Teasing the Korean

The litter box was in our utility room, and he would go through a cat door to access it. It is a large cat door as these things go - I think I selected the size for a small- or medium-sized dog, because he is a large Maine Coon. I'm concerned that he may have developed arthritis through a combination of age and the fact that his previous family declawed his front paws. (I've been told that this can affect a cat's gait, which in turn can in turn lead to arthritis; please correct me if I'm wrong.) He doesn't seem to want to go through the door anymore. So, in terms of troubleshooting, I moved the litter box inside, so he doesn't have to use the cat door. I cleverly - or foolishly - moved it to the location he has been using inside. It's at the end of a hallway that dead-ends, so placing the litter box there doesn't affect foot traffic, nor is it a complete eyesore. It may not be ideal, but if he continues to use the litter box in the new location, I can live with it.

We at point tried the lightweight litter, but they didn't like that. We have been using Tidy Cat, in the big plastic jugs. He does not seem to have and inherent issue with the litter. @romualdo 1. how long has this been going on for & how soon did it commence after your other cat passed. Have there been any other significant changes in the household prior to the commencement of this behaviour. No significant changes. Our Siam died in late October. It started earlier this year, very intermittently. It has become increasingly routine in recent months. 2. Is he totally indoors Mostly. He goes in our backyard for brief periods, and he goes to the bathroom outside. He has no front claws (not our doing), so he can't climb the fence. 3. is he desexed (I presume he will have been) Yes. 4. Is he "spraying" (marking) or urinating -> difference in stance between the two I'm sure he's urinating. He was spayed as a kitten, and we had him for about 8 years before this behavior began. 5. Chemicals used to "cover" the urine affected areas are useless IMHO. Once cats start urinating in an area the best way to stop this is to restrict access to that area (can be difficult in practice) & covering it with another chemical just won't work. In Australia we use a synthetic hormone called "Feliway" - comes as spray or diffuser - it is a calming/appeasement hormone that appears to have a positive effect on these cats that are urinating inappropriately if the cause is behavioural. There are also behavioural modifying drugs but how many people (in my experience) have success with pilling their cats? Good to know! 6. First step is to obtain a urine sample +/- imaging (abdominal radiograph ie X ray bladder) to rule out urolithiasis (bladder crystals/stones) - struvite crystals/FLUTD (Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease) is a common cause of inappropriate urination -> can lead to life threatening urinary tract obstruction. If this is all normal then blood work would be useful but usually normal urinalysis leaves us with a behavioural issue. He just had a full checkup about a month ago, and they did not find anything amiss. As a postscript, and maybe this was a bad idea, I moved the litter box inside, as I was concerned about his ability to go through the cat door. He used the litter box last night, for whatever that's worth.

Lalo Schifrin - New Fantasy (Verve, mono)

Cal Tjader Quintet (Fantasy, stereo)

Les Baxter - Ports of Pleasure (Capitol, mono) Lossless download from Qobuz, as all CD versions are sourced from vinyl. The mono has two extra tracks, and overdubs not on the stereo.

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Cal Tjader - Live and Direct (Fantasy, mono, red wax) A mix of straight-ahead jazz and Latin grooves on this one.

Milton Nascimento & Lo Borges - Clube de Esquina (EMI/World Pacific) Milton Nascimento - Travessia (Iris Musique)

The arthritis idea is interesting. Aside from being a Maine Coon, he is declawed on his front paws. (We did not do this; he was declawed when we adopted him.) Because claws function essentially as a joint in the cat's fingers/toes, declawed cats may become arthritic, because they adjust their gait to accommodate the missing joints. Also, his litter box is in the utility room, and he walks through a large cat door I installed. Even though the door is is big, if the cat has arthritis, I wonder if it is getting hard for him to walk through the cat door. I think our next step is to move the litter box inside, either into the hallway that he is using, or maybe the guest bathroom. Thanks for the intel! We've thought about that. We both work from home, and as a result, I don't think he's particularly lonely during the day. If we had to work in offices again, we would definitely want to get him a companion.

Here is some cool footage of Tony and Jack Jones in a small club, or possibly a set designed to resemble a small club, from a 1966 Jack Jones special.

Thank you both @Stompin at the Savoy and @rostasi I should add that he had a vet visit since this behavior has started, and they found no issues. The pee pads sound like a good idea. Thanks again!

It is generally the other. Occasionally, there is urine, but it's nowhere near as frequent. That is a good point, though. Thank you!

Nothing great, but not as bad as, for example, something on Crown. If you have a mono button on your amp, or a mono cart, it improves the sound considerably.

Since jazz and cats pair naturally, I thought I would ask here. Our 13-year-old male Maine Coon cat, who joined our family in 2015, has been demonstrating some bad behaviors in recent months. We lost our female Siamese cat this past October. It has been about 9 months since she died. I don't know if he is grieving for her. He seems to like being the Top Cat. He has been using one of our hallways as a litter box. The behavior is intermittent, so there is no pattern. It has nothing to do with how clean or not the litter box is. He uses the litter box, he uses our back yard as a litter box, and he is also using the hallway as a litter box. We bought some stuff to spray on the floor, which is supposed to deter this kind of behavior, but it is apparently not working. I have considered moving the litter box into the hallway as a troubleshooting experiment. Maybe that is what I should do next. Anyone encounter anything similar? Any ideas? @romualdo

Yes, that's it! The spoken piece, with flute and harp alternating with Chinese poetry translated into English, is especially nice.

Thanks for the positive thoughts! Latest models show it further out in the gulf. If it continues on that way, it means we'll get a lot of rain, mostly.

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Various - Contemporary Music for Harp and Flute (Ars Nova Ars Antigua, mono) Includes a Henry Cowell piece.

Randy Weston - Uhuru Afrika (Roulette, stereo. Half of a 70s twofer reissue.) There is a tropical storm coming, so I'm spinning exotica, squeezing limes, and drinking coconut water/fizzy water mocktails!

Tak Shindo - Mganga! (Modern Harmonic reissue of Edison International release, stereo)

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An admittedly not-so-great tune called "You Gave Me the Gate," with lead vocals by Ivy Anderson. Duke and the publisher added their names onto the songwriting credits, which show 4 authors. In reality it was written by 2. I'm told I look young for my age. I just celebrated a milestone birthday. So I'm probably older than you think, and my Dad was older than I thought! He was a WWII-era guy.

Yep! My Dad also crossed paths with Ellington, and co-wrote a tune recorded by Ellington in 1938.

Thanks @mikeweil @jazzbo @romualdo . My Dad saw Fats Waller live sometime around the mid- to late-1930s. He said there were three full bottles of Orange Crush soda sitting on the piano. Between tunes, Fats drained one of the bottles in one breath, set it down, drank the second in one breath, set it down, and did the same with the third. He then went on to sing the next song, completely unaffected.

I have lots of Fats on LP, but nothing on CD. It seems like this JSP Ted Kendall series is a good way to go in terms of organization and sound. Are there other options as good or better?