A Tribute to Ralphie

Ralphie was born in an old sheep shed on my Mom's property about 13 years ago to a wild barn cat. He faced a rough short life there, winters were cold and there was a busy road nearby even for a farming neighborhood. Boys like Ralphie didn't have long lives in the wilds of Idaho.

Knowing these things and looking into the face of that little orange fluff ball made me decide to bring him home to live with me. His eyes were still blue and he was still nursing a bit but we had become quite proficient with bottle feeding baby kittens having taken in both Thelma and Louise the year before and needing to bottle feed them both.

Ralphie quickly established himself as a character and quite opinionated too. Never one to shy away from making himself heard when the food bowl ran low he would race ahead to trip you so you were sure to know what he wanted.

Later in life he developed that strange snaggle tooth that I found sooo incredibly endearing.

He always knew when you were having a bowl of cereal and insisted on finishing what was left of the milk in the bottom of the bowl...always.

The dogs feared Ralphie and he knew it. He liked to stand in the path that he knew they wanted to go in because he knew they wouldn't dare go if he would just sit there...calmly, whistling while they danced from paw to paw in anticipation.

My grumpy boy.

Forever in my heart.

6-22-2009

Ralphie Not Feeling Well

My big boy Ralph (the Real One) hasn't been feeling well lately and got to have a visit with the vet. I had noticed that he wasn't eating much lately and had in fact lost some weight. Now mind you Ralph has always been a thin cat so it wasn't all that noticeable at first. When we finally did get him to the vet he actually weighed a paltry 7 pounds...yikes!

He was a VERY good boy in the visit but he did feel well enough to growl at DR. Jason...a lot!

Turns out he has an infected tooth.

What was really amazing was that he got an antibiotic shot that would administer meds to his system twice a day for ten days just from the one shot. No holding down grumpy cats and attempting to risk life and limb to administer them to him.

Four days in and he is feeling so so much better. He has another appointment in four more days to get the tooth looked at in more detail to see what's going on with it. They just wanted to get the infection cleared up first.

He wasn't getting babied enough before, he'll be impossible after this. I may even attempt a picture later. I think I may be able to sneak one in on him...

Finally, Some Artwork!

I had finished this one some time ago but something wasn't quite right with it so I stared at it for awhile and finally decided what I wanted to fix on it. I am much happier now. She's done with acrylics on a 4x4 canvas.


"Say Cheese"
This little guy looks like he was a Star Trek fan as his shirt reminds me a little of their old uniforms. He was painted using acrylics and my ever so favorite Prismacolor pencils on a 6x6 canvas.


Ralphie was such a huge hit that I felt compelled to re-visit this particular picture several times, six times in fact, hehe. This is just one of them. They are all done the same way but each little Ralphie ended up having his own individual personality. It was rather amazing.

Ralphie on Canvas

I know its been a good long while since my last post and I do apologize. I think this summers weather has really gotten to me. I feel at best lethargic and lazy and I can't ever seem to get anything done. Sooo on that note I decided that I was going to get something done this weekend come hell or high water.
I present you with Ralphie...on canvas and in real life...



My Ralphie is one of those cats that even the best and bravest dog is afraid of. You see Ralphie is...Ornery... on his good days. He's always mad, about something. I never know, and while he looks all cute in the photo don't be fooled. I was eating some hard bolied eggs and he desperately wanted some so he was on his best behavior...and he loves me.
I tried to convey that look on the painting but the canvas Ralphie would have none of that, he wanted to be cute...and lovable...and well, nice.
I finally obliged.
See, he gets his way no matter what. Even on canvas.

I've also got no less than 8 other canvases started and in various stages of completeness. In my defense I do tend to get easily distracted. Very easily.