Papa has eaten the ear of the opera cat

How’s that for a post title? I will explain more by and by.

UPDATE: Papa is Papageno, our new ragdoll cat. He’s a quite beautiful fellow, even if he does look as if he’s dipped his face in a basinful of ink.

Papa looking v. pleased with himself

The opera cat is a porcelain cat who sits under the hallstand, its elegant body plastered with cut outs from posters of operatic performances in Paris, notably La Boheme (genuine artefacts, neatly scissored out and nicely enamelled and all. A very talented retired lady in Melbourne makes them, or used to – I think she’s run out of raw material now). And now Papa has gone and chewed its bloody ear off.

Little devil. I’ll chew his ear off (not).

Eating alone

I found this, from Global Voices, very touching.

Right brain/left brain test

Take this really cool test and see which way your brain works. If you see the figure spinning clockwise, you’re using the right side of your brain. If anti-clockwise, the left.

Via Norm Geras, who says he can only see her spinning clockwise. I can see her spinning both ways. Just what that says about me I’m not sure.

Tip: watch the left heel when she’s going clockwise, or, even better, the shadow beneath it. You can make her go the other way by forcing her left foot to reverse direction. It makes your brain hurt a bit, but it does work. Try it.

Actually it gets easier the more you practice. You can make her bounce forwards and backwards quite easily. I don’t mean anything sinister by that.

It might scramble your brain, though.

Merry Christmas to all

Gentile da Fabriano, Adoration of the Magi, 1423
Tempera on wood, 300 x 282 cm
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

(In the tradition established by saint.)
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A propos — or not: here is George Orwell on Socialism and Christmas:

Nearly all creators of Utopia have resembled the man who has toothache, and therefore thinks happiness consists in not having toothache.

Now there’s a thought for the ghost of Christmas presents.

I have no idea….

…. why the YouTube links no longer work or why you are staring at blank squares instead of populated ones.

Update: Seems OK now.