Friday, October 30, 2009

Another Mail!

Okay, okay. . . you won't believe this! On Tuesday, after I got my very first Mail, my Assistant Boss Karen was so excited that she left her Mail pile lying on the Genealogy desk. My Assistant Assistant Boss Christine found it a few hours later and (snoopy person that she is) flipped through it again and found. . .

YOU GUESSED IT!

. . . another Mail for me!

This one was a letter from a fellow Cat who lives in Lebanon, Indiana. I will share with you!

Dear Tober,

I am a fan of yours and my person helps read to me from your blog. I think you are very lucky to be in charge of a library and have so many people love you and give you treats.

My name is Chi and I am of the Siamese group and a sassy sealpoint to be exact. I have bright blue eyes and lots of energy and my person and I are very close. I have a big job in taking care of my person as I am the Boss here you see. I get treats several times a day also and my favorite is Temptations.

I will check out your blog again soon and may I say you are a very handsome cat and those gold stripes really pop.

A Feline Fan,

Chi

I was Super-excited after I found out I had TWO Mails in one day, but the Staff kept hogging all the computers around here, so I didn't get to update my Blog!

Chi sounds like One Really Special Cat if you ask me. So Chi, if you're reading this, thanks for the letter and give your Person a great big headbutt for helping you read Blogs.

Here is a picture of my one Black whisker. It is a whisker that starts out Black and then changes to white. My AABs say it makes me Unique. You might have to biggify the picture to see it:

I don't mind Extreme Close-Ups because I am Extreme-ly Handsome.
Have Happy and Safe Halloweekends! Be careful Cats and try to stay in your houses if you can!

Purrs,

Tober

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

I got Mail!

Today I got my Very First Mail! My Assistant Boss Karen was going through the day's mail when she pulled out a little envelope and said "This one is for Tober!"

I have never gotten a Mail before!

The return address said it was from Laila and Minchie!

Here I am inspecting my Mail:

Notice the very cute Toberesque cat sticker!
I want to tell you that my Nosy Library Staff wanted very badly to open my Mail. I had to remind them that it was a Federal Offense (whatever that means) to tamper with my stuff and that they would have been in Big Trouble for opening it.

I did accept a little help with the letter-opener.

And guess what I got!

Me & my Mail!
I got a Halloween card!

I bet I am the first Staff Member to get a Halloween card! Thank you, Laila and Minchie!

Now I will have Assistant Boss Karen order a special inbox just for me--since I'm getting my own Mail now, you know. Maybe also some custom stationery, so I can send elegant replies, too. Oh, and my own writing desk. And I could write with feathers and little jars of ink.

So Excited!

Tober

Monday, October 26, 2009

Treat buffet!

Firstly and most importantly, thank you to Everybody who wished me a Happy Finding Day! It was wonderful, and I got lots and lots of treats and tummy rubs and catnip and pettings and special supper and was much admired and adored all day long. Your comments and all the attention made me feel like One Special Cat. Thank you!

Now, coming down from the excitement of Finding Day was kind of difficult. I'm thinking I should have Massive Amounts of treats every day. I tried to get my point across to Assistant Assistant Boss Christine.

Here I am demonstrating my undying love & affection for Whisker Lickin's Crunch Lover Tuna Flavored Tartar Control treats.

I love these treats so so so much.
Here I am pushing the treats toward AAB Christine, who has for some reason (?) decided to sit on the floor:

While you're down there fiddling with the flashy-box, do you think you could open these?
Here I am realizing I may have pushed the treat can a bit too hard:

Oh.
Do you see what I see? Oh, I see a lid-less treat can, and I am very happy about it!

Buffet!
I must have gotten a teeny-tiny bit overindulged during my Finding Week, because Assistant Assistant Boss Ritchie tried diagnosing me with H1N1 floo when I got sick on the floor. (I do not have pig floo--I am a Picture of Health.) Still, I have tried to hold back a bit when it comes to the treats lately. I will say that my Staff People have been very generous with tummy rubs and cuddles, and I like them almost as much!

On the Low-Treat Diet (and slowly disappearing because of it),

Tober

Monday, October 19, 2009

Happy Finding Day to Me!

Today is my Big Day! I have had a safe place to stay for One Whole Year!

For my Finding Day I commanded one of my Assistant Assistant Bosses to help create a slideshow in my honor. Below you can see some of the slides. (AAB said the whole thing wouldn't fit on Slide.)


Ooooh, this is going to be such a great day!

Happy to be found,

Tober

Friday, October 16, 2009

Happy National Boss's Day!

Oh My Gosh! This is another holiday to celebrate me! Who knew that October and November could be so exciting!

Today is Boss's Day, and since I'm the Boss of the Thorntown Library, I would like to wish a very Happy Boss's Day to myself. I am going to shower myself with naps and rolls in the floor and big stretches today.

Hard at work preparing for a Spectacular Boss's Day!
I would also like to wish Happy Boss's Days to my Assistant Boss and to all of my Assistant Assistant Bosses.

Assistant Boss Karen: Happy Boss's Day! Thank you for keeping the treats well-stocked and for Finding me and for bringing me here to the Library.

Assistant Assistant Boss Barbara: Happy Boss's Day! I am glad you are so good at Bossing the moneys around, because whatever magic you work makes the Staff very cheerful and generous with treats at the end of each month!

Assistant Assistant Boss Becki: You are the best when it comes to meal time! The other Staff people get kind of forgetful about meals! And thanks for keeping a few treats in your pocket.

Assistant Assistant Boss Bonnie: Happy Boss's Day! Thank you for having such a nice flat spot on your desk for me. You also give Very Good Hugs.

Assistant Assistant Boss Britta: Happy Boss's Day! I like that you are very Tall and that when you pick me up I can almost reach that clock thingie.

Assistant Assistant Boss Cathie: Happy Boss's Day! You are a very good Boss because you alone realize that I can do no wrong, and you never wake me from my naps.

Assistant Assistant Boss Chris: Happy Boss's Day! You are very Brave to work downstairs with all of those small children, and I will never forget how you vanquished The Wasp.

Assistant Assistant Boss Christine: Happy Boss's Day! Thank you for all the paw massages, but please do turn off the flashy thing on the camera.

Assistant Assistant Boss Helen: Happy Boss's Day! I think you set a Very Good Example for the other Staff people by scheduling special "Tober Time." Keep up the good work!

Assistant Assistant Boss Laverna: Happy Boss's Day! You are a great Boss because you compliment my handsomeness and think up ways to add me to Youth Department displays!

Assistant Assistant Boss Linda P.: Happy Boss's Day! Thank you for keeping all of the really interesting processing papers and labels on the low shelves of your cart. That makes them easier for me to find when I need something to bite on!

Assistant Assistant Boss Linda W.: Happy Boss's Day! Thank you for replacing the Cords with fresh ones! (Now can you take that black stuff off so I can get my teeth in them?)

Assistant Assistant Boss Myrtle: Happy Boss's Day! You are very good at prettifying the Library (so that I don't overshadow the building with my Extreme Handsomeness).

Assistant Assistant Boss Ritchie: Happy Boss's Day! I'm very sorry about the occasional "gifts" I leave you. I like your pets, even though you're a Guy and Allergic to me.

Assistant Assistant Boss Shirley: You are very good at Bossing the smaller customers in the Library. That is good for me, because they are fast, sneaky, and small, and can crawl under my hidey-places. It is good of you to keep them so entertained!

Assistant Assistant Boss Von: Happy Boss's Day! Thank you for guarding the Computer Lab and the parts of the library on wood floors. Since I don't like walking on that stuff, your job is Very Important and helpful to me.

And to my Most Bossly Library Board Members, Deanna, Stephanie, John, Fern, Donna, Bob, and Ron--Thank you for the time and effort you put forth to help make my Library a wonderful place (and for having the good sense to approve my Supreme Boss-ship)!

Most Esteemed, Petted, and Adored Boss of Thorntown Public Library,

Tober

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Library Board Meeting & My Job Performance

On Monday night I decided it was time to fully participate in the Monthly Library Board Meeting as it is obviously A Very Big Deal. Treasurer Barb and My Assistant Boss Karen (who also has the less important position of Director of the Library) spend a lot of time and use a lot of paper to educate the seven library board members. They must be Slow Learners, because this happens every month. . . you would think they would learn soon how the library works! The only Truly Important Thing they have done, from My Perspective, was to approve My Presence as Resident Boss and Library Cat.

As I was saying, I decided to attend the entire meeting instead of just drifting about, as I sometimes do. I was sitting on carpet beside fireplace (the board still prefers to meet in that old Carnegie room, not in public meeting rooms, and it is the room with the wood floor, which is why My Glorious Self was sitting on a rug). I was doing my imitation of a Loaf of Bread (sitting with my four paws tucked under me) and daydreaming about Catnip and tummy rubs when I heard my name; Karen was explaining to the board that I had Definite Opinions on carpet cleaning and festivals.

The "Loaf of Bread" look:

WonderCat
I decided this would be a good time for the board to understand My Significance because this might be my annual Job Performance Evaluation.

When Karen and the Board looked at me, I sat up to my full Regal Height, then rolled over and stretched my Four Glorious Paws as far as I could, stretching full length in order to best display my lovely golden fur and all my muscles (even the Treat-Digesting one). It was a Great Performance, if I must say so myself. I'm surprised that the Board didn't cancel the meeting and rush to rub my luxurious tummy furs. It is unfortunate that Assistant Boss Karen did not do so well in her job evaluation: she did not photograph my Display of My Wondrous Self. (Believe me, had Assistant Assistant Boss Christine been here, SHE would have snapped my Picture.)

I plan to continue to attend these Board training sessions, so Karen will have the opportunity to photograph me in the future. Maybe My Presence will inspire the Board to learn how best to organize a library for the Benefit of The Cat. (I'm dropping hints about a Catwalk up near the ceilings and bird feeders at every window. Wish me luck!)

Meanwhile, to see a demonstration of my Regal Extension, My Readers may refer to the photo on my September 13, 2009 post.

He who is Anxiously awaiting the Finding Day Extravaganza on October 19,

Boss Tober

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Carpet Cleaning = Bad News

I have been mulling over what to say about the cleaning of all library carpets.

This questionable (to My Mind) activity took place on the only Saturday the library is closed that is not a holiday: Sept. 27, the day of my Thorntown’s Festival of the Turning Leaves. I prefer carpet and do NOT like wood floors, even the “soft yellow pine” that was put into my library in 1914. I cannot see that it is soft at all. My Assistant Boss and Assistant Assistant Bosses seem to like it, however, and praise its "character" (how does a floor have character?) and the cut marks in it that show where the 1914 circulation desk stood. They found it when they tore out the carpet during the 2004 renovation. This was Before My Time at the library, so it really doesn't count. (In fact, it was before I was born, if My Readers can even grasp such an extreme concept!) Remember that I have no front toenails and no way to get a grip on wood floors. Tile is only a little better, but it IS better.

Back to that Awful weekend. My Assistant Boss Karen placed my privy and my food and water across the “soft” wood floor and by the fireplace. My staff then proceeded to move all loose furniture except wood tables and stacked it around my new space. They did this with a maximum of grumbling and groaning and made quite a racket. They do this to save money, as it lets the carpet cleaning crew come in the door and go right to work without having to first move furniture. I'm all for saving moneys, because that means more Treats for Me, but they should really warn a cat first.

I can tell you THIS: I am not impressed with the carpet cleaning process. I am NOT impressed with their cleaning of 18 chairs, especially my favorite chairs. I am NOT pleased that the carpet cleaning leader told my Assistant Boss Karen that he found cat hair on a few chairs she had not marked for cleaning and he felt MY Beautiful Hair should be removed from those as well. They cleaned all of my chairs and made them smell weird.

The cleaners were on both floors at once, they made noises, and THEN they left damp carpet, not the place I wish to put my Lovely Paws! To make matters worse, no one spent the day with me as they usually do on Saturdays. Instead of giving tummy rubs and treats to my Glorious Self, they built two floats for the Saturday parade, they ran a book sale on the TILE floors (ugh) in the meeting rooms, they held a gourd exhibition at the Sugar Creek Art Center, they gave tours through the Thorntown Heritage Museum, and my Karen cut 75-90 (she lost count) gourd bird houses and gave them away on the museum lawn.

Here I am telling the little green Festival of the Turning Leaves jar that I do not approve of what it does to my weekend:

I had a Bad Weekend thanks to you!
I can only see One Good Thing about Festival Saturday: the children’s play area was right outside My Big Round Window. I watched some pretty scary stuff: bungee cord jumping, space jumping, swoopy rides that made me NOT want any kitty treats right then. Karen even fed me my Sunday supper on the copier table so that I could eat and watch Festival being boxed up, an activity that I found a little unusual. My staff store books in boxes and then huff and puff as they stack them in storage. The children’s games outside My Window were also put into very large boxes, but those boxes had wheels and just rolled away. I wonder there they go and when they will be back.

I guess I shall believe Assistant Boss Karen, who assures me that they will be back next fall and that on that Saturday I shall again be Called Upon To Supervise Carpet Cleaning.

Oh, Joy.

The Things I Do for my library,

Tober

PS--I have been working overtime trying to get the "clean" stink out of this building.

Friday, October 9, 2009

Ignored

Here is a picture of me being Ignored:

HELLOOOOOO!  *sigh*
I do not like it when my Assistant Boss leaves my office for long periods of time and wanders around the building. She can be very difficult to find. I finally hunted her down and was waiting patiently for her to attend to me, but apparently she thought that what she was working on was more Important (it wasn't). I am Not A Fan of hardwood floors, either, so it was a very big thing for me to wait for her over there. (I eventually got treats and My Assistant Boss back in her place.)

I should clarify for my feline friends what my Finding Day is. My Finding Day is probably the same as your Gotcha Day. I use "Finding" because my Assistant Boss Karen found me that day. I think the word Finding is very Important, especially since I was lost until AB Karen (you guessed it!) found me.

(Karen also took me to live with woofies that day, but maybe I can get her to tell the story on October 19.)

So if, when the fantabulous 19th of October arrives, you would like to wish me a Happy Gotcha Day, you go right ahead!

I also have a Hire Date to celebrate in November. That is the day that I was Hired to work at the Thorntown Public Library. I have since taken command of the place, but I was just a lowly security watchcat/PR kitty when I was hired on November 3, 2009. I quickly worked my way to the top, and that's where I intend to stay.

Here is a picture of me supervising the Library from my desk:

Hey!  Keep it down out there!  This is a LIBRARY!
Have happy weekends!

Tober

Thursday, October 1, 2009

October is Here!

My month is here! Hooray! October is my Finding Month, and I think that the Library Staff should bring gifts to me every day this month to celebrate Assistant Boss Karen's luck in finding me (and wisdom in rescuing me)! What do you think?

It is not starting out well. I had to try way too hard to get treats this morning.

Here I am asking very politely for a treat (or 5 or 6):

May I have a treat please?
Here I am pointing out the location of the treats to my Assistant Assistant Boss in case she forgot where she put them:

Helloooo!  You're not important.  No one emails you.  Now see these treats here?
Here I am helping to pick up the treat can in order to hurry things along:

It's only gonna be October for 31 days, Lady!
Here I have given up All Hope of getting any treats during the whole month of October. *sniff*

Treatless.
Before you worry about me too much or think that I have been neglected, I will tell you I did manage to get some treats out of a few of the Better-Trained Staff Ladies here. They have gone above and beyond the call of duty to make the beginning of my month very Special.

Happy October!

(Oc)Tober