title I’ve ever heard, but I guess they did things different back then). The quote is

To meaw, or meawle (as a cat), miauler.

I was surprised that the word appeared that late (and it wasn’t used as a noun until the 19th century), so I asked Mommy to click the link for “mew,” a word that is related to “meow” and seems to have appeared about 300 years earlier.  We’re looking at the verb again, with the following meaning: “of a cat: to make its characteristic cry.” The word appeared in about 1325, in the Glossary of W. de Bibbesworth:

Chate mimoune, mewich.

I read that and said, “Huh?,” so we found this other quote from Shakespeare:

Thrice the brinded Cat hath mew'd. (Macbeth, IV.i.1 [about 1616])

There, that's better. By the way, that quote is also the title of an excellent book Miss C reviewed last year.

We know that forms of the word "mew" have been around since way before 1325 though, because "miu" or "mii" was the Egyptian word for cat.

Kittens learn "meow" in their first days of kittengarten.
Image via Adobe Stock.

Regardless of how it’s spelled or anything, the word “meow” seems to come from people trying to imitate the sound a cat makes. I can understand how hard this must be for you humans out there, because we cats make lots and lots of different sounds. Most of you don’t sound anything like us, but hey, thanks for trying! One other thing about the “meow” sound that’s really interesting is how similar the word is in different languages. You can learn more about that in our post “30 Ways to Say Meow.”

Friendly Fill-Ins

And now it’s time for Friendly Fill-Ins, from 15andmeowing and McGuffy’s Reader. They are a fun way to learn a little bit about the authors of the blogs you read. The first two questions, answered by Real Cat Paisley this week, are from Ellen of 15andmeowing, and the next two, answered by old SoLT, are from Annie of McGuffy’s Reader.

Real Cat Paisley’s answers:

1. Being a dog is a waste of time. All our dog does is eat my food when I’m not looking and sit around looking dumb. What’s the point?

2. My favorite app is the one Mommy uses when she walks the dog, because it means the dog is leaving the house for a little while. (Mommy Old SoLT adds: It’s Walk for a Dog, by WoofTrax).

Old SoLT’s answers:

3. My first car was a 1991 Nissan pickup. I loved that little truck!

4. The best car I ever owned was is my Volkswagen Beetle, because it is just so much fun to drive.

Cat Classics on Film: The Cat Returns

We don’t watch much anime, but we do make an exception for movies with cats in them, like The Cat Returns, a Studio Ghibli production originally released in 2002 in Japan as Neko no ongaeshi. We found that this film has plenty of delightful moments and some pretty good characters—and all the best characters are cats.

The plot

The movie opens with this quote:

If you find yourself troubled by something mysterious or a problem that’s hard to solve, there’s a place you can go where you’ll always find help. You just need to look for it.

So you know you’re about to meet someone who is or soon will be troubled by something mysterious or a problem that’s hard to solve. That person turns out to be Haru (voiced by Anne Hathaway in the English version), a schoolgirl whom we meet as she is waking up late for school. Haru gets to class only to be laughed at by everyone, including the cool boy she has a crush on.  Devastating. Later that day, Haru heroically saves a cat from being hit by a truck (we found this to be the most dramatic scene in the film). Afterward, the cat unexpectedly rises up on two legs, bows, and speaks, thanking her.

Haru thinks the talking cat was kind of odd, but that is nothing compared to what happens that night, when a whole procession of cats walking on two legs comes up her street and straight to her house. With them is a fat, scruffy-looking cat who turns out to be the groovy-talking Cat King (I mean he literally says things like “Groovy, babe”; clearly, this fellow has hit the nip too hard). That cat Haru saved earlier? He was actually the son of the Cat King, and Haru is about to be handsomely rewarded for her actions.

The story of The Cat Returns is also told in this
picture book, available here (affiliate link).

Great, right? Well, not exactly. You see, cats (at least according to this movie) are terrible gift givers, because they give things they would like, such as pretty little boxes filled with mice. Oh, and the opportunity to marry the prince whom she saved earlier. Marrying a prince is every girl’s dream, right? Um, no … and certainly not when the prince in question happens to be a cat. But the prince is sooo cool, the king’s messenger tells Haru. She’ll see when they come to take her to the Cat Kingdom.

And now we’re back to the something mysterious and the problem that’s hard to solve. How is Haru going to get out of this—or should she just go along with it? Enter the Cat Bureau and the Baron (voiced by Cary Elwes), a dapper little cat in a well-cut suit and top hat. This Baron is actually a cat figurine that came to life in the earlier movie Whisper of the Heart (which has just gone on our Netflix list). He and his friend Muta (a slimness-challenged white cat voiced by Peter Boyle) will help her. But this turns out to be far more difficult than anticipated, because this Cat King reveals himself to be the worst sort of ruler—the kind who’s groovy on the outside and cruel and controlling on the inside. How will Haru ever escape his twisted kingdom and stop herself from becoming something she is not?

Our verdict

We enjoyed The Cat Returns a lot, and we really did not expect to. Anime films we’ve seen in the past have been … um, not really our thing. They just didn’t intrigue us, either visually or in terms of plot. But this one was a winner on both counts. We enjoyed the animation and the story. The characters of Muta and the Cat King also caught our interest. Muta is the perfect sidekick to the Baron; he’s sort of the Oscar to the Baron’s Felix (that’s an Odd Couple reference, in case you didn’t catch it). And the Cat King…we just love how twisted he is.

Recommended!

A note on the "Paws Up" system: Miss C gives either one or two paws up. One paw is for a good movie; two paws is for a great movie. She never gives three or four paws because that would require her to lie on her back...and Miss C does not do that!

The link below is an Amazon Associates link. If you purchase the movie through this link, old SoLT and I could get some coin for our kibble account. Thank you!

Cat of the Week: Cinnamon in Baltimore

Each week in this space, we feature an older adult or senior cat (7 years +) in need of adoption or sponsorship. Mature cats make great companions, and unlike kittens, they (probably) won’t climb the curtains! Adopt an older cat, and help them enjoy the best years of their life!

Today we’d like you to meet Cinnamon, a 7-year-old female Maine Coon/Mix. As you can see, Cinnamon is a lovely orange and white tabby. She enjoys getting attention, and she is known to be talkative. She’s also quite easy going and loves being held and cuddled (sounds great, doesn’t it?). She has lived with kids and another cat before.


Cinnamon is currently at the Baltimore Humane Society. Learn more about her here.

Can’t adopt? You can still help! Check out Sammy’s Cat Necessities Fund, which provides money for everyday and medical needs of cats at the Baltimore Humane Society. You can also make a general donation or sponsor a particular animal on this page. Every little bit helps!

Are you a dog lover? (It’s okay; we understand if you are—sort of.) Well, if you love dogs and are in the Baltimore area, make plans now to attend DogFest 2017 on Saturday, September 16. You can get discounted tickets online through September 14.

Book Review: Cat About Town

On this Mysterious Monday, we bring you our review of a page-turning series debut by Cate Conte, whom you may also know as Liz Mugavero, author of the Pawsitively Organic mysteries. The new series, Cat Café mysteries, begins with Cat About Town, a book with an excellent cat, a solid mystery, and some pretty good laughs.

The plot

First, I have to tell you that the description of the book on Amazon is not quite accurate. Wethinks whoever wrote it was more interested in slipping in cutesies like “frisky,” “purrfect,” and “cat’s pajamas” than in finding out what is actually in the book. Second, I will tell you that what is actually in the book is a lot more interesting than the description would indicate.

And now we begin, with one Maddie James, who has come home to New England and the small, touristy Daybreak Island to mourn the death of her grandmother. Maddie has a life on the other side of the country now, in San Francisco, where she and a business partner own a successful juice bar. So she’ll be on the island for just a little while. Only, she meets this cat, and then she finds out her grandfather is in some kind of trouble, and then she and he become suspects in a murder…

But I should back up a bit.

Maddie’s grandfather was once the chief of police. Now he’s retired, and times are not so easy. The old house needs major repairs that he can’t afford. A slimeball named Frank O’Malley wants to buy the house—or rather, wants to force Grandpa to sell. Maddie, good granddaughter that she is, gets riled up about this and arranges a lunch meeting with Frank, during which she says some angry things to him. Next thing you know, her new cat runs off among the tents of the town’s annual Food Stroll while the vendors are still setting up. Maddie chases after him, and he leads her into one particular tent … and right to Frank O’Malley’s extremely dead body.

Not bad for a cat who doesn’t even have a name yet, right? (See “The Cat,” below, for more on this.)

Anyway, finding the body of a person you had sort of a little bit threatened earlier is one sure way to make yourself a murder suspect. That is what Maddie becomes, putting her in close contact with her old flame Craig, who is now on the police force. Perhaps not the best way to rekindle an old romance. Having another hot guy potentially in the picture (one who loves animals, is in a band, is hot—oh, did I mention that one already?) also complicates things. Plus the fact that Maddie doesn’t even plan on sticking around. She’ll be back to San Fran as soon as all this mess is cleared up, right? The fact that someone keeps leaving her articles about cat cafés is just some weird, random thing, right?

The Cat

The cat is an orange tabby whom Maddie first meets in the cemetery during her grandmother’s funeral. He seems to be seeking Maddie out, as though knowing she will care for him. She does not name him right away, choosing instead to call him Orange Guy. (“Orange Guy”? Really, Maddie? That’s like calling me “Splotchy Girl.” Not a good name for a cat of quality.) But she does eventually name him JJ (better—much better). JJ actually becomes something of a celebrity, as he is called a “hero cat” for finding the body, thus alerting authorities to the murder. JJ takes right away to walking on a harness and leash, and he becomes a wonderful companion for Maddie. We love how, instead of having the robust meow one might expect, JJ squeaks. How endearing! (The orange cat whom JJ is based on was interviewed by our friend Mudpie. Check it out if you haven’t already!)

Our verdict

We have tried really hard, and we cannot think of anything about Cat About Town that we did not like. Maddie is a fun character to get to know, and we fell in love with JJ right away (that squeak!). The mystery kept us guessing with plenty of potentially guilty people, and the book’s climax is appropriately thrilling. We can’t wait to see how the cat café turns out in future installments.

Two paws way up!

A note on the "Paws Up" system: Miss C gives either one or two paws up. One paw is for a good read; two paws is for a great read. She never gives three or four paws because that would require her to lie on her back...and Miss C does not do that!

We received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. We wouldn’t tell you it was good unless we really liked it!

The link below is an Amazon Associates link. If you purchase the book through this link, old SoLT and I could get some coin for our kibble account. Thank you!

Sunday Selfie: Real Cat Webster Plays Bridge

Yesterday, Real Cat Webster pretended to be a puma for our eclipse Caturday Art; today in his Sunday Selfie, he is playing bridge. Not the card game--he's pretending to be an actual bridge:

He is in the living room, bridging Side Table Gorge. Very brave, Webster!

Webs thought you might not be able to tell from the first selfie that he is actually a bridge, so he asked old SoLT to take this profile shot too:

We're joining the Sunday Selfies blog hop, hosted by The Cat on My Head.

Caturday Art: Webster Eats the Sun

For this week's Caturday Art, we chose to provide a cultural and educational message in our art. It is about the coming eclipse, or any eclipse really, as you can see:

Earlier this week, old SoLT learned that some people who lived in the Andes region of South America had a totally different name for the constellation we know as Gemini, or the Twins. They called it Puma Yunta, or Two Pumas. They said that sometimes, one of these pumas would jump up and try to eat the sun (many cultures explained solar eclipses by saying an animal was eating the sun). So we thought it would be fun to have Real Cat Webster play the puma in our illustration.

The "constellation" we made is not meant to illustrate the actual Puma Yunta. We just thought it would be fun to put some stars on Webster.

The source for the Puma Yunta story is Art, Nature, and Religion in the Central Andes, by Mary Strong.

We're pleased to be joining the Caturday Art blog hop, hosted by Athena and Marie!

Words with Webster: Eclipse, Plus Friendly Fill-Ins

We have two fun Friday features for you today. First up is Real Cat Webster, who has a sunny word (or should I say, sunny with a chance of sudden darkness?). And then we have Friendly Fill-Ins.

Words with Webster: Eclipse

Hi, everybody. It’s me, Real Cat Webster. Welcome to Words with Me. Today’s word is “eclipse.” If you live in the United States like I do, then I bet you have heard this word a lot lately. That’s because next Monday, August 21, there will be a total solar eclipse that crosses the country from Oregon to South Carolina. Mommy is disappointed that we won’t get a total eclipse where we live. I told her she could probably see it on YouTube, and she said that’s not the same.

Now about the word. “Eclipse” means “the obscuration of one celestial body by another,” according to my favorite dictionary, Webster’s. This means that one thing out in space gets in the way of our view of another one. This word has been around for a very long time, since at least 1374 or thereabouts, when Chaucer included this sentence in his translation of Boethius’s De consolation philosophiae:

When the moon is in the eclips.

Later, in 1608, Shakespeare wrote in King Lear,

These late eclipses in the Sunne and Moone portend no good to us. (ii.103)

Let’s hope that the coming eclipse portends something good, like people getting along with each other and not being mean.

The path the eclipse will take across the continental US.
Adobe Stock image.

Anyway, our English word comes from Old French eclipse, which comes from the Latin eclpīsis, and ultimately from Greek εκλείπειν, which means literally “to forsake its accustomed place, fail to appear.”

That is all very interesting, but I’ll bet you’re wondering what eclipses have to do with cats, right? Well, according to what Mommy and I found online, not a lot (but come back tomorrow for our Caturday Art to see one thing we did find!). Your cat probably won’t even notice that anything is different, other than the humans are acting all weird, putting on funny glasses and going outside to stare up at the sky. (Seriously, your cats will probably be fine; they’ll just think that you have finally gone off the deep end.) BUT … (cue ominous music) … during the 2015 eclipse across the UK, at least one person tweeted that the animals, including her cats, were “going nuts.” Other people reported their dogs acting weird (as if that’s news, right?). Those reports seemed isolated though, but we’d be interested to know if any of you cats out there get any strange feelings or urges during the eclipse.

Friendly Fill-Ins

And now it’s time for Friendly Fill-Ins, from 15andmeowing and McGuffy’s Reader. They are a fun way to learn a little bit about the authors of the blogs you read. The first two questions, answered by Real Cat Paisley this week, are from Ellen of 15andmeowing, and the next two, answered by old SoLT, are from Annie of McGuffy’s Reader.

Real Cat Paisley's answers:

1. If someone were visiting my area, I would recommend a visit to the cat tree in our sunroom. It is really neat and provides a perfect view of the backyard. (Old SoLT adds, You must see the monuments in Washington, DC, if you have never been, whichever parts of the Smithsonian most interest you, and in Baltimore, the Inner Harbor and National Aquarium.)

2. My favorite room in my home is the sunroom, obviously.


Old SoLT's answers:

3. Back-to-school time makes me think of getting spiral notebooks and office supplies on sale.

4. My favourite year of school was none of them, because, oddly, although I’m really curious and love learning new things, I never enjoyed school much. Fourth-grade recess was pretty fun, I think. I remember playing basketball a lot and also running through the middle of the boys' dodge ball game. Good times!