Friendly Fill-Ins and Photo Fails

Hello and happy Friday to all! Are you here for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge? If so, we'll share the fill-in statements again as a little reminder. Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two, and I came up with the second two.

1. If you want _________, you have to _________.

2. During the month of August, I plan to _________.

3. Others might think it's strange that I _________.

4. _________ seems so far away.

My answers are below in bold.

1. If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.

(I find this old adage to be quite true. Of course, sometimes having something done "right" is a very subjective thing. So, if you want something done the way that you think is "right", you have to do it yourself. This is perhaps why, unless I lack the expertise and knowledge, I prefer to do things myself, alone, without external intervention. Perhaps this is part of being an introvert, but I really just like being left to my own devices.)

2. During the month of August, I plan to decorate my house for Halloween.

(You read that right. Weird, huh? Autumn is my favorite season, and Halloween is quite possibly my favorite holiday, though Christmas might be tied with it in first place. Every year, when August rolls around, I cannot wait to speed all the way to September, as that's a traditionally more acceptable month to decorate for autumn and my favorite spooky and macabre holiday. With how the world is spinning out of control this year, though, I've decided I'm just going to live by my own schedule and desires. In addition to that, I recently saw an inspirational comment online that discussed how you really should just do what makes you happy, of course given you're not harming others, because others' thoughts and opinions don't matter in the long run, and true friends won't judge you. I thought that was so true. So, in August, I'm just going to let myself decorate my house for Halloween, maybe even start watching some of my favorite scary movies, and I'll even start getting my sketchbook all ready for Halloween.)

3. Others might think it's strange that I find so much joy in Halloween.

(See #2 above. In short, I just really enjoy creepy, spooky, macabre, and mystical things. And pumpkins. And definitely black cats. Bring on the black cats.)

4. Autumn seems so far away.

(I'm ready for the 90°F days to take a hike. I'm ready to walk my pup in cool, crisp weather. I'm ready to let my kitties enjoy the open windows without us all melting. I'm ready for leaves to turn red and orange and yellow. I'm ready for Halloween, as already evidence in previous answers.)

Now it's your turn!

To add your link to the Friendly Fill-Ins Linky list, just click HERE!

You can also click on the badge below to add your link.

You are also welcome to complete the fill-ins in the comments below,

or in the comments on Ellen's blog, 15andmeowing.

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There's even more fun to be had today. Why? Because today is the day of the Pet Photo Fails! Blog Hop, hosted by Mudpie and Melissa of Melissa's Mochas, Mysteries, & Meows.

Who's our resident blooper queen? If you guessed Eddy, you are correct. As is often the case, today's bloopers are brought to you by the fact that Eddy simply has no desire to sit still for the camera.

Yikes.

Have a fantastic Friday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

This time last year I scribbled up a couple of doodles inspired by the fact that I'm one of those people who enjoys the Harry Potter series. In fact, July 31 is not only author J.K. Rowling's birthday, but also the birthday she gave to her titular character, Harry Potter. Anyway, I read the Harry Potter books as they were being released when I was a kid, and I still enjoy them to this day. I do believe the series has far too few kitty characters, though. Perhaps that's why one of those doodles I scribbled up last year starred Eddy arriving at the magical school known as Hogwarts. And that is the flashback doodle I'm sharing today.

If you're interested in a bit of Harry Potter trivia, along with how it relates to this doodle and my furbabies, read on. If that's not your sort of thing, we won't be offended one bit. 

In the Harry Potter universe, when a young witch or wizard attends the magical school known as Hogwarts, they are sorted into one of four houses. These houses are Gyrffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin, and each house values different personality traits. Gryffindor is the house for those with traits such as courage, bravery, nerve, and chivalry. Ravenclaw is the house of intelligence, learning, wisdom, and wit. The Hufflepuff house values hard work, patience, justice, and loyalty. As for Slytherin, it's the house of ambition, cunning, leadership, and resourcefulness.

Given its colors, the scarf Eddy is wearing in the above doodle indicates that she would be in the Gryffindor house at Hogwarts. That, in truth, is a lie. As mentioned above, Gryffindor is a house for the brave. My girl Eddy, she is not brave. She is the most timid, skittish cat in the house. She does not like strangers, loud noises, other cats, and you get the idea. Eddy is, however, very smart. I would more accurately consider her to be in the Ravenclaw house.

Though anyone who is not a fan of Harry Potter would just think me crazy, which is perfectly fine, I decided to try to determine which house at Hogwarts would best suit all of the furbabies at my house. My sister, another Harry Potter fan, helped me. I'll list the results below. Again, if this is not your thing, feel free to skip ahead.

Astrid - Slytherin

Evan - Slytherin

Thimble -  Hufflepuff

Toby - Hufflepuff

Eddy - Ravenclaw

Tonks - Gryffindor

Winky - Slytherin

There are a lot of cunning Slytherins at my house. In the Harry Potter series, Slytherins are portrayed as somewhat evil. My Slytherin furbabies are not evil, they're just very resourceful, they know what they want, and they will get what they want no matter what it takes.

Well, that was long-winded and weird. To anyone who read all of that, kudos to you.

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Tip of the Day

In one of my fill-ins, I mentioned how we've been having our fair share of 90°F days. In line with this, today's tip relates to the safety of walking your dog or cat in summer weather. More specifically, we're talking about pavement. Did you know that if the air temperature is between 80°F and 90°F, the pavement on the ground feels more like 130°F to 150°F? As a reference point, an egg could theoretically fry at roughly 130°F, and certainly at 150°F. Needless to say, at such temperatures, damage can be done to paw pads and skin. Therefore, if you're walking your pup or kitty in the summer, opt for early morning or late evening walks. Or, walk in the grass if it's too hot on the ground. One common recommendation is to place your hand on the pavement and count for 7 seconds. If it's too hot for you to comfortably and safely keep your hand on the pavement for 7 seconds, then it is too hot for your furbaby's paws. In such a case, postpone the walk, walk in the grass, or find another safe option that avoids those paws touching that pavement.