Cats +

CATS of SALLY'S TAKE and Off the Grid

Head Critter: Willow

Willow made her first SALLY'S TAKE appearance on June 26, 2020, just a couple of weeks after I began the blog. Willow often "helps" me write the blog, by trying to lay on my keyboard or walking in front of my computer. In return for her assistance, I have promised to highlight the word CAT anytime it shows up in a clue or answer. Sometimes I work cats into the conversation in tangential ways, too! Here's a fun and quirky thing about Willow: Being an indoor cat, she likes to "hunt" around the house and then bring her finds and leave them as presents outside my office door. Her "prey" of choice is socks, but when we remember not to leave socks accessible to her, she will bring washcloths. I once threw away a pair of socks with holes in them, and she fished them out of the trash can and left them for me to find, as if to remind me, "We do NOT throw socks away in this house!" 

Guest CATS (in order of appearance)

Toby is my daughter's cat. He's made a few appearances on the blog; the first was July 16, 2021.

Mister is one of my son's cats. He first appeared on the blog on July 23, 2021.

Lily is my son's other cat. Her first blog appearance was August 18, 2021.

Holly was one of my family's cats that is no longer with us, but she lives on in our memories, and her photo was featured on the blog, December 18, 2021.

Bellchime and Metronome are the cats of constructor Mikkel Snyder. First blog appearance: March 15, 2022.

Scotch is the cat of constructor and guest blogger Matthew Stock. First blog appearance: April 14, 2022.

Roxie is a cat of guest blogger Shannon Rapp. First blog appearance: July 9, 2022.

Lenny is the cat of reader Krishna Tateneni, who says, "My wife raised him from kittenhood but he's adopted me for the past 8 years." Blog appearance: July 13, 2022.

Mokie is the cat of reader Matt Medeiros, who says, "Mokie the Ragdoll Cat spends most of his time staring at the wall, eating the house plants, or begging for food from the table. As is characteristic for the breed, he goes LIMP when being picked up, which can be pretty convenient. He often joins me on the couch while I read Sally's Take." Blog appearance: July 14, 2022.

Georgia is the cat of constructor Rafael Musa. Rafa says, "Her name is Georgia and we are besties." Blog appearance: November 3, 2022.

Pumpkin is the cat of constructor Ada Nicolle's roommate. Ada says, "This is my roommate's cat Pumpkin, who I've become good friends with. She wanders into my room and meows at me until I give her attention. Love ya Pumpkin! (For those wondering, the stuffed unicorn's name is Penelope.)" Blog appearance: November 5, 2022.

Zubi is the cat of constructor Zaineb Akbar. Blog appearance: November 9, 2022. 

Indy was a former cat of mine. His full name was Independence Waldorf Rambo Kupitz Hayes Hoelscher. He died in 2004, but lives on in my memory. I reminisced about him on November 24, 2022. 

Marlowe Horatio Bucket is the cat of constructor Chandi Deitmer. Chandi says he is "the world's weirdest little dude." Blog appearance: July 27, 2023. 

Zelda is the cat of editor and constructor Amanda Rafkin. Blog appearance: July 30, 2023.

Missy (cat) and Boston (dog) were pets my family had when I was growing up. I reminisced about them on September 21, 2023.

Buzz and Digit are foster kittens of constructor Matthew Stock. They are four weeks old in this photo. Blog appearance: October 2, 2023.

Milo is the cat of constructor Jess Rucks. Blog appearance: March 26, 2024.

Other Pets

Ping Pong was our family dog. She died in December 2020, but I reminisced about her on July 9, 2021. 

Muffin is the dog of reader Barbara Hodge. Barbara says Muffin "sits at our breakfast bar, patiently waiting for my husband and me to finish eating and completing the USA Today crossword puzzle so she can be invited onto one of our laps. Sometimes she has to wait a little longer for us to consult Sally’s blog about the answers for the previous day. Ha!" Blog appearance: July 19, 2022.

Cannoli the guinea pig's owners are Natan and Hannah. Cannoli made a blog appearance December 6, 2022. Thank you to constructor Brooke Husic, for sharing Cannoli's photo with us. 

Charlie, who is a dachshund mix, is the dog of constructor Olivia Mitra Framke. First blog appearance: September 4, 2022.

Indigo was my daughter's guinea pig, one of several guinea pigs our family has had over the years. Indigo made a blog appearance on September 17, 2023.

Smokey (on the right) and Bandit are the dogs of constructor Jon Pennington, who says they act "like an old married couple." Blog appearance: April 12, 2024.