Stuff I've done this week

**Not about the kitties**

This week I handed in a few assignments, one for Media Pro and one for Ad. The Media Pro assignment, The Extra Mile, was completed by Neil and me. We were really proud of the work that we put into it and hope that we get a decent mark. I posted it on YouTube and here is the link. Let me know what you think, good or bad.

The Extra Mile

For ad, we were tasked with creating a personal brand that best represents who we see ourselves as. It was fun and interesting to see what I came up with. After that, I created a Prezi, something I had never used before. It was frustrating at times, but I managed to get through it!

PREZZZI

And last but certainly not least, the Live Hit Derby... Well, let's just say that it was fun to watch, not so much fun to be part of. Haha.. But really, I had a good time even if I chocked and froze up so hard.
I have a new found respect for our newscasters who do that on the regular. I guess that is why they are so good (Or the majority of them are) is they have done it a million times. One of my mottos fits well with this theory, "It's all about the reps." Just gotta do it and do it and do it some more.
Everyone did a good job though and it was a lot of fun. I can't wait till April when we get to redeem ourselves, or at least I get to redeem MYSELF.

As an aside (Not a caveat, thanks Melanie), there are a couple of guys who come into my work frequently for a Kokanee or two. I've gotten to know them a little bit over the years. They work in the production studio for CTV next door. Needless to say, when I told them about my live hit, they had a good laugh about it. Who knows, maybe i'll be able to get an internship or at the very least a tour of the building someday, that'd be cool.

I may or may not have a blog post coming next week, we will see...I'm going to keep the streak alive though.

End of semester stresses + some goodies

So it's the end of the semester, and the stress levels are at their highest. But, I can't forget about the kitties... The kitties need lovin' too.

The kitties are great at helping to relieve stress; they are cuddly, warm, and fuzzy.

Even if I'm having a rough time with the copious amounts of homework that my teachers are throwing down upon me (us), the kitties will, sometimes annoyingly, come over to see what I'm doing. And if it's The Cakes, she'll more than likely sit down on one of the papers that I'm trying to read...

It reminds me that the simple things in life should be appreciated, if you do, it'll help to get you through the tough times, such as the four deadlines that I was dealing with on Wednesday/Thursday.
                                                      -The Projector article
-PR research project
-Personality profile edit
-Shoot video at Siloam Mission
-2 memo's





But I did it, I did it all! I was even able to go to my sisters' engagement dinner...yay! congrats!


Oh, and I dropped my iPhone and the screen cracked...awesome..add it to the list of problems that I have to deal with... And if you aren't in CreComm you just won't get it...UGH!





Next week it doesn't get any easier...
we have in order:
Monday-Radio final project
Tuesday-Radio analysis of final project
Wednesday-Media Pro The Extra Mile edited
Thursday- Creative Writing-Assignment 5
                 Ad- Personal Brand
Friday- Journalism- LIVE HIT DERBY DAY *Shout-out to Joanne for reminding me*
                                                              I'm not considering this school work, because it should be fun!

OH and it doesn't get any better after that week...final exams, papers, final media production assignment, etc.

Buuuuut, Dec. 17, we are done...till the January 5th.









On a completely unrelated note, two awesome trailers were released this week,
Jurassic World

and today
Star Wars VII : The Force Awawkens

and a shameless plug for all my TV and movie info, check out Screen Rant

Christmas Cheer!

Now that Christmas songs are played on the radio, I can officially say, it's Christmas time.

With Christmas time, there comes parties, snow, skating, frostbite...and PRESENTS! 🎁

I look forward to all of the above, minus the frostbite, because really...who wants frostbite?

As you may or may not know, I live in a one-bedroom apartment in Osborne Village with two free loading roommates.

Even though I "live alone" I enjoy the feeling/tradition of setting up a Christmas tree and decorating my apartment, even if I don't have any visitors over the holidays.

I like the cheap holiday scented candles at Bath & Body Works and if you do also....Boy do I have an early gift for you! Use the promo code WILDVANILLA at the checkout to receive 20% off your order (online only) by December 31, 2014.

It may be lame and corny, but the kitties have their own stockings set-up that I usually fill with little snacks, usually Temptations, and before you jump all over me for allowing the kitties to eat that garbage. I don't give them out too often, like a cupcake or treat, every once in a while it's nice to indulge a little bit.

In years past I have given the cats Christmas themed collars, but they usually aren't the biggest fan of them. I can understand their resistance to them, but the kitties look prettier, which is nicer than just being plain-jane.

I don't want you to think I dress the Cakes up like this poor guy.
She would probably scratch and claw my eyes out, so I would never dare trying to pull something like this off.

But, you would have no heart & soul if you told me you didn't think this guy was the cutest thing you've seen in a while. It's not flashy, it's quiet simple..but it's elegant.

I love getting Christmas gifts, I love giving Christmas gifts, even to the kitties. This year, however, I don't quite know what to get them.
I've been keeping an eye out for awesome gifts when i'm cruising the aisles of Walmart, Target and Petland.

I recently took to the Internet, Amazon has great gifts for not only cats, but dogs also! Treat the furry family members like you'd like to be treated I say. But them some gifts, and they shower you with coodles and kisses.






Some families go to extremes with their cats though...making Christmas greeting cards. Don't get me wrong, this is awesome and I love it, but I don't know if I could pull something like this off...




Christmas time is about cheer, love, and family so I encourage you, spread a lil' cheer, donate some time/money/clothing to a good cause, because everyone deserves a warm meal and a jacket-Especially true here in "Winterpeg".

Don't be like this grumpy bastard this Christmas!

CreComms night at the theatre

**Sorry to all of you wanting to read about the adventures a CreCommer and his two black beauties, Pancakes and Meisha, this week's blog post will not be about them.**

This past week the CreCommers were sent to Rachel Browne Theatre on the coldest night of the year (yet) to watch Michael Healey's play Proud.

Proud is a funny, sexually charged, politically incorrect and at times an awkward play. It first premiered at Toronto's 26 Berkeley Street Upstairs space in September 2012, and is making its home in Winnipeg from November 6-16.

The play, which takes place after the 2011 election when the Conservative party won a majority government, but instead of the NDP Orange Wave winning 56 seats in Québec, those seats were won by the Conservatives. It depicts Prime Minister Stephen Harper as an unmarried, quick tempered, sexually awkward, economic theory loving, (true), calculating politician who's only goal while in power is to build a Canada that allows its citizens to become 'self-reliant'.

The set (Prime Ministers Office)

The play begins with Harper (Ross McMillan) addressing the crowd (or his new MPs) telling them what he expects of them and how to conduct their business. McMillan's mannerisms and speech patterns are very close to that of the real PM.

In the next scene, Harper is joined on stage by chief of staff, Cary Baines, played by Eric Blais. Baines and Harper are deciding where to seat new Mps in the House of Commons and with every suggestion Baines gives Harper, each is rejected, citing past transgressions/disobedience as a reason why not to have them sit opposite of Harper in the House.

In walks a busty, scantily clad woman who turns out to be the new MP from Cormier-lac Poule, Québec, Jisbella Lyth, played by Daria Puttaert. Lyth needs a condom and as she says, "...you told us to come to you if we needed ANYTHING. So here I am, in need of a condom, do you have one?"

After Harper reams her out for acting inappropriately he tells Baines to get resignation papers for Lyth as she is going to resign from her position. But the quick-thinking Lyth creates a backstory that would do greater damage to the party than her sleeping with a reporter, Evan Solomon. Harper buys it, so Lyth stays.

The calculating Harper hatches a plan to "distract the media" as he is trying to cut down the size of the Privy Council Office by instructing Lyth to table a private member's bill in the House during a session regarding abortion. Lyth originally rejects as it comes out, she's had two in the past, but later agrees as she wants her image to improve back in her riding.

From there the play unfolds as Lyth's bill gains momentum and will soon be tabled and brought to a vote, something that catches Harper and Baines off guard. Baines and Lyth begin an "office" romance which is relevant to the recent incidents by the Liberal Party . Baines later tells Harper that he should sleep with Lyth to persuade her to take her proposed bill off the docket. 

The scene where Harper and Lyth sit in a room sipping (or chugging in Lyths case) scotch feels as cheap and unsavoury as the Ballantine's they are drinking. Eventually the sexually awkward Harper 'agrees' to have sex with Lyth but doesn't have any condoms, cue Baines entering the room with a strip of Trojan condoms.

Off to the side to main stage stood Jake, played by Kevin P. Gabel has a few scenes with a reporter, Evan Solomon, in the year 2029. The Conservatives and Stephen Harper are still in power, but there have been substantial cuts to CBC and Jake goes to an empty building with no producers to conduct his interview. These scenes did not add to the value of the play, only hindered it as it took away from the action of the main characters.

There is no real force driving the play forward and relies on sexual innuendoes to keep the audiences attention.  It felt as if the play ended in a hurry without any real resolution or closure, so that was disappointing. For what it was worth, it was entertaining and enjoyable. McMillan and Puttaert brought forth strong performances individually, but together, something was missing. Blais's portrayal of Baines was good, but felt like that character could be played by most anybody as his character had no growth throughout the play.

Following the play there was a rushed Q & A with the actors and the director, Ardith Boxall. There were the normal "How did this play affect how you view politics? Was it hard to find this character's personality? " questions, but there was one question by a guest questioning the directors views of how the media behaves regarding "distractions" put forth by the government which the audience could see hit a nerve with the director. Following the guests question, the Q & A quickly ended and the actors hurried out of the studio. 

Proud delivered a play that was on par to other plays you would see at Winnipeg Fringe Fest and is worth seeing if you are a left-leaning political supporter who wants to see a farce involving the prime minister.

My Call to Action

Hello once again, this week I figured I would post something relevant to both my kitties and to CreComm . I had to write a call to action about something I cared about, and then record the video in front of a camera. It was a pretty cool experience. Maybe future news anchor? probably not likely, haha. Let me know what ya think.

“Stop! Turn around! Run away!” People believe that you cannot let a black cat cross your path.

The British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals gathered statistics for feline adoptions rates and found that the average time it took for a cat to be adopted was 50 days. Black cats however, take on average 12 days longer to be adopted. These statistics are troubling.

My name is Clifford Fewings and I am proud to say that I am the owner of two beautiful black cats, Pancakes and Meisha.

Unfortunately, in society a certain superstition surrounds black cats. People are under the impression that black cats are the bringers of bad luck and misfortune. In Great Britain black cats are often given to new brides as a symbol of good luck.

Dr. Lorie Huston found that owning a cat can reduce the risk of heart attack by 30 percent. She also found that owning a cat can both reduce stress levels and the risk of developing depression.

Cats are fantastic companions. They can be moody at times, but they are great at cuddling.  It is true, they are moochers, they do not pay rent, buy their own food and we clean up after them. But I cannot picture my life without them in it.

So I implore you, go to the Winnipeg Humane Society. Look around and play with a few kitties or even a more seasoned cat, they need loving homes too.  However, do not forget about the black cats, take a chance. What do you have to lose?

Call the Winnipeg Humane Society at (204) 982-2035 or visit them online at winnipeghumanesociety.ca for more information.

Remember, black is beautiful.

Halloween!!!!

So, this time every year Instagram, Facebook and Twitter are overwhelmed with cute animals dining their owners favourite costumes-usually to the chagrin of the pet.

I had planned on hunting for a few costumes for my girls but school and work have been overwhelming as of late. O'well, plus I don't think Pancakes would be impressed with me if I came home with a pumpkin costume for her. On the flip side, I have a feeling Meisha would love to dress up as a Superwoman.

Instead, I scoured the internet and compiled a list of the best cat halloween themed costumes that they could wear and walk around the house with.


Scuba cat, Bat Cat, Baller player cat, and cat lobster.

My personal favourite is ball player cat...he looks like he is ready to get in the game.

Though bat cat is probably the cutest thing on the internet right now.

Anyways, happy Halloween all! Be safe out there tonight!

And if you, or anyone you know is dressing up their cat this Halloween season please post a picture in the comment section below.

Jealous Kitty

Soooo, this blog will be about my jealous girly, Pancakes.

Unfortunately, one of Pancakes most frustrating characteristics is that she gets jealous. I know this because I have had the misfortune of having many pillows soiled.

If I don't spend enough time showing her attention while giving Meisha too much, she will give me dirty glares (yes cats can give dirty looks) and stare Meisha down.

I haven't the slightest idea why she gets jealous of Meisha, maybe it's because she's stealing "her man"? I'm not too sure, I give both the kitties plenty of attention, sometimes Pancakes will get more loving, sometimes Meisha will get more loving. Basically, whoever comes over to me first gets my attention.

This now brings me to the human element, having a female companion over. Normally, she is fine with it, however, the issues arise when they spend the night. If they are a common frequenter of my home she will become accustomed to her being there. BUT, if not...I could all but expect when I get home that the pillow where she put her head down for the night will be soiled.

At first, I just thought that she may have had a bladder infection so I took her to the vet. The results came back negative, so the vet asked if there were any stresses in her life. I said no, she then asked if there were anybody new in my life. I said, occasionally. She then theorized that was the reason.

It all became clear, Pancakes was jealous of my confidants and/or guests. Sounds bad, but I was unfortunately going through pillows far faster than I should have been. Thanks, to an idea by one the people whose "scent" was left behind, she suggested getting pillow covers that prevent liquid seeping in the pillow through the pillow case. It has saved me a few pillows thus far-Good investment, solid idea.

Hopefully, Pancakes will one day learn to "accept" others staying over and not to view them as a threat as she and Meisha are still my babies for life.

free warming blanket

Laying down on my couch there was a chill in the air. I grabbed my blanket and threw it over top of me.

Still a little bit chilly, but not wanting to get up to turn the thermostat up I laid there.

I then realized that I hadn't written my blog post for the week...but I had the afternoon off from school and I was up late completing a journalism assignment that was due at 8 AM sharp.

Sleep was calling me as the home opener for the Jets was only a few hours away and I knew this was going to be a long and busy night at work.

I hadn't a clue what to write about and was going to get up and starting putting words down, any words when Pancakes jumped up onto my belly and laid down.

I couldn't possibly get up and kick her off now, she looked so comfortable just sleeping there. I was in a pickle...write my blog post or lay there, fall asleep and let her sleep too...

All of a sudden, my stomach started to warm up, the Cakes was a radiator on my belly. I certainly couldn't get up now! All was lost... well not entirely, I had myself a free warming blanket!

I fell asleep for what seemed like three hours when all of a sudden the Cakes popped up and jumped down. She meowed a few times and went to her food dish. I was still groggy, but I had my blog post idea, I just needed to get it down on paper.

As I sat up and began to write my blog post, the Cakes came strolling back wanting to hop back onto my lap to sleep some more...Tough life these cats live... I caved and let her back up, because hey, I like be warm as much as the next guy!

It made me wonder if having two cats sleep on me would double the heat...? Only time would tell, hopefully it does as Winter is Coming..(shameless Game of Thrones plug)





side note: I already knew that having the Cakes sleep on me would be wonderfully warm.

side side note: having both the kitties sleep on me is great but it makes you not want to move a muscle in fear of waking them.

Labels Matter

Labels matter eh?

Well yes, they do when it comes to the brand of food you are going to feed your kitties. 

The old adage of you get what you pay for is very true when it comes to the quality of food you purchase.

A lot of the cheaper brands such as Iams and Whiskas are marketed and advertised as good healthy food for your cats. However, if you flip the bag around and look what actually makes up the kibble you'd be ( or at least I was) surprised. The first few ingredients are by-product, corn meal, wheat , soy meal... I could go on but you get the point. It's Shit!

It's full of animal by-products and gluten rich ingredients...Would you want to put that in your body? Probably not. 

I used to be one of those guys who just got the purple bag (Whiskas) because I didn't know any better. It never occurred to me that I should be looking at the labels just as I do with myself. But it only makes sense, so now I do.

I now look at the labels, make sure that meats are the first ingredients are good and healthy for my babies. Company's have started to create G-Free animal food, protein enriched food and older cat food. Don't get me wrong, these brands of food do cost more upfront, but i've noticed that I save more in the long run.

I try and feed my cats the same amount at roughly the same time of the day each day, it helps with weight management and routine. With the Whiskas and other cheap brands of food, I noticed that the bowls would be empty well before their second meal of the day. At first, I thought it was because they enjoyed it so much, but I realized that all the gluten rich ingredients didn't keep them full as long as the protein rich brands. I was then, giving the cats more of the cheap food, thus it came out to be approximately the same as buying them a better quality product.

I come home most nights and their food bowls still have some food left over from the beginning of the day, they are getting all the nutrients that they require and are fuller off less food.

Here is an example of my most recent purchases list of ingredients.

And this is the bag itself...

As you can see...The ingredients are Turkey, Duck, Pea protein, Chickpeas, tomato, peas, canola oil... All these things are great for your cat. Heck, I wish I ate that healthy.

Now the Bag art itself, its got a cat glasses on it (smart kitty) and it's the Diva recipe...sooooo obviously I had to get it for these two divas :D

So I urge you, next time you need to get more food for your babies, flip that bag around and look at what is actually in the food. Your cat health and waistline will thank-you.😸

Friends?

So this past week, I witnessed something that normally does not happen. I saw the kitties hanging and chilling together on the couch.

Now, you guys don't know these two yet, hopefully soon you will. But, this picture is somewhat of an anomaly for the two of them.
Normally, they are never sitting side by side. Normally, they are on opposite sides of the room or in different rooms.

This is why I had to take out my new fancy camera and have a photo shoot...I felt like a fancy photographer, setting the white balance, correcting the focus, finding the right angles and correct zoom. But the most impressive aspect of all this is that they stayed put and worked with me!
Animals have their own minds and will do as they please, especially cats. I felt as if everything was coming together for me and them.

The sun finally set and the cats reared their real colours, or traits...The Cakes was again laying down watching the Wild Card game with me, when out of nowhere The Meish crept towards the couch, and  an unsuspecting Cakes was pounced on by her resulting in the cakes rolling over, claws and paws stretched outwards and hissing back at her.

I normally see something like this or similar to this once every couple days. For some reason Meisha is always the aggressor and Pancakes never wants any of it.

I don't solely blame Meisha though, Pancakes needs to be a little more fun and play with Meisha a bit more. I think Meisha is just bored and wants to play, but Pancakes being mostly a single cat for the majority of her growing up years never really experienced playing with other cats unlike Meisha who had a big grey fluff ball named Karl or Kurly.

The only time the two of them play with each other is when I pull out the infamous red laser pen that the cats love to chase but never catch... Pancakes usually gets worn down quicker than Meisha because she's fuller of life...

Till next post :D

The Kitties

Now, why you are here, to meet the cats, Pancakes and Meisha!

Let's start with a brief history of how I became their owner, and me their master...?

They came to me 3 years apart almost to the month under similar circumstances, what is more interesting is that they were born only 5 days apart. Pancakes or Baby as she was known when I first adopted her came to me through my former boss, Jamie. Jamie a red seal chef, taught me the majority of my finer kitchen skills and am ever thankful the knowledge that he bestowed upon me. It has won me many brownie points over the years, as guests always appreciate a nicely cooked meal.
Side track over, back to Pancakes. Jamie needed to unfortunately put her up for adoption because she became jealous of their newborn baby. They also owned another black cat, which he felt was making it a more difficult transition for Baby. She had been spraying for a few months and to no avail, she was not getting any better.

I had taken care of my friends cat for a few months in the past and enjoyed it,  but had never owned a cat prior to that, only dogs. The cat that I temporarily looked after was good company and fun so I decided that having my OWN cat full of all responsibilities till the end of time was something that I was willing to do.

Making her my own, I decided that she needed a new name, she was still quite young at the time that I got her. I still remember her crying as we drove from Jamie's apartment that cold and snowy December afternoon... It was quite upsetting listening to her cry in her kennel as we weaved down lag up through Osborne and finally to my apartment, her new home.

I came up with the name Pancakes randomly and even though she was scared and skinny I liked it and officially made it her "new" name. She goes by Pancakes of The Cakes, either are acceptable...however, she doesn't really understand when you call her name... :|

Flash forward 2 years and 11 months into the future, a friend of mine had a different but similar situation. Her kitty, Meisha, needed a new home as she decided that her step-dads laptop was the perfect place to create a new litter box.

Meisha also goes by That 'Meish or Meishy or The Simple One... :D

I was a little hesitant at first bringing another cat into my 1 bedroom apartment, but she really needed to find Meisha a new home and very quick. It was supposed to only be a temporary home for her, but I knew that I adopting another cat...And I was surprisingly ok with it.

The evening that she came, her owner brought her and when I met her downstairs she was full of tears and was very upset over the situation, and I don't blame her, I cannot imagine having to give one of my babies away now.

For the next 4 days I played the introduction game, I kept Meisha in my bathroom with food/water and a litter box for herself. The cats would go up to the bottom of the door and sniff and hiss at each other because clearly they were not happy having a new guest and moving to a new home. The following few days I would slowly open the door a little more so that they could see each other and get to know each other a little better.

Things were getting better until one evening when I came home from work I noticed that the door was ajar further than it was supposed to be. So I went searching hoping that everything was ok between the two of them. Turned out that it was ok, or seemed to be ok---I'm not the cat whisperer.

Their personalities will begin to show as more and more stories come out, don't worry, the wait will be worth it.

Without further adieu, I bring you Pancakes and Meisha.

Intro!

Hello! Welcome to my very first blog! And if you are reading this, my very first post!
I am half excited, half nervous about this. Mostly because I am not too familiar with the blogosphere and how things work in there. But hey, we've got nothing to lose except our clothes, so let's just close our eyes and jump right in on. Once you're in with me, open your eyes, read, laugh, cry, disagree, agree, wherever this ends up, we will have fun getting there.

I am a first year Creative Communications student at Red River College or a CreComm as we like to be called. So far, the program is enjoyable and the workload not too overwhelming, the second years and grads that I have spoken to have cautioned me- be prepared not to sleep, to cry, and to hate your life soon enough. Seems intimidating, makes my legs shake a little, but if it were easy, everyone would do it, right?

Anyways, onto the meat and potatoes of this first post. Why you are here? What made you come here? My blog- Krazy Kat Man. Why would a 28 year old blog about cats you ask? Well I like cats, in particular, black cats, furthermore, MY black cats. Your second question, why the K's, crazy and cat are spelt with C's not K's dummy. Well I believe, this is how they would spell Crazy and Cat, with a K.

This blog will mostly involve posts about my two black beauties, Pancakes and Meisha..Their day-to-day life, aspects of their lives, anecdotes, pictures...but may also include topics/posts unrelated to them such as other class assignments/projects

Pictures of both Pancakes and Meish will be uploaded soon!