Just a Sad Sunday and Selfie

 Hello and welcome to our Sunday Selfie 

 

The book review that we had sheduled for this week has been postponed due to some very sad news. 

As many of you know, Valentine and Kerry Barbero have been absent from blogging for a little while. Kerry recently retired the blog due to bad health.

Saddly, we learned this week that Kerry has entered hospice care.

Ann Adamus very kindly prepared the badge below which some of you may have seen yesterday on the Blogosphere site. It describes far better than Mrs H's saddened and shaky hands and mind ever could. . . .

 

 Please do spare a thought and add purrs and prayers for Kerry at this very difficult and painful time. And too for David, her devoted husband, who needs our support now and in the time ahead.

 

 

This week we have joined Janet Blues Blog Hop with a tired and contemplative selfie . . . . 

Mrs H and I spent our time yesterday mulling over life and friends, and also in prayer.

 

Be well, be safe and be strong. And where you can, extend that paw of friendship and help for others around less able, be they big or small, old or young.

Love and Peace

ERin & Mrs H

 

A fleecy tale, Dr Henrietta, and a selfie...

There is no book review this week, as we have no books to read!

Mrs H hasn't got anything lined up for a few weeks as we (read that as she) need to focus on some home decorating, garden shed building, and pre-winter tidying. All this and doing charity knitting for the local sheep.

Why sheep, I hear you ask. Well, Farmer Clarksin tried a new sheering method. Well, let's just say buying cheap depilatory cream from dodgy small ads is bound to go wrong!

Suffice it to say, the local WI (Women's Institute) have a long stretch of knitting ahead of them to make suitable attire for 22 embarrassed ewes. Plans to knit one long scarf to save on making sleeves and buttonholes have now been shelved. Rumour has it Mrs Singh, from Singh's International Food Emporium, has sponsored some of the whole thing. In exchange, she gets to advertise on the sides. She wisely decided that promoting a new range of condiments, including mint sauce, was a non-starter!

OK, enough of the frivolity, here's my selfie!

We are joining the Sunday Selfies, hosted by the wonderful Kittes Blue and their mum, Janet Blue in America.

 

Any suggestions as to what I was saying or thinking. No prizes, I'm afraid, just for the fun of it.....

Oh, and a huge shout out and Thank You from Mrs H and me to my awesome new doctor, Henrietta.

She had been having a very trying day with some felines that had been swearing. Whilst I have been known to have a hissy fit, and be 'hissed off' I do not swear 😉.

 

Till laters!

ERin

Sunday Selfie!

 Hello, and welcome to our Sunday selfie post. 

 

 

We are joining the Sunday Selfies, hosted by the wonderful Kittes Blue and their mum, Janet Blue.

No stories this week as Mrs H is having terrible hay fever and has run out of her very special, imported and hyper-expensive natural remedy. Personally, I thought you could get the extra-mature sherry from Mrs Singh's Hypermarket . . . 😉

Anyways, on with the selfies!

 

Coming Soon is a book review of a truly magnificent Teen/YA SciFi/Fantasy Adventure called SKRIMSLI by Nicola Davies. It is the second book set in a world where animals and humans can communicate by entering each other's minds. If you have read the first book, an award-winning modern classic called The Song That Sings Us, this is very much for you. Even if like us you haven't, don't worry, as they can be read apart. We are halfway through this and adore it.

 

 

Here's a link to Firefly Press's web page for this book. Click to follow the link. https://fireflypress.co.uk/books/skrimsli/ The book is available for advance ordering.

 Till laters, and my next book review, have an awesome week.

 

ERin & Mrs H

A sort of 'Book Free' Sunday selfie!

 Mrs H has pretty much recovered from her sore heads. So this week we return to a hastily (one hour ago) visit to Upper Much-Mousing, to see what has been going on . . . .

 

"Do you have to make that noise, dear?" The intermittent bursts of scratching and groans of disappointment from the chair on the other side of the fireplace finally made Mrs H look up from her knitting and crossword. She glowered at Erin over the top of her glasses.

"Umm, well, I was just trying to win big on this lottery scratch card we got from Mrs Singh. Buy any three SSS - Singh's Super Sassy curry from her takeaway menu and get a free scratch card."

"You got. I didn't buy any. A complete waste of time no doubt." Mrs H frowned. "Well, if nothing else, it explains the silver residue blocking the vacuum cleaner. I was begining to think the woodworm had changed their diet!"

Erin eyed the large pile of cards on the table and the stack of silver shavings on the cushion, and groaned inwardly. Maybe she had gotten carried away. But then again, as she saw it, Mrs H wouldn't have to cook supper until at least the summer.

"And what, may I ask, are the prizes? If it's more curry, I'll have to ban you from using the credit card this month. You can't move in the freezer for frozen takeaways."

Erin sighed deeply. "I've been trying to get the three cream pot symbols in a row. That's the top prize! But I've only found one cram pot."

Mrs H's right eyebrow raised in half surprised half enquiring manner. "And what do you win for three pots? No, let me guess, a large pot of Mrs Singh's spicey cat nip cheese topping?"

"No, what made you say that?" Erin looked quizically at her housekeeper.

"Well, it's just a large jar that arrived this morning. I wasn't sure if it was wrongly ordered when that Percy pigeon went astray last week."
 
"Ahh, no. That was my prize when I got three spiders in a row."

"Well, that's something you don't see too often, especially around here," Mrs H muttered to herself, knowing how keen Erin had been to make new friends.

"No, the top prize is a year's worth of cream! And the second, for three mice in a row, is a year's worth of Nice Mice Vegan Treats. The third you'll like, Mrs H – six bottles of Mrs Singh's home brew XXX Catnip Sherry!"

"Hmm." Mrs H's eyes widened slightly. "I think I can see a certain merit in this after all. Encourages careful meal planning."

"Exactly" Erin nodded her head vigorously.

"Saves on use of electricty and washing up time and materials."

"Absolutely!" Erin said, "We can spend more time relaxing."

"Not to mention bicycle wear and tear, and the fuel and servicing the Brough Superior." Mrs H was clearly getting into the swing of things.

"Dont forget fiscal restraint. You always tell me to do that. Save the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves, is what you always say." Erin had leaned forwards, sending a shower of dust to the floor along with three spent scratch cards to add to the collection on the hearth rug.

"Couldnt have put it better myself, dear. Yes, I think this could be a wise move indeed. Do you have any of those cards spare? . . . . "

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Well, folks, that is where we leave Erin and Mrs H for another week. Will the Manor House's petty cash and housekeeping money be drained by next week? Will Erin ever get the supply of cream? Will Mrs H get to finish knitting the scarves for the orphan kittens?

To find out, or possibly not, tune in next time!

Now before the selfie of the week, we are pleased to announce, somewhat late, the winners of a copy of the fabulous 'The Lighthouse Bookshop' written by Newt's mum, Sharon Gosling.

It was reviewed by Mrs H last year – see the review via this link. The winners are our USA pal Meowmeowman from the blog Animal Shelter Volunteer Life, and The J Cats, in Israel.

Congratulations to you both!

Please send me your addresses in a separate comment, which we will then delete/not publish. And we will post your prizes as soon as possible!

And now for the selfie!

We are joining the Sunday Selfies hosted by the excellent Janet Blue over at the Cat on my Head blog.

 

Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This....©

 

ERin's Sunday Selfie, and Message from Valentine.

Hello, and welcome to our Sunday selfie post. 

We are joining the Sunday Selfies, hosted by the wonderful Kittes Blue and their mum, Janet Blue.

 

Before we show off a rare selfie of us dreaming of far away shores, I have been asked by my betrothed, Valentine, to share some rather sad news. 

Dearest Myrna Pearl Sterling, Valentine's much loved new pal who recently moved from being a street cat to having a warm and loving home and many square meals and treats a day, has very sadly crossed the Rainbow Bridge. 

Myrna, found much happiness in her twilight years living with Valentine, Esmerelda, Bessie the Bassett, and her new adopted humans, Kerry and David. She settled into Valentines blogging life ever so easily, like she was an old hand, and never seemed phased by Val's antics.

Kerry hopes to be able to do a full tribute and celebration to Myrna's life and times in due course. Till then, please do leave comments on the post linked below.  

https://noirkittymews.com/wishes-for-myrnie/#more-23524

Ann Adamus has very kindly created wonderful downloadable badges in two sizes to celebrate Myrna's life. Please do download a copy and use.

Large image of Myrna

Small image of Myrna

 

 

Which leads me to a post Val has asked me to introduce. Many thanks again to Ann Adamus of Zoolatry for generously creating the graphics. Over to you, Valentine. . . .

Dear Friends ~ I just wanted to send you all a short letter, full of paws of love, to let you know we at Noir Kitty Mews won't be blogging for awhile, and I hope my above note tells you why. We will be very grateful for as many paws together** as you can spare, specially as Mommy can really use those right now.

I am also meowing a special favor to each of you ~ that you please do not post or otherwise share this, our personal family information on Facebook or other social media. It's just something we're not comfortable with right now.

** if perhaps you want to send a personal message, please can you email us at valentine@noirkittymews.com. I know they WILL all be very much appreciated.

Thank you and purrs,  Valentine

Thank you Valentine. I am sure all of us want to wish Kerry, David, you and the rest of your family well during this very stressful time.

Hopefully, with all our thoughts and prayers from across the world and Blogosphere over the coming days and weeks, we can get Kerry back home and on the mend. 

                                                                            ******

And now, I offer you my Sunday Selfie!

 

OK, OK, so maybe paws dont really count as an actual selfie, but they are MY paws. See how clean they are too! Mrs H do take note. It was NOT me who walked through the flour on the kitchen table and traipsed it into the lounge and across the sofa, sideboard, your new Persian rug and up the curtains. Clearly, we have ghosts afoot! 😉

Anyways, enough of my Footsie, to see what all the other fine Sunday Selfie Bloggers are up to this week, please follow the links below, mindful of any patches of self raising flour!

Till laters, and my next book review, have an awesome week.

 

ERin & Mrs H