Belly boy

Winston has a message for all who have been asking why there haven't been any posts on him in a while:

It makes him want to scream. It's hard for him to be interesting when he spends 23 hours a day like this:

Imagine the difficulty of my task, then, in having to package and share that. For real, I have two self-imposed rules here: be honest and don't post if you have nothing to say. Sorry if that means increasingly long lags between cat posts -- I have to keep the gratuitous cuteness factor in check as much as I can.

That said, here's what Winston's been up to:

Sleeping, like I said!

Winston is virtually impossible to wake up. Poking him, shaking him, squeezing his paws, pulling his whiskers, biting his butt, rubbing food under his nose, throwing water on him, yelling "Fire!," creating an actual fire on his fur barely elicit a response. I'd chalk this up to a matter of heavy sleeping, if he didn't make it apparent that he just doesn't want to be bothered. Here's proof:

Notice how he holds his head, as though pained when I approach him. He's not willing to wake up, but to get me off his back he rolls over on it, giving me the distinct honor of being allowed to pet his belly (notice the response when I touch him -- is he spring-loaded?). Awwwwww! Really, it's flattering when an animal loves you this much.

Here's a further adventure of Belly Boy:

The belly is all he's offering. That is it. And so, in sum:

Whoooo! Exciting, right?

(Note: My apologies for not uploading these orignally. If you want to download these videos to your hard drive, files of the videos are here and here.)

Comments

[rod]

love

[LvH]

Winston is a cutey-pants but I love Rudy sooo much. He's so sassy. More Rudy!!

[Mer]

I love this cat. I have always been a dog person but I want a cat just like Winston. Can anyone tell me what kind he is?

[Lucycat]

I know I would watch footage of snoozin' Winston. Watching kitties sleep has a way of lowering the stress level.

[Mia]

I like how you can hear Winston purring in the second piece. And how you're so quiet, whispering, as to not disturb the kitty, who would sleep through anything you do to him.

[Jess]

I get the distinct impression that Winston would do well in a playdate with Lance. Lance also likes to sleep all the time. And he also manages to produce just enough affection to get you to leave him the hell alone when you're forcing love on him.

They're soul mates. Or something like that.

[heygirrrl]

LOL!! that was FAAASCINATING!!! best. post. ever.

[Tipsy McStaggers]

Rich - Do you want a sister? I love you and Winston so much! You and I could hang out together reading Valley of the Dolls and listening to tunes while Neely (my dog) and Winston act as if we are lucky to be breathig thier air. Neely is a slut for the belly rubs too.

[Scout]

I'm guilty of putting on the Winston Pressure, and I apologize. It's just that you're such a talented writer, I assumed it was all effortless. I know better, and I'm sorry. BTW, thanks for the Winnie post; I'm so much calmer after getting my fix.

[jenkatz]

Cats show you their bellies when they want to show off their six nipples. It's as if to say, "what you got? two? that's it? i've got six - count 'em six, bitch".

It's true. I saw it on Marty Stouffer's Wild America.

[Jude]

Rich, I want to eat your cat so very much. I want to gobble him right up. I love the way Win's li'l squashy face looks when he yawns in that second video.

By the way, thanks for the link!

[Lizzy]

Oh my bellies! LOVE the purring vids and especially that second pic with the smooshy face and cute little tucked up paw. Squeezes!

Dude, I love your blog, and your Winston-posts here, but shit like "ZOMG I CAN BE YOUR SISTER I LOVE YOUUUU I LOVE WINSTOOON SOOO MUCH!" scare the bejesus out of me.

[Rich]

No need to fear. It's all in fun. Everyone can be my sister.

[kate]

I'm sorry for begging for Winnie pics. I just love him so much. He's so dang cute and squishy. I missed him, but I'm feeling much better now.

THANKS!!!

[whatwouldjanicedickinsondo]

...and yet, i still don't believe he's living.
for all i know, his movements are a trick of the light.

[jmjm]

Waaaah! Too cute, Rich! Thanks for the Winston post. The video clips are super cute.

Also, I really appreciate the banner shout-out to My Neighbour Totoro, one of the best movies of all time.

One little criticism; the heavy breathing in the clips, coupled with the belly-rubbing makes me feel a little like I'm watching some sort of strange kitty snuff film. Breathe through your nose, dude!

That is all. Please keep up the good work. Your ANTM stuff is also grade-A material.

[nancytribe]

Your belly-boy is a honey. I wish my cats were more forthcoming with the belly. Come for the ANTM: stay for the belly.

[marina]

Still an adorable winnie :)

[Clare]

Rich, I love you and your adorable cats and hottie bf!! I have dreams of us all hanging out someday--swapping recipes, listening to tunes, having some catnip, and making fun of people and cats who will never be as cool as us.

[Tipsy McStaggers]

My sincerest apologies to April 17 - 8:30 pm poster - I thought you were a dick but then realized that it sounded like a "shout out" from a 16 year old MySpace account holder.
p.s. - still love winston though and still would be Rich's sister/friend, but the fact that I have given anyone the impression that I would ever say OMG or LOL or any of the other "cute" web lingo has made me re-evaluate my life and the decisions that lead to my first post.

[ChiliGurl]

TOO funny!! I swear he reminds me of my old boy (RIP). The video of Win going crazy over food is the EXACT way he would act. I guess they are soul brothers or something.
Mer, I believe Winston is a Blue-Point Medium Hair Persian. =)

[brandy]

I love how he is directing your hand in the second clip, like "here, rub here."
And I adore how you whisper "hey Win" to let him know of your approach!
Too smooshingly cute for words!
Even if he's just sleeping I still love him!

[t kitty]

i think your new fourfour-o banner just confirms that winston-chan is clearly a totoro and not a cat at all. that's what all the sleeping is about. he's actually helping small children with his psychic powers.

[Tray]

Stop. I can't take it. Paw over the face! I'm swear I'm going to have a spontaneous cuteness combustion.