Robbie does Herman and Ava

My much-younger brother Rob is an artist of some repute in Canadian animation circles. The Vancouver Sun seems to have decided he's their go-to guy when they have questions about the animation industry. And he once won an Emmy when he worked on Pinky & The Brain for the Warner Brothers studio in Hollywood.

Before all that, he was a college student living in my house. He was there when my friend Vibeke and her daughter Amber were trying to decide on a name for their kitten. Amber and Rob came up with the idea of naming him He-Man after a Mattel toy character.

When Vibeke and Amber moved into a no-pets rental soon after that, I inherited the kitten, and I had him neutered...He-Man became Herman, who became Rob's best friend. When our parents got a puppy, Hermie wrestled with the pup just as he did with Rob, without using his claws. When Herman turned 2, my sister got him a kitten for his birthday, and our boy Hermie became a mother.

This next is probably my fault...I had a Let-the-Kitten-Eat-First rule, and wee Ava took full advantage of it. From a tiny kitten who fit in a shoe, she grew to be very fat, and almost double Herman's weight. She also developed a wicked temper. When that happened, Rob drew this sketch:

Rob Davies, circa 1989

I'm posting this to my friend Yamini MacLean's blog despite the fact that she is inviting participation in her Me-now-views which is supposed to be pictures only, for "less speak, more peek" but I'm not very good at following rules. You've gotta know that about me, Yam, if we're gonna be pals.