Words with Webster: Cheshirization, Plus Friendly Fill-Ins

We have two fun Friday features for you today. First up is Real Cat Webster, who has a catty word to share (but perhaps not catty enough, as you’ll see!). After that, it’s on to Friendly Fill-Ins!

Words with Webster

Hi, everybody! It’s me, Real Cat Webster. Welcome to Words with Me. Today’s word is “Cheshirization.” I learned this word last week when Mommy was looking up stuff about Alice in Wonderland. At first I thought it must mean “to turn into a Cheshire Cat” or something like that, but that’s not really it. “Cheshirization” is a word from linguistics. It’s not even in our usual dictionaries, so I went to Wiktionary and learned that this word means this:

One or several sound changes which preserve a phonological distinction in a re-expressed form.

I didn’t understand that at all (even Mommy went, “Huh?” and she’s kind of smart), so I had to look on Wikipedia. Okay … so according to Wikipedia, Cheshirization is when a sound disappears from a word but leaves behind a trace—like how the Cheshire Cat could gradually disappear, until only his smile was left.

The Cheshire Cat vanishing.
Illustration by John Tenniel in Lewis Carroll's
Alice in Wonderland (1865-66).
Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

It makes more sense when you see an example. The word “night” is a good one. Today the “gh” is silent, but it used to be pronounced—sort of like the end sound in “uhg” or “loch”— but that sound disappeared over time. It left something behind, though, and that is the long “i” sound, which used to be a short “i.” The long “i” is like the cat’s smile. So today we say “nite” instead of “nit.”

I’m sorry I couldn’t find a more catty example, but I had to use one that (a) was in English and (b) I understood!

I think we should make up a new meaning for this word because the current one is boring (except to linguists, I guess). I think the new meaning should be this:

When a cat disappears into a really great hiding spot, leaving only some shed fur behind in plain sight.

Here it is used in a sentence:

That clever Webster is a master of Cheshirization, especially when someone says “Vet.”

Do you have an idea for what Cheshirization could mean? Let us know in the comments!

Friendly Fill-Ins

And now it’s time for Friendly Fill-Ins, from 15andmeowing and The Four-Legged Furballs. This week, old SoLT answered the first two, and Real Cat Paisley did the second two.

Old SoLT’s answers:

1. My favorite subject in school was any kind of science. I took a lot of science in high school and started as a biology major in college.

2. An extracurricular activity I participated in was … well, I was in the science club, but I don’t remember that we ever actually did anything expect get our picture taken for the yearbook. This was back in the days before kids had to be in 67 activities all the time.

Real Cat Paisley’s answers:

3. I want to learn how to get outside. The dog goes outside, so why can’t I?

4. It takes courage to defy me when I want to be fed. I have sharp things on the ends of my paws, and I’m not afraid to use them!

Kids’ Cruelty Toward Mother Cat and Kittens Points to Need for Humane Education

Warning: This story includes two brief accounts of cruelty toward animals.

This mother cat and her kittens were pelted with rocks, but thanks to their
kind rescuer and Alley Cat Rescue, the mom and her surviving kittens
are recovering and will be available for adoption soon.
Photo courtesy of Alley Cat Rescue.

In late May, a kind person in Maryland witnessed some children throwing rocks at a tortoiseshell cat and her four kittens. Fortunately this person intervened, rescuing two of the kittens. But the other two kittens had died, and the mother had run away.

The kind person then called Alley Cat Rescue, a nonprofit dedicated to the welfare of cats. ACR took over care of the kittens and sent rescuers out the next day to search for the momma. They found her near where the incident had taken place. She was under a car and was likely searching for her kittens. The rescuers were able to humanely trap her, and she is now recovering in foster care along with her two remaining little ones. Understandably, the little family has been shaken by what happened to them, but they are getting better and will soon be available for adoption.

The momma’s new name is June Bug, and her kittens are Star and Boo. We hope they all soon learn that many humans are kind and loving and would never, ever try to hurt a defenseless cat.

The importance of humane education

We’re so happy that June Bug, Star, and Boo were rescued and are recovering, but this story makes us ask, Why do people do stuff to intentionally hurt animals? Old SoLT has been asking this since she was about 12, when she briefly witnessed some older teens throwing rocks at a puppy. She didn’t understand it then, and she doesn’t understand it now. How anyone could see any living thing suffering and not have their heart break is beyond us.

Humane education--learning to have compassion for animals--
benefits kids and animals alike.
Photo via Adobe Stock.

According to ACR, “cruelty towards animals can be an indicator of other behavioral problems in children and continued criminal activity in adulthood.” One problem, wethinks, is that often people—adults and children alike—don’t understand that, yes, animals feel pain and fear. Yes, animals deserve to be treated with kindness and respect. That’s why we’re so glad to know that ACR advocates for humane education—teaching children to be kind and compassionate to animals.

“It is so important to teach children compassion for animals at a young age, while they are so impressionable,” said Denise Hilton, Alley Cat Rescue’s director of operations. ACR has taught humane education courses at elementary schools and Girl Scout events. Hilton said, “When we have taught at local schools the children have been really engaged and interested in learning more about cats.”

That is good to hear!

We applaud ACR's humane education initiatives and hope they can do a lot more of it.

Get more information

 To learn more about Alley Cat Rescue, or to support them and their humane education efforts, visit saveacat.org.

And potential adopters for June Bug, Star, and Boo should contact Alley Cat Rescue at acr@saveacat.org to learn more about them.

Source

“Alley Cat Rescue Pushes for Humane Education After Saving Cats from Children Throwing Rocks.” June 5, 2018. https://www.prweb.com/releases/2018/06/prweb15536477.htm

Cat of the Week: Phil Dunphy

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.

This week, we’re happy to introduce Phil Dunphy. This fellow’s name caught our attention right away (Modern Family, anyone?). His sweet, handsome face certainly caught our eye too! Phil is a 12-year-old male who could make a great cat for fans of orange tabbies. His hobbies are, appropriately, “doing cat things” like lounging and playing, and he enjoys getting pets sometimes too.

Don’t forget June is Adopt a Shelter Cat Month! Wouldn’t it be great to give an awesome cat like Phil a loving home?

Phil is currently at the Baltimore Humane Society. Learn more about him 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!

Book Review: Seafurrers

Today we are pleased to bring you our short review of the fascinating book Seafurrers: The Ships’ Cats Who Lapped and Mapped the World, by Philippa Sandall and illustrated by Ad Long. This book covers the history of cats on ships from the very beginning, when cats took up duty stations on grain ships to feast on the rodents that ruined the cargo; to the years of exploration, when cats went along on the search for a route to the Pacific and on explorations of Antarctica; to stories of cats on warships; and finally to the end of cats and other live animal pets or mascots on Royal Navy ships in the 1970s.

First, let us tell you that this is not a boring old history book full of stuffy, dense prose. It is instead a thoroughly engaging read divided into short chapters called “incidents,” which include asides from a cat (“According to Bart”) and call-out boxes with additional interesting facts. Plus there are lots of photos of sailors and their cats and photo illustrations of cats on ships (our favorite of which is the cat coming up the gangplank wearing a sailor’s hat and with a pile of crates behind him marked “Cat”).

Second, let us tell you that, yes, Seafurrers is about cats, but it’s not just about cats. We learned about lots of other things too. Like how much grain a single rat or mouse can spoil, some particulars of voyages of discovery we didn’t know before…oh, and some stuff about squid. And of course we learned a lot about seafaring cats—for example, about cats catching flying fish, cats falling overboard and being rescued, the cat that survived the sinking of the USS Maine, and the cat who shared tent space with a pair of penguins.

We think if you have even a passing interest in ships’ cats and/or seafaring in general, you will love this book. It is well written, well designed, and a joy to read. When we got to the end, we wished it could have gone on a little longer. Thankfully, Bart also has an excellent blog that is worth a read.

The book and blog are both highly recommended!

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!

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

Sunday Selfie: Flashy Paisley

Real Cat Paisley: Don't flashy thing me, Mommy!

Old SoLT (aka Mommy): Click, Flash!

Real Cat Paisley: Grrr...

And that's how the taking of this week's Sunday Selfie went.

We're joining the Sunday Selfies Blog Hop, hosted by The Cat on My Head!

Caturday Art: Webster's Z

This week's Caturday Art features Real Cat Webster's back part, and especially the white Z formation he has on his leg. Old SoLT thinks that is just the neatest thing, and she's always making a fuss over it. None of the rest of us are impressed.

The art was done in LunaPic, with the Homer (56%) and Cartoon (41%) effects. The frame is from Photoshop.

We'd show you the original, but once again old SoLT isn't sure where it is. (Really, old SoLT? That's two weeks in a row!) Anyway, she blames being really busy with work, which is also why we've missed visiting a lot of your blogs this week. We hope to be back to normal soon, because we miss visiting our blogging friends!

We're joining the Caturday Art Blog Hop, hosted by Athena and Marie!

Real Cat Paisley’s Friendly Fill-Ins

We have just one fun Friday feature for you today. This is because old SoLT has been double-booked with work for the past two weeks and has not had as much time as usual to type the blog. That’s also why we haven’t visited and left comments on our friends’ blogs very much this week, and we’re sorry about that. We miss visiting everyone! Hopefully things will return to normal soon.

For today, Real Cat Paisley has agreed to do the Friendly Fill-Ins from 15andmeowing and The Four-LeggedFurballs:

1. My neighbors are people I have only seen out the window. The lady who lives over the back fence likes to work in her garden a lot, and I think some cats live with her too.

2. The last thing I purchased online was … well, I’ve never bought anything online because I don’t have a credit card or anything. Mommy won’t let me use hers. Bummer.

3. I have never met my neighbors or bought anything online (see above).

4. Anything is possible if you yell loud enough for long enough to get what you want. Poking people with your claws is good too. Once you’ve got people’s attention, they’ll do anything to try to make you happy. Try to look cute!