Hercules the Molester

Since I work nights, I figure I should get my Friday night catblogging done early. A couple of weeks ago, I posted a couple of pictures of our cat Hercules molesting a blanket. The day after I posted those shots, my youngest son, Pantherfan, snapped this pic of Hercules molesting two blankets at once!

The careful observer may notice that these poor blankets are still on the couch, and not laid out on the floor like Hercules' earlier victims. It seems that he has become less, ummm, 'discriminating in his affections' of late. Just this week, we came home and found a dishtowel that had been hauled upstairs and laid out in the familiar manner of one of Hercules' "friends".

A reader asked me how Hercules normally "makes his move" on his potential conquests. It started a few years ago, when we lived in Connecticut. We'd occasionally find this pink blanket from our daughter's room had somehow moved downstairs, and we wondered how it got there. Then, one night, I was downstairs watching TV, and I saw Hercules dragging the blanket down the stairs with his teeth. Lately, he hasn't had the strength, or patience, to wait that long. He'll normally drag his victim a few feet until it's laid out straight, straddle it, grab a piece of it in his mouth, and start this really disturbing yowling as he slowing moves his back feet up and down. When you come down to see what's happening, he'll stop what he's doing, but doesn't seem the least embarrassed by his actions. My sons report they hear this yowling two or three times a week at night, and are afraid to come out of their rooms.

And yes, he was fixed about eight years ago...

Year End Personal News And Notes

Thanks again for to all the readers of TSSBP for all your support throughout the year. It's been a busy week here at the Bubblehead house; I wanted to fill you in on what's going on:

1) This morning, I finished my radiation treatments in preparation for the cancer surgery I'll be having in a month or so; the chemo finished up yesterday. Everyone says I came through the radiation treatments (5,040 rads to my gastro-esophageal junction) about as well as anyone they've seen, in that I've been able to eat and drink normally throughout the treatment; one nurse said she's only seen one person through their office (a Marine) also make it through without having to tube feed. I credit the extra shielding I have (although I did lose about 15 lbs of that during the treatments.) I'll be starting back to work on Sunday, and hopefully will get the surgery scheduled in Seattle very soon.

2) Farewell, Faithful Friend: Yesterday, we had to say good-bye to our beloved cat, Hercules. It was a very emotional moment for all of us. A loving companion to our whole family, Hercules blessed our lives more than we could have hoped for, both with his affection and humor. Some of the "Best of Hercules" can be seen here; a more recent picture is here:

Thanks for sharing your life with us, old friend.

3) For the 3rd year running, I've been selected as a finalist for the "2008 Weblog Awards", this time in the "Best Up and Coming Blog" category against 9 worthy competitors (including the blog that cleaned my clock last year). I finished 2nd in 2006 and 3rd in 2007, so hopefully we'll be able to reverse the trend this year. I'll post more information as we get closer to the start of voting on January 5th (and maybe even another "Completely Impartial Voter's Guide"). As always, your support is appreciated; the "competition" has always been a lot of fun.

4) Go Big Red!

Happy New Year to all!

Update 2312 01 Jan 2009: Thanks to CDR Salamander and ninme for posting about Hercules. It means a lot to us.

Hercules, The Blanket-Molesting Cat

[Note to my regular reader: This is a compilation of various Hercules-blanket-molesting-related pictures and video I'm putting together to send in to Carnival of the Cats. Nothing here that you haven't already seen.]

Our 11 year old cat, Hercules, has a hobby. He likes to molest blankets. He'll pull the blanket to some preferred spot, straighten it out, and then grab a piece of the blanket in his mouth while he walks in place on it while mewling loudly. This happens 4-5 times a week that we know of... probably more. He's been fixed for 10 years, and he's been doing this for over 3 years now -- only he knows why. Here are some pictures:










































We put together a short video of some of Hercules' greatest moments with his blankets -- we hope you like it! We even included an original song worthy of "American Idol" -- the Audition episodes:



We love him very much, but fleas have clearly eaten his brain...

Fat Cat Hercules

I haven't done any Friday cat-blogging in a while, but since I'm getting so many hits from searches for "Hercules fat cat" (they're looking for information on this cat that's been on CNN), I figured I should provide an update on our favorite blanket-molesting cat. He's still molesting blankets, as this photo of him with one of the boy's Christmas presents shows:

I realized after my son took the picture that, in addition to demonstrating that Hercules has no shame (in that he'll continue molesting his blanket even with people nearby), this picture shows that trying to give a cat "rabbit ears" is really kind of pointless.

"Wuv... Twue Wuv"

In honor of Friday catblogging, I present a couple more shots of Hercules and his continuing infatuation with blankets. He tends to "make his move" on the blankets either after we go to bed, or after SubBasket leaves to take the boys to school in the morning. Since I wasn't leaving for work until after she left, I figured I might have a chance to get some action shots. Alas, as I was taking my bath, I heard SubBasket talking to Hercules: "Jeez... have you no shame, cat? Are you not even embarrassed at all by what you're doing?" I asked if he was molesting the blanket, and was told he was. I figured I had missed my chance. So, when I got downstairs, I went ahead and snapped a picture of a wistful-looking Hercules admiring his conquest from afar. I figured I'd call it "Afterglow":

It turns out that this wasn't the end of the encounter, but merely a short rest. SubBasket and the boys left, and I was collecting my stuff to leave when I walked past the stairs, and he was at it again:

He's got some stamina, that cat does... I was disappointed, though, because I hoped to get a short video clip, but the camera's batteries were too low. Therefore, you'll have to be satisfied with video of another cat who loves her blanket; she just doesn't grab it in her teeth and make strange noises...

Hercules + Blanket = Fireworks

I know it's a little late for Friday Night cat-blogging, but late is still better than never. For those who have missed new pictures of Hercules engaging in his blanket-molesting pasttime, here's a new one I got Wednesday afternoon:

I know true love when I see it...

Back By Popular Demand

It's been a few weeks since I've posted a new picture of Hercules, our blanket-molesting cat. It's not because he's stopped molesting blankets -- it's more because the flash card slot on our computer got dumb, so I have to go into my son's room to download the pictures to his computer, and frankly I'm afraid that something might be living under all the crap on his floor.

Anyway, here's a new picture of Hercules, doing that voodoo, that only he do, so well:


Happy Friday!

Cat Pile

For tonight's edition of Friday night cat-blogging, here's a picture of both of our cats cuddled up on their blanket:

A wonderful example of the male and female of the species Domesticus Alleycus, Panther and Hercules certainly seem to enjoy this sleeping spot. Note the Hercules isn't molesting the blanket at all, contrary to his normal behavior.

After... And Before

It's Friday, so once again it's time for catblogging. Today we have a picture of Hercules looking very dignified as he rests on his favorite blanket. Isn't he precious?

Who would have guessed that only moments before, he had been doing something other than sleeping on this blanket:

What a strange kitty. For those who haven't seen the video of Hercules in action (or those who want to check it out again), you can find it by clicking here.

Catblogging Video Update

I've got the video of Hercules molesting a blanket all put together, and as soon as the Google Video server lets me log on, I'll get it uploaded. Then, they have to review it to ensure it's not pR0n or anything (which, actually, if you think about it, it kinda is). Bottom line, hopefully I'll be able to have the world premiere next Friday.

Until then, here's another photo of Hercules molesting a blanket from last week:

Video Of Hercules

I just shot a video clip of Hercules molesting his blanket. Does anyone know how to upload and display video clips on Blogger?

Catblogging Time Again!

Unfortunately, we haven't gotten any new pictures of Hercules molesting a blanket in the last couple of weeks, so we'll have to go with a more conventional photo -- Hercules sleeping by our youngest son on the couch:

What a good kitty...

Catblogging Friday

Time for another episode of Friday Catblogging here at TSSBP. Last week, we featured a cute picture of our younger cat in a basket. This week, we present: a new picture of Hercules molesting a blanket!

The photo was taken yesterday by Deepdiver; he also tried to get a film clip (we had a video camera that we'd used to make a film for one of his classes; I played René Descartes explaining how to logically prove your friend exists) but Herc had finished his "friend-making" by the time he got it.

This is a new strategy for Herc, attacking from the side. Of course, he might have just gotten lazy. (Some previous pictures of Hercules in action can be found here and here.)

Best Friends

Last night, in preparation for Friday catblogging, Deepdiver took some pictures of our cat, Hercules, sleeping on a blanket, looking to all the world like the cat and blanket are best friends. Isn't he cute?


However, another angle shows that Herc's intentions towards the blanket might not have been exactly friendly -- or, rather, maybe too friendly. Check out the evidence of a recent cat mouthprint on the blanket.


My guess is that the blanket had recently been the object of Hercules' amorous advances, as shown in this picture I had posted earlier.


Poor blanket.

The Feline Thought Process

Have you ever thought about what thought processes go through a cat's mind as they're deciding on a course of action? I can just imagine what my cat Hercules was thinking before he laid down as shown in this picture:

All I can figure is he must have thought, "Oh, look, that human who feeds me is staring intently at that horizontal collection of papers. Since everything in the world revolves around cats and their needs, he must be looking at it because he wants me to sleep there. OK, because he feeds me and scoops my poop, I'll humor him this once."

My daughter reports he does the same thing to the keyboard of her laptop.

Live-Blogging Thanksgiving

It's been a busy Thanksgiving already at the Bubblehead house. The day started off with the boys playing some Guitar Hero II, with impressive results:

Next was the annual Ward "Turkey Bowl", where I was acclaimed the MVP for catching 2 passes for 1 TD, making the game-ending interception, and not hurting myself. (I was 24 years senior to the next oldest player by the end of the game, so the last was the most impressive feat.)

Meanwhile, Hercules was engaged in his favorite activity, but with a Feast Day twist; as he finished molesting my sweatshirt, he looked longingly at the pillow he had molested earlier in the day:

More later if I remember to bring the camera when we head out for the family dinner.

Update 1423 22 Nov: Here's a picture of the turkey carcass I just finished carving:

The best thing is, this isn't even the turkey we're eating for dinner, since that one's being cooked over at my wife's sister's house. This one was cooked up just for sandwiches later this week! I love my wife soooo much....

Mk 48 Torpedo -- Not Just For Skimmers

All submariners enjoy seeing a surface ship blown in half by a well-placed torpedo, but sometimes we forget that the Mk 48 is also effective against submarines. Poking around the 'net looking for information on the Navy's recently-released 5 year SINKEX plan, I found (here, here, here, and here) video of the torpedoing of USS Sailfish (SS 572) by my old boat USS Topeka (SSN 754) in May 2007. All the videos I found were in a .wmv format, so I uploaded it to YouTube for ease of viewing:



Personally, I think that being the target of a SINKEX is one of the most honorable ways for a retired warship to end her life -- she helps train the next generation of Sailors, and provides a home to marine life.

Back to the Navy scrapping list, the only surprise I saw is that they expect to scrap USS Los Angeles (SSN 688) within the next five years; she's still in commission, so it'll be a rush job (considering some of the other boats coming up for scrapping have been decomm'd since the mid-'90s).

(Non-sub related postscript: While I was uploading the video to YouTube, I figured I might as well post the old video of my cat Hercules molesting blankets.)

No New Content Here!

Have you ever noticed that politicians don't want to say anything controversial during election season? It always torqued me off, but now I'm starting to understand where they're coming from. That's why, during the heart of the vote-whining campaign that is the 2006 Weblog Awards (please vote for me! click here to go to the voting page! vote every 24 hours!), I hesitate to post anything that might upset the voters. Because of that, and because December is normally a good time to post "end of year" reviews, here's links to some of the "Best of Bubblehead" non-submarine posts from the past 12 months:

Dec. '05: This is why I don't cook much.

Jan. '06: One of the things that sets me apart from the other "2501-3500" finalists is my willingness to "go to bat" for the smaller bloggers, as seen in the saga of my wildly successful "SPUD-LIB" initiative:
The SPUD-LIB Manifesto
SPUD-LIB: An Open Letter to Frank J. and Instapundit
Victory For SPUD-LIB!

Feb. '06: Hercules, The Blanket-Molesting Cat. The title says it all.

Mar '06: For March Madness -- A Call For Restraint

Apr '06: A compilation of my "serious essays" on the GWOT -- What I Believe

May '06: An analysis of the surprising result of the Nebraska Republican Governor primary result: Satan Flexes His Political Muscles
(In May, I also wrote one of my most-linked non-submarine posts of the year: Why The Republicans Are Losing My Vote.)

June '06: On the definition of "unilateral": Idaho Democrats -- Against The Mexican War!

July '06: Part of my continuing series of posts mocking and belittling bad science from the moonbat crowd: Depleted Uranium -- Worthy Of Exclamation Points!

Aug '06: More GWOT strategy thinking: Iraq = Gallipoli?

Sep '06: Because this guy got elected, I'm almost sure to get my taxes audited: Bill Sali And The Underpants Gnomes

Oct '06: Mostly election-related this month, but I did call out one celebrity: You Owe Me, Ken Jennings!

Nov '06: I have a "picture": Zamboni In The Boise Burger King Drive-Thru -- A Guy's Perspective

Before the end of the year, I'll try to come up with a list of my favorite submarine posts.

Losing One's Dignity...

Nothing is more important to a cat than their dignity, or at least maintaining the appearance of same. That's why there's nothing quite so funny as a cat momentarily dropping their guard and finding themselves in silly situations. Since I don't have any new shots of Hercules this week, I'll direct your attention to a couple of funny compilations of cat videos over at Google Video: you can find them here and here.

Two For The Price Of One

For Friday Night Cat-blogging, I offer a photo of both of our kitties:

That's Hercules asleep on the left, and Panther Babaganoush alertly keeping watch on the right.