Giving Back for the Holidays

We knew that Zane Abercrombie, Captain Ironhook’s nephew, had a heart of gold. Somewhere under that argyle sweater of his! Well, he’s proved it today. Because I saw him at the HandiLand Soup Kitchen, serving soup to the less fortunate. And he was volunteering his time, not caring one bit whether his khakis got splashed on or not.

“I never thought I’d see you here,” I told him.

“Yeah, it’s something I like to do, because the holidays are great in my family, but other families aren’t so lucky.”

“Where’s Mitzy?” I asked. Him and Mitzy Meowerson have been going out For. Ever. They’re totally the golden couple of HandiLand and Garfield Academy.

“She’s not here today.”

“You couldn’t drag the beauty queen out to the soup kitchen?”

“I really want to. Maybe one of these days, I will.”

“What’s your favorite part of doing this?”

“Well,” Zane said with a chuckle, “I leanred how to swing a lot of food this summer when I was on the Pancake Skipparr with my uncle.”

“I wish you’d work there again, those pancakes were out of this world!”

“Since Uncle Ironhook is docked in HandiLand Harbor until further notice, that’s a real big possibility.”

“You don’t want to work in you Dad’s office?”

“Nah, I like working with food.”

Oh, yum! After the Celebrity Chef Bake-Off a few weeks ago, it looks like HandiLand will keep being a delicious — and wholesome — place. Thanks, Zane, for doing your part. That’s all for MEOW!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Art Is the New Black

There’s nothing like walking into an art gallery and being transported to another place. Not physically, of course, but in your imagination. That’s what the best art does for me, anyway. It totally makes me “travel” to other places and think new things. That’s why I love Kitty D’Angelo’s work so much.

Her gorgeous new show, Travels of the Spirit, opened up at HandiLand Gallery this weekend. It was soooo good. She showed classic paintings like her Queen Portrait and Gondola Canal, then wowed the crowd with some totally new, totally modern work.

“Your new stuff is like nothing you’ve done before,” I told her after I literally had to wrestle her away from a crowd of fans.

“I know, do you like it? I was worried that it’s too out there, too different from my other stuff.”

“Oh no,” I said, “I love it. It’s great. You just do what you gotta do and people will understand. The important thing is that you do what’s creative for you.”

“I guess you’re right.” Kitty shot me a smile. “That’s always the way it’s been for me. I was lucky that people in my life told me to follow my creativity and do art, even if not everyone thought it was practical.”

“Well, you sure are proving those haters wrong now, aren’t you!”

Kitty laughed. “I sure am.”

And, better yet, I even bought one of Kitty’s brand new paintings to hang in my room. How awesome is that?! I’ll have to get a picture. It is totally gorgeous. So for all you artistic Cool Cats, keep doing what you’re doing! That’s all for meow!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

What’s All The Buzz About?

I was walking in the woods of the Country the other day when I heard the loudest buzzing ever — it sounded like some kind of freaky lawn mower/jet engine combination. While any normal cat would run quickly in the other direction, I simply had to take a look. Imagine my surprise when I saw what looked like an alien with a huge, mesh head wearing a white potato sack oufit! Now, I really should’ve run in the opposite direction, but I kept going.

If it really was an alien landing in HandiLand, I wanted to be the first to break that scoop, believe you me!

Well, luckily, just as I was about to welcome the crazy being with a rowdy round of “Greetings, Alien, welcome to HandiLand,” the alien turned around and… it wasn’t an alien at all! It was Brenda Busybody, HandiLand’s chief beekeper. Whew!

“Brenda! You scared me! I thought you were an extraterrestrial being!” I told her.

“Is it the outfit?” she asked.

“A little bit.”

“Well, maybe you can give me a makeover sometime, but right now, I’ve got to rock these beekeeper duds.”

“Oh yeah? Why?”

“Well,” Brenda looked at me with a proud smile, “I’ve been working on somethin very special. It’s right over there…” She pointed to a small hill about twenty feet away. It certainly didn’t look that special. This wasn’t turning out to be the amazing scoop I’d hoped for.

“What is it?”

“It’s the biggest beehive in the world.”

“Huh? Really? It’s only like, two feet tall.”

“Ah-ha! But the rest of it, you see, is underground. It goes down two stories, like an underground car garage. And guess what?”

“What?”

“It’s got two million bees!”

Now, normally I’d REALLY run the other way, but this was a great find and I had to stay put. Two million bees? That had to be a record of some kind. I’d get my story after all. “Seriously?”

“Oh yeah.” Brenda practically beamed under her beekeeper mask.

“And what are you going to do with it?”

“Well, I think I’m going to come out with a brand new line of sweets. I think I’m going to call them: ‘Gimmie Some Sugar, Honey.’ What do you think?”

“I absolutely love it!” I told her. “With two million bees, I think there’ll be enough honey for everyone!”

With that, I prepared to leave Brenda in the forest to tend to her honeybees. Then I remembered something. “And, oh yeah, meet me at JCat next week. We’ll do something about that makeover. White is totally OUT this season.”

That’s all for MEOW!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Celebrity Chef Bakes Cool Cake

There’s a whole slew of celebrity chefs these days, and Chef Pierre, our very own HandiLand chef, recently competed in the HandiLand Cake Bowl contest. His mission? The best Cupcake Cake in the world. That means the best cupcake batter in the cake, the best cupcake frosting all over it and, voila! A cupcake on top!

I was lucky enough to be there at the Cupcake Cake Bake-off this past weekend. And I’ve got huge news! Chef Pierre won!!! He beat out twelve other hopeful chefs and made the best Cupcake Cake in all of HandiLand.

“Oh, mais oui! I am tres, tres excited!” he told me right after his big win.

“Huh?”

“Oh, sacre bleu! Zat means zat I am very, very, very thrilled to be ze big winner today!”

I could hardly listen to him, I had my eyes trained right on that ginormous Cupcake Cake. “That’s great, now, what kind of frosting did you say was on here?”

“Mais, le chocolate, bien sur!”

“Huuuuuh?”

“Chocolate!” Chef Pierre arched an eyebrow at me from under his crisp, starched white toque.

“And, what kind of cake is under all that gooey, yummy, fluffy chocolate frosting?”

“Le chocolate aussi!”

I’m not from Australia so I wasn’t quite sure why he was calling me an Aussie, but it didn’t matter. “And, what kind of people get to, uh, sample, this very yummy-looking award-winning cake?”

I think Chef Pierre finally understood what I was getting at. After the cameras were off and most of the crowd went home, the good Chef pulled me aside.

“Voila,” he said again, sliding a plate across his counter with one huge slice of chocolate Cupcake Cake on it.

And it was so good, Cool Cats! So delicious! The chocolate cake was moist and rich, with a velvety chocolate flavor. And the frosting! Oh, somebody stop me! The frosting was thick and melted on my tongue in little sugar crystals. Meeeeeeeeeeee-oooooooooooooow!

That’s all for meow cats and kittens, I’m going to go get myself a cupcake to tide me over until the next time I can sample one of Chef Pierre’s purrrrfect creations.

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Giant Gorilla Heads to the Zoo

Here’s one I didn’t expect to see. When he’s finishing up with a long day of gorilla-ing around the city and climbing the Empire State Building, he needs to relax. At least that’s what he says. Instead of bowling or curling up with a nice book, he… heads to the zoo!

I found him yesterday by the rhino enclosure. “Isn’t that a little wierd?” I asked.

“What?”

“You know, being a wild animal and seeing other animals in the zoo?”

Giant Gorilla munched thoughtfully on his popcorn. “Not really. There’s something you’ve got to know about me. Before I was the Giant Gorilla, I was in a zoo myself.”

“Really?”

“For a couple years, in fact.”

“Was it hard?”

Giant Gorilla stared off toward the elephant meadow. “Yeah, real hard. That’s why I like to come down here and chat with the animals, make sure they’re not feeling too lonely.”

I was about to give Giant Gorilla a big hug when I heard some yelling over my shoulder.

“Hey! Hey!”

It was a zoo keeper in his hat and uniform, pointing at us and running very fast.

I looked to the Giant Gorilla. “What’s going on?”

“Oh, yeah, guards. That’s the one bummer about coming to the zoo. They think I’ve escaped.” He shoved his popcorn in my hands and used his giant gorilla muscles to leap over the rhino cage.

By the time the guard reached me, I was trying my best to smile, hold on to my popcorn and pretend I hadn’t just seen a runaway giant gorilla.Well, that’s all for meow.

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Hi-ya! Ommmm

Karte Kat is one fierce feline on the mat. He’s been doing martial arts his entire life, ever since he was a little kitten. But hours and hours of kicking bootay and breaking boards in half with his hands, it’s hard to imagine Karate Kat relaxing.

I went to one of his competitions the other day to marvel at his quadruple black belt skills. The coolest move he did was running up the wall and catapulting over his opponent’s head! Like a ninja!

After he got his first place trophy and posed for pictures with some squealing Cool Kittens, I cornered him on the mat. “How do you stay so calm?” I asked. “If I had to bounce off the walls and break stuff with my arm, I’d be wigging out and totally stressed!”

“Well,” he said, “the ‘kara’ in ‘karate’ means to cleanse your mind and concentrate. That’s mostly how I do it, but…”

This sounded juicy. “But?”

“Well, I’m also kind of a sucker for yoga.”

“Yoga? Like the thing I do at the gym with all my Cool Cat girlfriends?”

Karate Kat blushed. “It’s not just for girls, you know. In fact, all my karate friends use yoga to chill.”

Far out. I’ve been so busy running around HandiLand that I could use some ommm myself. Not like I’m about to go breakin any boards in half, but a little yoga couldn’t hurt. That’s it for Meow!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Mitzy Meowerson… HandiLand’s Next Top Model?

You will never believe what happened to our good friend and HandiLand hip girl Mitzy Meowerson. The queen bee of HandiLand Academy, Mitzy has been the most popular girl in school FOREVER.

Last fall, she tried something new for the HandiLand Pageant… chemistry! I couldn’t believe it either when I heard it. And guess what? She placed second in the pageant again. Well, I had it on good authority that she was retiring from pageants and pretty girl stuff forever.

“Yeah, I’m totally done,” she told me when we ran into each other on the street in front of J-Cat, one of her favorite places ever. “Pageants didn’t make me feel good. And if it doesn’t make me happy, then why do it?”

Then, the other day, when she was trying on a Breakfast Beauty dress for fun, I hear a model scout ran up to Mitzy and offered her a modeling contract. A. Modeling. Contract.

Where did Mitzy Meowerson get all her good mojo and where can I get some?

Looks like coming in second in the HandiLand Pageant was absolutely no problem for this lucky gal. Just another daily reminder to keep looking gorgeous and keep an eye out. No one knows when good stuff is coming their way. That’s all for meow!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Breakfast Beauty… Out to Lunch

On my first day back in HandiLand, I had a real hankerin’ – as Sadie would say – for some waffles. You know the kind… creamy, fluffy, waffle goodness with a little whipped cream, chocolate sauce and shaved coconut sprinkled right on top.

Who says a girl’s gotta stop eating yummy treats when she gets home from vacation?

Not me!

As I rounded the corner by my favorite place, Cafe Cat, Treats & Coffee, I saw Breakfast Beauty. Perfect, I thought, maybe she’ll join me for some… duh… breakfast!

“Hey there, lady, what’s going on?” I said when I walked up to her table.

She couldn’t answer me right away and I realized why – her mouth was crammed full of LUNCH!

“Oh, nothing much, just grabbing a bite to eat,” she said when she finally swallowed a big chunk of pizza. “Wanna join me?”

“But… but… you’re eating pizza. And a salad. And soda. That’s not breakfast food! That’s lunch food!”

Breakfast Beauty frowned. “So?”

“Well, nothing, but I was expecting you to…”

“That’s exactly the point! Everybody always expects me to like breakfast!”

Well, duh, I wanted to say. You’re the breakfast beauty! Instead, I held my tongue. Believe me, it was very, very difficult!

She didn’t need any prompting to continue. “I’m sick of orange juice and think muffins are too greasy and eggs, if they’re not done right, are runny and eeew-y!”

She had a point there. The Gossip Queen had long disliked eeew-y eggs.

“So, some days, a girl just wants a pizza and soda. You got a problem with that?”

“No, ma’am,” I told her, and hurried inside to grab my waffles. She was being one cranky cat, but I understood why. It’s not easy to have someone expect just one thing from you. Sometimes you want to branch out.

Either way, I’d try to catch her on a better day… maybe for brunch.

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Little Girl, Big City

Meeeow, Cats and Kittens. I just got back from my vacation in the big city and you’ll never guess who I spotted there! It was Sadie, the Southern Belle, and her eyes were as big as saucers.

“I just got into town,” she told me, craning her neck up to see the massive skyscrapers stretching in each and every direction. “I wanted to see something new, experience someting I’d never experienced before.”

“And how’s it going so far?”

“Well I am just beside myself! I never though the big city could be so… well… so bloomin’ big!” She blushed and almost dropped her suitcase. “I feel like a small little fry fish in a deep, deep sea.”

As the Gossip Queen knows very well, it doesn’t feel nice to not fit in. I’ve been on the outside looking in, feeling like a big goober, plenty of times in my life. So I spent an afternoon of my vacation taking Sadie around and showing her the ropes of Cathattan.

At the end of our long day together, she called a cab and told them to take her to the train station.

“Leaving already?” I asked.

“Well, gee. I think I should be gettin’ on. This city’s great an’ everything, and you’re so gracious for showin’ me around, but deep in my heart, I’m sugar an’ spice an’ everything nice. I just don’t think this city slicker thing is cut out for me.”

And I understood. Every once in a while, it’s good to stick your neck out, but then it’s even better to go home to the places and people you love. Like me! I’m back in HandiLand, so let the fun begin! Meeeeoooowww!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

Timmy’s Apple Secret

Whoa, Cool Cats! Ch-ch-check it out. I was wandering over to the Neighborhood when I passed the Timmy Applesprout statue this morning. Well, guess what? I found something secret there that gave me a whole lot of answers into the Timmy Applesprout mystery.

Remember when I asked you guys who you thought Timmy was?

Well, now you can learn his story. Check it out at the gate to the Neighborhood. If you’ve never been there, ask a friend to show you. I’ve been living in HandiLand my entire life and not even I knew this juicy little bit of Handi History.

I know I may seem like a Cool Cat who’s too cool for school, but, deep down, I’m just a real history nerd!

XOXO

Gossip Queen

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