Mario was just a little kitten when he came "home" to Angel and Stripe. Angel and Stripe were a lot older and larger than Mario, and there were concerns that Mario might get roughed up by the bigger cats. As it turned out, Mario held his own and quickly became "top cat".
Mario looked like a very small kitty when lying on the Living Room floor sun patch.
Mario always enjoyed a good box, especially if styrofoam peanuts are included.
When Mario was little, he would occasionally pick out a good book.
The linen closet is always a cool place to investigate.
On this occasion, a "stuffed dog" was placed in the Living Room to see what reaction Mario would have to it. Mario glared at the dog for a few moments, and then proceeded to jump on top of the dog's back as if the dog were a piece of furniture. It would take more than a stuffed dog to scare Mario!
While shopping one day we ran across a "stuffed kitten" that had pretend fur that was a near perfect match in color to Mario's fur. Here the kitten is sitting on Mario.
Mario finds a comfy spot for a nap.
Why was Mario named "Mario"? Well, back in the days when Mario came home for the first time, the caretakers played a lot of Nintendo, in particular, "Mario Brothers". As you can see in this picture, Mario has somewhat of an "M" on his head. So "Mario" seemed appropriate. Sometimes while the caretakers played Nintendo, Mario would race around the Living Room jumping on all the furniture!
Please don't bug me!
Look, up in the sky, it's a bird, it's a plane, it's ... just the silly human tossing a string above my head.
Mario checking out his new safety seat.
Almost as if Mario is waiting to pounce on someone...
Hey, where's mine? I can't read these tags...
Ah, another box!
Mario finds a nice sun patch on the porch.
One of Mario's favorite napping places has always been the couch on the porch.
Don't even think about bothering me...
Mario relaxing again.
This picture, and several that follow, show off Mario's orange tabby fur.
Almost looks like a post card.
Another...
And another...
And one more.
This picture and the next, illustrate the trick that Mario can do. Don't ask why, but we named this trick "Cajunga", often spoken in a deep Klingon-like voice. It all started when Mario was a kitten. For a while, when passing out treats to all the cats, we would hold a treat a short distance above Mario's head, and Mario would stand straight up to get it, and as soon as he had the treat in his mouth, we would rub him on the head. This went on for a while, and it rarely failed, at treat time Mario would eagerly stand up. Then it got to the point where you could hold your open hand above Mario's head, and he would gladly stand up just to get a rub on the head!
In this picture, Mario is just about to get his head rubbed. To this day, Mario still does a "Cajunga" when someone holds out their hand. That has surprised a few people who were unaware Mario would do this, and when they extended their hand to pet Mario, Mario stood up. "Hey, he stood up!" "Yeah, Mario did a Cajunga for you!".
Oops, I'm not supposed to be up here?
Just hangin' out, waiting to swat somebody when they walk by.
Ah, the sunny porch.
I found my spot.
Mario looks through the railings...
Aloha. Silly humans.
This is a nice spot!
When Mario was younger, he liked being on the top of the refrigerator where he could keep an eye on things. Now the top of the refrigerator is Domino and Louie's favorite spot.
Zzz ...
Just hangin' out again.
More porch time.
This is my spot.
Back to Mario's favorite nap place. It may be a newer couch but the place is still Mario's spot.
Nice picture of Mario on top of the TV.
A closer look.
Mario is a very lovable cat, he always has been. When Phoebe, Spots, and Domino came "home" to live with us, Mario was their friend in no time at all.
Mario tries to help unwrap a present at a birthday party.
I can do it, just let me work on it for a while.
Maybe a lick or two of ice cream would be nice.
Time for another nap!
Nice comfy place on the bed.
Cats can never take too many naps. Just ask Mario!
Mario, Louie, Domino, and Phoebe check out a fresh bag of "din din" stuff.
Look out everyone, it's a scary Halloween cat. Not!
A favorite picture of Mario, as you can see his reflection in the window.