It was my birthday!

Last Wednesday I turned 10 years old. That's like 57 in people years.

I still feel pretty good considering I'm headed toward the twilight of my life.

I hope the next 10 years are full of happiness and fun with both my humans...just like the last five years since I entered their lives.

Oh? You wanna know what I got for my birthday? I'll give you one guess. It's NOT the $ you can see in this picture.
That's right! TUNA.

Weather: Heating up a little bit lately, but still bearable.

I still love it.

Just an update about my condominium: It's still great. I can now successfully navigate my way around all three floors, and I especially like the penthouse level where I get a bird's-eye view of my house.

Weather: Not typical for July. Been cool lately.

My New Condo

About two weeks ago, my humans hooked me up
with a kitty condominium.

IT'S AWESOME.

What I really want to know is: What took them so long?!

I love my new condo, and if you ever come to visit, you'll surely find me on one of the three tiers.

Weather: For this 3-day weekend, I heard it's gonna be so hot.

A lovely day

Much like the kitty on the left here, I've spent my whole day sleeping. It's great!

When my humans are home on the weekends, I usually take a nap with them in shifts: the male & female alternate by keeping me company on the bed. I'm so lucky.

When they go to work on the weekdays I get sad because I have to nap all by myself. Do you like to take naps? Maybe you're too busy to spend the day snoozing away...don't you wish you were a cat?!

Weather: We had a horrible hot spell at the beginning of the week.
But, temps are back down to mid 80s. Perfect.

Good Job Developmental 3!

Last week my female human finished her summer semester.
She had some really great students,
and here's a picture of her grammar class.

Don't they look smart?

I hope everyone can enjoy a short break before the fall semester begins. Cindy promised me that for the next two weeks we'll spend lots of *QT together.

*QT = "quality time"...which for Belial means tons of naps.

Weather: Gosh, it really doesn't feel like summer.
It's been pretty mild and not too hot.

Aren't You Jealous?

Did you know that cats sleep an average of 16-plus hours every day? I'm demonstrating my sleeping ability in this picture.

As you read this, I'm probably busy sleeping, dreaming of all the fish I'd like to eat.

How much do you sleep? Maybe because you're busy studying English you don't sleep much. I hope you're not too tired!

Weather: Monday was the true beginning of summer.
Yes, it feels like it's here.

Test Drive

New shirts!
New shirts for my male human!

I must see if they will be comfortable.

Weather: The May Gray has passed,
and it looks to be a beautiful weekend ahead.

Visitors!

Later today there will be three lovely ladies from Japan coming to visit me. My humans always have guests, and those guests always spend a lot of time paying attention to me.

They are pals from my female human's old work days in Yokohama. One is an ex-coworker (Junko), and the other two are former students (Junko #2 & Akemi).

I have never met Junko #2, but I hear she's real nice. I can't wait for her to pet me. I hope she's not allergic to cats.

Weather: Wow, a pretty gorgeous day, finally.
Perfect for our guests from across the Pacific.

Beauty Sleep

Now that my female human has been home for two weeks, she's finally over jet lag and can sleep through most nights.

I definitely reap the benefits of this as I can cuddle with her under, in, on, and over the covers. Here's my favorite spot: right on the pillow.

I hope you all are sleeping well these days. Final exams and projects must be coming soon; don't overdo it, okay? Be sure to get your beauty sleep.

Weather: I think it's gonna be a great, sunny, balmy weekend.
Awesome.

An ALP Success Story

The tallest girl in these pictures used to be an ALP student.

She just graduated from her school in Korea and sent these pictures to prove it. Great job Melody! Cindy and I are very proud of you.

She said she ALREADY has a job. Wow, that's one smart cookie.
Congratulations!

Weather: My, my, my. It was, and still is
very windy and chilly today.

MY Computer

The computer pictured here was bought by my owners. But, really, it's mine. All mine.

This is where I think and think for hours about what to write. Often, though, I just sit close to the machine because it exudes warmth that makes me feel good during winter.

Speaking of seasons, these days I'm waiting for spring. Even though nothing special happens in So Cal during this season, I know it will be warmer than it has been lately.

Do you do anything exciting when spring comes? Some countries have a certain festival; others celebrate special flowers, like in Japan when the cherry blossoms pictured below burst into color.

Weather: It rained last night. I slept right through it!

Welcome Reading Students

I heard from my human Cindy that she's got a new group of students for her reading class.
Welcome to my blog.

You will learn all sorts of interesting (?) things about me when you read this ... good luck on your extra-credit quizzes. I love extra credit, but I call it extra "food" credit like when my humans give me fresh tuna or salmon instead of the regular canned stuff.

Hope you have a great semester, and happy reading!

Weather: A bit cold at night.
I am always sneaking under the covers with my humans lately.

The Perfect Book

With all that rain last week, I was able to catch up on some reading while snuggling under the covers. Although it's a book for children, there's still plenty of challenging vocab PLUS fun pictures to look at. I mostly looked at the pictures...

Belial's Best Book: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, by Judi Barrett. Yes, Hollywood made it into a computer-animated flick, but the book came first with its original take on what would happen if food replaces all things Mother Nature.
(ISBN: 0689707495)

Weather: Just how I like it: SUNNY! Only a few wispy clouds.

A NEWER Place!

Hey, check this out. I recently discovered the guest bathroom. It's a lot of fun! Whenever my human Cindy is getting ready in the morning, I go and hang out to keep her company.

I especially like when this towel is on the floor for me to sit on. It's like my own personal place mat. Maybe I can ask Santa Claus for a towel embroidered with my name?

Weather: What is up with it these days? It's totally cold at night.
Then it's kind of hot in the day. I don't get it.

SLUMBER PARTY!!

Tonight is gonna be the cat's pajamas.

My humans are taking an overnight trip, and so I am. They are going to San Diego, but I'm going to grandma & grandpa's house.

I love going to their house. It has two stories, so I get to run up and down the stairs for some excellent exercise. Also, there's more rooms for me to hide in. Which one will it be this visit?!

I can't wait. The only part I don't like about taking an overnight trip is having to go into the cat carrier. Boooooooooooo.

I hate the cat carrier; it usually means a trip to the doctor.

Weather: Warm and sunny. A perfect day to sit in the window.

Warm Laps, Long Naps

Ahhhhh. It's early (5:39 a.m.-ish), and I'm blogging from the comfort of my human's lap. She says she has to get up and go do school work, but I think she needs to stay right here so I can enjoy her warmth.

Lately, it's been growing chillier, so I've been searching out as many warm places as possible. Laps are always the best. Another one of my favorites includes window sills. Well, it looks like she's gonna get up and go do that "work" she's talking about, so I'll pick up later.

Weather: Yes! Chilly mornings help me appreciate the sun.

Time to Relax

Did lots of this earlier today with my human Cindy. In fact, we took TWO naps together. I wonder if she's gonna go for a record of three.

We don't get to nap w/each other that often because she's always doing something she calls "teaching." I don't know what that is, but it sure keeps her busy.

Weather: Cooling down a bit after those insanely high temps.

Please Meet...Francesca

Everybody, this is
Francesca,
and she's my latest
feline friend.

Do you remember Snowy? She belonged to my human Cindy's good friend from Saudi Arabia. Snowy unfortunately ran away, but now this friend has a new kitty! I'm going to call her Frannie. (BTW, that's a nickname for Francesca)

Frannie looks so peaceful all curled up on her pretty red furniture, I wish I could join her for a nap. Welcome to a new home, Frannie. I know this Saudi Arabian friend will treat you like a queen!

Weather: Let's not talk about it. More shade. More water.
Less sun and heat, please!

A Feast

Tonight my human Cindy is having friends over for a shabu shabu party.
You don't know shabu shabu?

It's a Japanese one-pot meal where everyone can add their own ingredients (veggies, tofu, thinly sliced beef or pork) into a boiling pot to cook them. It's very delicious, and I wish I could join them.
I'll just have to be content to watch from the sidelines.

Weather: OH...MY...Soooo hot.
Glad we have the A/C cranked up high at my place.

I am Royalty

I've heard that in ancient Egypt, cats were revered. I wish I could travel back in time so that people would honor me and bow at the very mention of my name.

Oh wait, my humans do that already. When I meow, they come instantly to see what I need. When I'm hungry, they always replenish my bowl. I am royalty, indeed.

How do you like my Sphinx impression on those boxes? That's one of my favorite places to relax. It's in the computer room where I write this blog.

Weather: Dunno, it's still dark right now. Just a wild guess: HOT.