One of my very favorite YouTube channels is called Simon's Cat. It hosts animated short films made by Simon Tofield, of Tandem Films. These are very clever "flip book" style animated cartoons, based on line drawings of, well, Simon's cat, doing cat like things. My favorite of the three Simon's cat videos is actually the first, "Simon's Cat 'Cat Man Do'," embedded in this post for your viewing pleasure. It's one of those instances where "it's funny because it's true." In this particular animation, the cat has decided that it really is time for Simon to wake up, and goes about insuring that Simon rises with typical feline ingenuity. Go ahead, and watch the video; I'll wait.

One of the things that I love about this animation is that it perfectly captures feline wake-up-stupid-human body language, including the range of techniques from the initial "meow" to cautious kneading, to sustained kneading, to the paw patting the face . . . to a very funny, conclusion. In all four of these videos, which you can find linked in the YouTube Simon's Cat Channel, the cat endeavors to appear innocent of any wrong-doing. You know, like when you turn around to find the cat up on the kitchen counter, and when said feline realizes you're watching, the cat jumps down with a sort of "What? What? I wasn't doing anything" air ( which is what leads to geek cat owner's inventing devices like this).

The prodution values of Tofield's films (his production company is Tandem Films) might at first seem very crude—they aren't. The simple line drawings manage to convey both Simon's— and his cat's feelings and thoughts quite adequately, and the sound effects are right on the money. The British RSPCA hired Simon Tofield to do a video to educate the public about the problems of obesity in dogs; you can see it here. Simon Tofield has signed a two-book contract with U. K. publisher Canongate re-create Simon's Cat in book form; the first book is due out Christmas, 2009.