I just love Frankie's little face!

And all the agents would be calling with comments like, "Stunning!" and "What amazing symmetry!" and "We simply MUST do lunch!"

Yes. i am a dork. And i'm ok with that.

Happy Thursday!

Simply GORGEOUS!

Bob, too!

And Soba (please Soba, don't hurt me!)

Your kitties are so beautiful!

"Soba is going to do WHAT to me? Save me!!"

You take such beautiful photos, Laurie!

Holy crap! That is so freaking cute! I love when you can decipher the "different" expressions of your cat - I used to always tell my dad when our cat Seven was sad or mad or mischevious...he thought I was crazy but he just didn't get it! Oh how I miss that cat!

She is sooo pretty! And for some reason Stevie Wonder's song "isn't she wonderful" popped into my brain radio.

She needs an agent stat!

Random question: I can't remember if you explained this somewhere along the way, but what happened to the monthly horoscopes? I miss them. They are somehow comforting when everything is amiss. You know, like a friendly wine.

WHOA! I am pretty sure I just saw her on TCM! Must have been one of her 9 lives! ;-)

She is too cute!! I love her white whiskers.

Feline groovy.

Taking Frances's lead, some topics I miss: getting out of debt (yay!), great moments in American fashion design, and, of course, the horoscopes.

You do understand that I will cheerfully read whatever you write and have to restrain myself at work lest I violate company policy by laughing out loud. I am just saying is all.

Ah!! Beautiful Frankie!!

truly!!!! a calendar cat...and the bob is quite dashing also...Love your meowsers!!!!!
so far the highlight of MY day............
(tried to make me a nice banana/strawberry smoothie and my yogurt was moldy!:()

Her ingenue character.

she does look very starlet-ish!

She's ready for Vanity Fair! Get Annie Leibowitz on the phone, stat!

Frankie looks like she has just been declared "Safe" this week on Dancing with the Stars.

Oh my gosh, she is so beautiful!!! Yes, she is indeed too cute/pretty/beautiful for words!

Channelling a young Katherine Hepburn, perhaps?

I'd give her a leading lady role - perhaps with that face she should really play the ingenue.

"Rhett, Rhett! Where ever shall I go? What ever shall I do?"

Frankie channeling Scarlett O'Hara.

pretty girl - "I am ready for my closeup, mr. de mille."

now I can't WAIT to see soba's manifesto face tomorrow!

Oh, she's so gorgeous!

How elegant!

I used to work at a veterinarian's clinic and a young woman came in with her new kitten, a tortie like Frankie, with a bisected-color face. She was the most beautiful kitten (next to my own tortie, Cleo)! Her dad kept saying awful things like, "I wanted to drown it; ugliest cat I ever seen." His daughter looked close to tears. I couldn't believe how crass and cruel this yahoo-guy was! I told him, "You're a crazy man! This is the most gorgeous cat I've ever seen! All tortishells are beautiful, but the bisected-color face is exquisite! I'm so glad this kitten found your daughter!" The girl looked so happy after I said that and the dad looked a little embarrassed.
Frankie's sweet personality comes through, adding to her extraordinary beauty. Thanks for sharing your kitties with us!

Oh, Frankie is so beautiful! I have a tortie and have such a soft spot for calicos and torties! love them.

I don't write the horoscopes any more because too many people picked, complained and whined that theirs wasn't spot on or wasn't funny enough, this enough, that enough or blahblahblah. Same for a lot of other topics. It gets exhausting being picked to pieces.

Cat pictures are safest.

At least they don't look like that cat in the Harts FleaGuard ad to the right of this column. That cat looks absolutely perplexed.

Your cat pics are devine.
Mine would never stay still for anything so eloquent.

1 more day 'til TGIF............can we assume that Friday's cat pic will be the Sobanator?

"Somewhere a can opener is working......do you hear it?"

I'm sorry that some people were so mean to you about the horoscopes. What is wrong with people?? It must be so hard for you to put yourself out there every day on your site and instead of getting appreciation for your wonderfulness, having idiots criticize you for ridiculous crap. Haven't they ever heard the adage "if you don't have anything nice to say don't say it"?

Sheesh. I love you (and this blog) just the way you are.

I love the kitty pictures!

If anyone picks, complains, or whines about the kitty pictures that you've been posting this week (because it seems like you've got a lot of picky, whining complainers reading your blog) then maybe the people who like to whine and complain should just go away.

When I blog, it's because I want to post a picture I've taken, or comment on something in the world, or I just want to show off something I've crocheted or knitted. Sometimes I want to remineice (reminice? remenice?)...talk about my dog that died...

This is your blog, write what you want, post the pictures that you want, and ignore the people who complain about not liking what you're posting because it's not what THEY want.

I really like a lot of blogs, and especially yours, mostly because you write so well, and you're funny and the cat pictures are cute. I was reading your blog before I became a knitter (was just a crocheter then)

Write what you want, what interests you. Ignore the putz's that seem to want to control what you're writing. If they want control of what's being put onto a blog, they can start their own.

The flip side is that I never can really mention why I stop writing things because then people say, well it's your own fault. If you put yourself out there then people have the right to criticize etc. etc.

I don't agree with that sentiment at all so it's an argument I won't enter into. I don't think it's OK to criticize everything someone says. I don't do it. But what it does do is create a chilling effect where I write all sorts of things I never publish. Unless I were to turn the comments off altogether, but when I do that people just "comment" via email.

I am waiting until I go into full hermit mode one day and pull a cabin-in-the-woods ... then I will write from my little cave and no one will be able to contact me in any way so I can say anything I like! LOL. Of course what I write will be boringer, because what funny stuff happens in a cave?

Until then I am still figuring it out. :)

p.s. "boringer" = totally a word

Are the cats going to live in the cave with you? Is Bob afraid of caves? (the kind that dont crinkle)

and more importantly, where would you buy your yarn if you lived in a cave? Hopefully there would be a yarn cave a few trees over from your cave where you can buy all sorts of pretty yarns.

Laurie, why not write horoscopes for cats? I am serious. (I've had my meds today, too. ;) No, really, then if you get complaints, you can say, "Did your cat make you write this?"

Funny thing about people who are never pleased--other people stop trying to please them, and they go, Whoa! What happened? Dumbasses.

Love your writing, as ever.

Best from Mississippi.

What was Frankie's "motivation" for this photo? All actresses have to have "motivation" to get the facial expression right. :) I think it was "You see a toy full of catnip just out of your reach..."

Frankie - America's next top kitty model.

I'm home sick today, and I just want to say, you always perk up my day. Whether it's thoughtful, hilarious, kittylishus (yes so is a word), crazy, grumpy, sad -- it doesn't matter. Thank you. Now back to bed. ug.

I'm sorry, I promise I wasn't criticizing! I love cat pics! It was more of an observation. I adore this blog and I hate that people are mean and picky. I was soo not trying to be one of those people. If I came across that way, I truly apologize. and I certainly didn't mean to start an argument. I love that you write whatever you feel like posting or not.
I will go crawl back into lurkerdom now.

OOooooooOOOoo, pretty! I'm loving the kitty pictures!

Jenn! I have a tiny bi-colour tortie as well. When I met her at the petstore where the local Animal Friends was having an event, she had been there for three weeks in a small cage. Her sign said her name was MUGLY. As if someone had seen this sweet little face and thought she was ugly. Her card said she didn't like to be held at all. They opened the cage, she walked into my arms and settled down all Dr. Evil style and came home with me a few days later after paperwork. Home, where she put into their places two LARGE male cats, twice her size. She's the diva. And her name is Miss Mischief, thank you very much. That was four years ago; she's not much bigger but still the One in Charge - like Soba.

Laurie, honey, anything you write is golden. I've bought the book a number of times now just so I can share it with wonderful women who need it. *grin* Write for you, the rest of us will tag along.

Frances, I hope that didn't sound peckish and directed at you! I wasn't irritated with you at all, just with the notion (and I am aware this is a problem) that I have censored myself so much as time goes on because I am exhausted by comments that are picky or negative. Faith and I call them the Debbie Downers, and there is always one in every crowd. I delete a lot of them, I pay for this server and I don't want to host negative crap in my own "house."

And it is a failing of mine that I seem to focus on the negative comments directed at me perhaps even more than the kindness. Why is it you can hear 100 lovely things and it's the one Debbie Downer who gets under your skin? ("you" = me)

But even as I am writing a piece I often just give up mid-sentence these days, knowing whatever I have just said will cause people to pick at it. That's my problem, I know, and I'm sure I'll find a way past it. I'm terribly introverted so I never expected this diary to be an iterative experience, I thought it would be more of a soliloquy. I didn't understand beforehand what I was getting into -- it's been an awesome learning experience and I have met some amazing people and I've also learned that I have a lot still to learn.

I have been asked about the horoscopes before, several times when I was on tour. If I ever returned to doing them I would either do it through email subscription (so you have to sign up for it -- it's voluntary -- and there's no way to email me back and complain LOL) or do it with no comments. Both are an option.

Thank you for your question, Frances, I hope you know any terseness I may have expressed wasn't directed at you! It's inward, really, because even when I know in my head what people say has more to do with them than with me, it's still created a bit of a censor inside me. Which sucks. I need to find a way to get out of it.

It's also why I want to do fiction... you get to write everything out but you aren't the narrator! It's the fiction you! I love that idea!

Red carpet, here she comes! That is such a pretty little face. As far as the carping comments go, I don't understand them. It's a blog, folks, that is, it's Laurie's take on things. Period. Personally, I love your take on things, and wish I could express myself as well.

Negative people stink.

((HUGS))

Laurie, I know I already posted today, but I just had to say that I feel really bad that asshats pick at you. You put a lot of effort into this blog which is very funny and very informative. People who don't blog don't understand how much time and effort go into it. Every time I come here and you have something new posted, a little more light comes into my day.

So now I must properly thank you for the Mistake Rib scarf from this blog and the Magic scarf from the book. I am a crocheter who is trying to become a knitter and those two patterns REALLY helped me. Wish I were there to buy you a glass (bottle?) of wine.

Always love your cat pictures--I needed a smile! :)

i am compelled to add my 2 cents.

it kills me that you have to censor your own content. i understand why you do it (i think).

i must say, there are certain bloggers that annoy the hell out of me *just because they ARE* and i just want to leave a steaming pile of crap in their comments, but i always remember that i am their guest, i don't have to read it and nothing will be gained.

they won't have sudden insight. their idiotic world view will not be changed.

and i would still be annoyed.

smokeyJoe-- I thought of you last night when I was in my garden!! I have discovered some things back there that you will find highly amusing... I'm going to post them on Monday.

About the criticism stuff -- I also think I have phases where it tends to bother me more than others (usually because of tangential things happening in my "real" life) so maybe I am just being more hypersensitive than usual. Hyper-hypersensitive? heh

Also, I do feel happy and smiley when I read the comments, too, ya'll are almost always ten times funnier than I ever hope to be!

Next week we have a good give-away too. So that will be fun to write about.

Notice how I am already excited about next week... this week has apparently been so abysmal that I am just skipping the rest of it! (I even cried once this week at work -- nothing says "I am a real professional!" like crying at work. AWESOME.) (This has all got to get better soon.)

Of course boringer is a word but you have to say it twice: it would get boringer and boringer. Because you know I get pisseder and pisseder about people writing negative things.

Hi Laurie--I just wanted to say that your photographs of your kitties are STUNNING. Cats are naturally gorgeous creatures, but the way you capture them on film makes them even more so!

I love your blog!!!

Laurie-

One of the first times I visited your site in January 2007 you had just posted horoscopes in the form of resolutions. Your advice was spot-on! So important for me to read and I really took it to heart. I was self-destructing in a big way and sinking quickly. You snapped me out of it.

I am a Scorpio and your advice was along the lines of "STOP THAT ONE THING YOU DO". Remember that one? The thing I was doing was letting anger and depression consume me. I am happy to say that this is no longer the case!

Thank-you ever so much!

Frankie is exquisite!

YES! more cat face. Soba tomorrow? we can only hope. i can't wait.

What a cute'un! Pronounced "Kyeewtuhn", which is what I call my cats. That or Squittens—kittens so cute you can't help but squee.

Aw, you have the most precious looking cats!

...and if Sobakowa had a photo on the wall of the Post Office?

Is that where we're going? FBI's most wanted?

I am wondering why none of the 'naysayers' have commented? Maybe they never read the comments. I want to say sorry Laurie, if I ever upset you. I once commented negatively correcting you about some knitting technique. I was truly trying to help, but I now see I could have been on the negative side also. I want to say sorry and demand that you not reply saying "it's okay." i'm just apologizing, that's it.

I also want to say that Soba is my favorite!!! I can't wait for her "debut" :)

Positive from here on out (never thought about how hard it is to put yourself out there),

Shiva

I found your book in Wal-mart which is how I learned about your website. (The covered in cat hair part sold me!) It had me laughing so hard that I had to go look up your site. I don't blog. Hardly ever before now. But after reading your book and then your entire site, I had to try it out again. It's a great way to share pictures! Though it can be tough to put yourself out there and show perfect strangers pieces of you, just about everyone, even the nay-sayers, I'd wager, appreciates it. You do a great job of showering every one you meet online with little rays of sunshine. I only hope that you get some of that sunshine back for yourself!

Frankie is a most beautiful cat and I have to ask, how do you get them all to get along so well?!?

She is SO beautiful! I love torties - - my dear Callie girl, who left us last year just before she would have turned 18 years old, was a beautiful, long-haired tortie, with a beautiful disposition to match. She was beautiful, just like your dear girl Frankie!

Frankie is gorgeous! So beautiful! So serene! So not what is happening at my house right now!

I am watching my friend's dawg while he is at training in another state. I have a Siamese Cat who is a Gentleman Fur Person and gorgeous to boot. However, he is 15 and a bit set in his ways. The dawg must stay in the garage, but the cat is BESIDE himself that the dawg is in the garage. He does not like it. Not one bit.

If I had to take his picture right now, he would definately look like a mug shot!

The funny part is that the dawg lives with two cats at his house, and cats don't bother him at all. So the cat walks around here acting like a Drag Queen and the dawg looks at me like WTF?

It's been a regular riot around here this week. I am so ready for the weekend and some sleep. Without animals hanging on me.

I would SO buy a calendar of your cat pictures.

I can't imagine how hard it must be to put yourself out there and get such - shall we say? - varied feedback. And we always remember the negative to a greater extent than the positive, that's how we learn not to stick our hand in the fire ant nest. But still.

You write what you darn well please Ms Purl ;-) Just don't go all boringer on us.

Frankie is a doll - you got her just right!

keep up the crazy

Awwww... Beautiful Frankie!!!
How nice to see pics of her since she's usually so camera shy.
You hang in there and keep at the bloggin'. I check and/or read every day and enjoy your blog to pieces.
As my sainted Daddie used to say "go get 'em kid, don't let them get you down".

OMG!!!

An CrazyAuntPurl calendar!

Complete with cat pics, zucchinis gone wild, knitting and cat pics!

Hells yeah I'd buy one..........maybe even 4. I'm one of those people that HAVE to have a calendar in almost every workspace. As we speak, my office has 3 wall calendars, an open daybook, a cheesy desk calendar from my insurance company (love you, nationwide) and a band calendar from our high school.

Crazy Dayz of Aunt Purl and Co

Wow, lovely photos! Bet you've got a good camera. You have beautiful cats.

We are not allowed cats in our house, I so miss my kitties in South Africa....sigh. Well at least I can get a quick kittie fix here, thanks for that!

Frankie's twin lives here in Kansas with me. Her name is Ariel and she's the sweetest cat evah! I just got a digital camera and have been practicing taking pictures with it on the poor cats. As soon as I get some of the pics onto my computer, I'll email you a picture of Ariel. Side by side there are noticeable differences between them, but it's really an uncanny resemblance.

Laurie, thank you for your kind comments. I did not take offense to your response at all, I was just worried that you might have misconstrued my comments because it seemed that others did.
Obviously I am an over-sensitive pisces. I think your post from monday was dead-on - everyone is on edge. This has been a craptastic week for a lot of people I think. The Universe is clearly trying to tell me something with the horribleness of the week - really it is so bad that it is hilarious. I write everything down, too, I'm just not brave enough to blog about it all yet.
I hope you have a great weekend!

Laurie -

I hear where you're coming from; I'm also a Cancer, with the tough shell and the soft, tender center. And I know how wounding it can be to have various and sundry A-Holes attacking for no good reason. When I was in high school, I was walking home one day, and a carful of boys drove by. One yelled out "God, you're ugly!" I didn't cry or anything, but I was stunned by the cruelty of somebody I didn't even know. They were just teenage kids, doing what they do. But almost 40 years later, I still remember it.

That being said, you HAVE seemed very touchy lately. I don't know if it's your job, letdown after the book tour, simple exhaustion, or whatever, but you are taking things to heart that don't seem to merit it. Some people are just clueless. Some think that "constructive" criticism is what they have to contribute. And some people just like to go around pissing in everybody else's cornflakes. They are why Delete keys and email blocks were invented.

We're just flies on the wall of your life, Laurie; you don't owe us anything, though many have formed a very personal connection with you. You're a published author, mom to an exquisite family of cats, and cuter than any woman over 30 has a right to be. Let people criticize and pick apart what they're not good enough to do themselves; those who can't blog, comment.

Much as I love the kitty pic's, I live for the days when you're inspirational, or off-the-wall batshit annoyed, or elated because of what you found at the yarn shop or Target. They're what keep me coming back. You have no obligation to share ANY part of that life with us. But I think you DO have an obligation to do what you promised yourself when you started this; to Live Out Loud. And that means you don't censor yourself to fit anybody else's taste. Write what you want, and share it or don't. The opinion that everyone agrees with isn't worth having, most of the time.

Luv ya - LIVE IT!!