Rosie

How have the holidays been treating you? I hope all has been well so far. Things have been good around here. It’s getting chilly (for California), and traffic is, of course, out of control. But that’s pretty normal for this time of year. It’s incredible how many more cars are on the road than there were last month. It’s like BAM! — all of a sudden there are twice as many cars.

I’ve had a little cold for the past couple days, but it’s just about cleared up now. I haven’t really done a whole lot, though.

Since I haven’t been feeling well, Rosie has been in charge, because, ya know, cats… They prefer calling the shots rather than being told what to do.

Oh! — Rosie has taken on the role of official greeter here. Yup, she stands out in front on the walkway to welcome visitors.

She really enjoys the responsibility. 😸

Saturday night was the company Christmas Party, and as usual, there was the holographic memorial show for Tabs…

And then Rosie passed out everyone’s bonuses…

After the party, we all just hung out on the roof gazing up at the stars through Rosie’s telescope. I didn’t see anything, but she thinks she saw a shooting star…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Some cats are large. Tabs was too. In fact, he was larger than life. Almost 20 pounds of fierce feline fabulosity. I miss him so much this time of year. Every Christmas, I’m reminded of all the Tabs-ian misadventures he embarked upon, like the TIMEs — plural — he knocked over the Christmas tree. Yup, not just once. It was his thing for a while, but I digress… Here’s a look back a few years at a Christmas weekend starring Tabs. 🐱🎁🌲

Before we left the house yesterday, and actually I do this every time I leave for a trip, El Hub, Connor and I spent a long time telling Tabs that we love him, that we’re going to miss him, and that we hope he doesn’t throw any ragers while we’re gone.

It’s true, though. Whenever I go anywhere without Tabs, I feel like I leave part of my heart ? behind (although I don’t know if he cares that much about me, to be honest).

As you can see from these pics from his latest photo spread with his favorite pet sitter/freelance photographer, he was very excited about getting dressed up and celebrating Christmas Eve at the home office on his own.

He sent me a text earlier to ask if it was OK if his old CIA buddies came over for a visit, and at first I was like, “You were in the CIA”? And he said, “Mrow,” which, loosely translated to human speak, means, “Yes, how could you have not known? I didn’t exactly keep it a secret.”

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Oh! I’m glad you’re here. So! I thought you’d be interested in hearing the big news…

Get this: on the night of the company’s annual Christmas tree lighting last weekend, someone sabotaged the A/V system, which caused the Christmas tree lights to go out!

That reminds me…

When Tabs was our CFO (Chief Feline Officer), he kinda took it upon himself to decorate the company tree, and like everything he did, he took this responsibility seriously.

There was no lounging around… It was always work, work, work with Tabs.

Every year, not only did he chair the decorating committee, but he also headlined the company’s annual presentation of The Nutcracker.

Rosie, now, has continued the legacy of the leaders of Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC by doing her level best to maintain the same high standards Tabs set for the office decorations.

Since she’s a scientist and an engineer, she plans out every last detail. Her attention to detail is truly remarkable.

Sadly, it wasn’t enough this year.

Moments after we powered up the company Christmas tree at our big tree lighting ceremony, the unthinkable happened!

Someone sabotaged the setup, which caused the lights to go dark. Yup, the Christmas tree is still broken.

Immediately, Detective Rosie took the case.

It’s been a difficult 24 hours, but if anyone can get to the bottom of this brazen caper and figure out whodunit, it’s Rosie. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

During the first prototype test of the new office Christmas lights at company HQ this weekend, catastrophe struck!

Harris, the former neighborhood cat nemesis of Tabs (and Rosie’s current feline foil), broke into the control room and sabotaged the WiFi router.

It caused crazy illuminated mayhem!

Rosie was not amused…

But she put her displeasure aside and fixed the WiFi in time for tonight’s test.

So far, it looks like a success. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Big week comin’ up, and I hope you have a good one. This year I’m thankful for many things, including you. Thank you for being you, and thank you for stopping by. I’m also thankful for having been lucky enough to know Tabs, the world’s first and greatest kitty supermodel. 😺 Here’s a look back at some of the things Tabs loved extra about Thanksgiving.

Tabs isn’t one of those cats who needs inspirational posters, holidays or memes to remind himself to be grateful for the blessings in his life. He just is grateful. He’s a cat from humble beginnings who rose to the pinnacle of the kitty modeling industry, and he’s never taken anything for granted.

We were talking the other day — yes, my cat talks to me — about what we’re grateful for this year. I expected him to say one or two things, but he rattled off a list of 10.

10 things Tabs is grateful for this year

1. Gravy — The green smoothie of the cat world. All of Tabs’s greatest achievements have been powered by gravy.
2. His younger sister — Their relationship is sometimes dicey, but Tabs is always glad to have another pair of hands to pet him.
3. Sunny spots for napping
4. His DIY custom-built deck cat condo — He’s watched many sunsets while dining on fresh organic catnip out there.
5. Sliced turkey — He prefers Columbus brand, because of its delicate balance of fine flavors, but any sliced turkey will do.
6. Outdoor walks at the crack of dawn
7. Fresh cat grass — The more tender the better
8. His long-term assistants (a.k.a. his family)
9. His silky coat
10. The invention of cat harnesses

He’s also grateful for his striking features, as evident in this tabby tutorial for a sparkly, funky Thanksgiving eye look

STEPS:

1. Apply a metallic bronze loose pigment to the inner half of your lids with a flat eyeshadow brush (I wet my brush first to really amp up the color).
2. Clean the remaining eyeshadow on your flat eyeshadow brush with a paper towel. Then, rewet the brush head, and apply the copper loose pigment to the outer half of your lid. Now wait for both eyeshadows to dry…
3. Seamlessly blend the bronze and copper eyeshadows together with a tapered crease brush.
4. Trace your upper lash line with black liquid liner, and flick out the edge, going up and out.
5. Draw a little autumn leaves flourish just above the bronze and copper eyeshadow with a brown, and yellow (or gold), liquid liner.
6. Finish with your most flirty, fabulous pair of false lashes.

Tabs is also grateful for kitty modeling (of course)

It was his ticket to fame and fortune.

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There are some things Rosie’s scientific mind surely could not comprehend. I was reminded of this while rewatching “The Golden Compass” this weekend, which stars Stelmaria, the snow leopard daemon / spirit animal of Lord Asriel. If a snow leopard were to move into our neighborhood, I’m pretty sure Rosie would short circuit. She’s very territorial when it comes to cats, but a big cat would be a little too much to handle… Tabs, on the other paw, would probably become besties with the big cat, seeing as he fancied himself as one too.

Here’s a look back at this time a few years ago, back when Tabs was still the king of the neighborhood.

It was a dark and stormy night…

Actually, not really. It was a clear and chilly morning.

You know, we used to — well, not we. Tabs mostly. He used to outsource the first patrol of the day to a freelance security company, but in his semi-retirement, he’s come to realize that he’s an early riser and enjoys getting up before the sun.

This morning’s pre-dawn patrol was uneventful, so Tabs cut it short and caught up on some reading instead.

He’s been doing a lot of reading lately to his little sister/pet assistant intern. Their favorite book is called Big Cats, by National Geographic Kids, although he’s a little offended that he wasn’t hired to model for it. He is, after all, a big cat.

The second patrol occurs at 10 a.m. on the dot, and today’s was also relatively uneventful, so Tabs took the opportunity to lounge in the front yard and absorb nature’s bountiful gifts.

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Rosie wanted to show off her two favorite Halloween-themed cat collars, so this week’s installment of Sundays With Tabs is all about her.

(And this jack o’lantern.)

First, there’s her leopard-print ghosty collar…

And then there’s her candy corn bow collar…

She’s curious — which one do you like best?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen