Sunday, November 20, 2011

Key West, Hemingway & polydactyl cats ...







It seems I have been talking about Key West forever and probably worn the subject thin with all.  
I wouldn't say Key West was my favorite place to visit.  I always find it a bit crowded, touristy and overpriced unless you get off the beaten path and explore beyond Duval Street.  
Which was pretty much our style.

But there are some sites you just have to go see and when it involves either 
the beach, birds, sunsets or kitties, I'm there!  
We had been to the Hemingway house years ago but I needed new pictures of the cats.  Not much had changed.  The house above is still delightful to photograph as are the grounds.

This is an old olive oil container.  Nothing remarkable about it.
But what is remarkable is the urinal trough below which came out of Sloppy Joe's when they
were updating their bathrooms.  Apparently Hemingway wanted a reminder
“of just how much money I have pissed away.”


I was mostly interested in his writing loft behind the big house.  This is where
he did most of his writing.  I'd like to think that is his original typewriter, but who knows.


Lots of cool artwork.  I especially liked the cat painting.


 : : :

And then there are the cats.  
All 47 of them at my time of visit.  
Of course, I probably saw only a handful of them.  Most are off sleeping somewhere.  
Under a chair, in a bed, in the garden or on the lawn.  
Once in a while, you would hear a cat scream at some indignity imposed by another. 


 Isn't this guy handsome.  He gave me a few moments before becoming bored with my presence.


 Take a close look and count those toes!

All but 4 of the cats are neutered to maintain a healthy population.  There is a fence around the property that keeps them in and imposters out!


There is also a cat cemetery (and hopefully nothing like Stephen King's "Pet Cemetery"!)
with a few old headstones.
As you can see, there are some pretty
famous kitties buried here!




 Being a polydactyl kitty requires some paw maintenance ...





and a little attitude for the crowds ...


But once maintenance and attitude end, the posing begins!



 : : :


Now a final wrap up of some views I enjoyed.  Most of the shots above were SOOC, 
but sometimes I just love using Topaz 
and making ordinary pictures pop.










Thanks for coming along with me on our journey.  
We will now return to our regular scheduled programming.

Like shopping for a turkey!
Egads!
How can it be Thanksgiving already? 

Until tomorrow, friends,


~sharing with~
The Creative Exchange