Friendly Fill-Ins, Photo Fails, and a Rhyme

Hello, friends! We're ready for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge. Are you? We'd love for you to join us. My wonderful co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two fill-in statements, and I came up with the second two.


1. I'm usually _________ but sometimes I can be _________.

2. A new show (or book or food) I like is _________.

3. I would like to skip _________ and jump right to _________.

4. I haven't _________ since _________.

My answers are below in bold, accompanied by their needlessly long and rambling explanations, as usual.

1. I'm usually an early bird, but sometimes I can be a night owl.
(Though I know it sounds blasphemous to some, I love being awake and productive early in the morning, when the rest of the world is still asleep. When it comes to nighttime, I'm usually too tired for my brain to fully function, especially on work days. Sometimes I'm even asleep by 7 or 8 pm, though that's usually if I've fallen asleep on the couch while watching TV. That happens more often than I care to admit, but I digress. That said, every once in awhile there's a night when I'm wide awake, and sometimes I'll even find myself wildly productive past midnight. That happens something like once a month, and it never fails to shock me.)

2. A new show I like is The Imperfects.

(This is a new show on Netflix that I recently watched. It's about a group of individuals who are scientifically modified and as a result they have some weird and unusual powers. As someone who enjoys various forms of fantasy and just strange things in general, this is one of the only new shows lately that I actually made my way through pretty fast. I think one thing that helped was that I've always been fascinated by the folklore surrounding the creature known as the chupacabra, and one of the modified characters on the show regularly turns into one, so that was fun.)

3. I would like to skip pup Astrid's crate rest and jump right to her full recovery.
(You might very well be tired of hearing about it by now, but pup Astrid is having her torn CCL repaired on October 11. After that, she'll have a number of weeks on varying versions of strict crate rest. By the time we've finished all the stages of her recovery and she'll be fully allowed to return to normal activity, it'll be December. And incredibly active Astrid is going to hate every second of that forced rest. That's why I'd love to be able to just skip all of that and just be at her fully recovered state. I know she'd like the same thing.)

4. I haven't done much in-person grocery shopping since early 2020.
(When the pandemic hit, I started doing most of my grocery shopping via Instacart or other delivery services. My primary reason for this was that I kept trying to do my shopping at the end of a work day like usual, but by the time I'd get to the store at 5 pm or after, much of what I needed was out of stock. And since most of the stores in my area get their trucks in early in the week, I learned that going grocery shopping over the weekend was no more successful than weekday evenings. So, I started ordering my groceries to be shopped while I was at work, when the store was most likely to be stocked. And then I just never stopped going that route. After all, as someone who prefers being home rather than going out into a social setting, the ability to have my groceries delivered to my house is very enticing.)

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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And now it's time for the Pet Photo Fails Blog Hop, hosted by none other than Melissa and Mudpie of Melissa's Mochas, Mysteries, & Meows.

Our resident blooper queen Eddy of course has some outtakes to share. They're typical Eddy bloopers, meaning they're blurry and all sorts of unfocused.

Eddy pretty much left the scene for the next blooper.

Happy Friday, friends!

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Lastly, we're going to finally catch up on all the weeks we've missed of Angel Sammy's Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge.

This is going to be wild, because it's been something like 4 weeks since we've shared a poem. The photo prompts for all those weeks were these images here:

Sometimes, before I start brainstorming a photo prompt in and of itself, I look at some of my completed doodles to see if any of them spark any ideas alongside the poetic prompt. I did that way back when I saw the first of the above photo prompts weeks ago. And back then, one of my drawings that's ready to share actually did inspire something to go along with the prompt. I even completed the poem for it. Then life happened and I didn't share it, and then another week went by, and so on and so on. Then, the other day, I found myself determined to make that doodle I picked fit for all of the photo prompts I missed over the past few weeks. Obviously, that means I took some major artistic liberties with my poem, but I guess that's nothing new. So, the doodle in question will be shared after the short little poem, but it's admittedly another one that I drew after seeing an online photo of another piece of Halloween decor that's being sold in stores this year. I honestly have no idea even where this ghostly decor can be found, but it inspired me to scribble it up in a doodle nonetheless.

All that to say, here's a weird little poem in some way inspired by all of the above photo prompts, and also somehow inspired by the wacky doodle you'll find below.

Ghost in a Cloche

You think you have a weird house?
Let me tell you what my living conditions are all about.
I'll put it right out there and disclose,
That, well, I'm none other than a ghost in a cloche.
You know those little glass display domes?
Yeah, that's what I get to call my home.

One day I just woke up and there I was,
A ghost made of cloth with my own personal moon above.
I lived in a bright store with gawking faces and tile floors,
Specifically in an aisle labeled Halloween Decor.
I sat up on an uncomfy shelf that existed way, way up high.
It was like living on scaffolding, and that's no lie.
And did I mention that I'm afraid of heights?

I thought I'd found freedom one particular day,
When a strange lady picked me off the shelf and for me did pay.
But you know what became of my life after that?
I was placed on yet another shelf, just now in a new habitat.
And this time I was in the reach of a killer orange cat.
That whiskered beast has tried to knock me to the floor many a time.
I think he wants to turn my glass house into shards in a most heinous crime.
I really must—oh no!—here comes that murderous feline!

Really, truly, this isn't any sort of fair fight.
That clawed beast is more than a frightening sight.
He's far from small, this orange feline thing.
His belly is so big that as we runs toward me it jiggles and swings.
You might think that a rude thing to say,
But with a mouth full of teeth he's now headed my way!

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Tip of the Day

The last of our Animal Pain Awareness Month tips involves ways that you can help enable a pained furbaby be more mobile and comfortable around the home. If your furbaby has difficulty jumping due to an injury or arthritis, for example, you can put pet stairs or a pet ramp beside chairs, couches, or beds in the home. This can help your kitty or pup better reach elevated areas without having to jump, which could otherwise exacerbate pain associated with an injury or arthritis. For a cat, another way to help them combat pain and discomfort is to give them litter boxes with low sides, so that they can easily walk right in. Or, you can also give them a ramp or stairs leading up to the entrance of the litter box, if needed. If it helps reduce pain associated with certain injuries, arthritis, or other ailments, you can also elevate your kitty or pup's food and water bowls.

Another simple way to help a pained furbaby feel some relief and comfort is by way of their beds and blankets. You can offer extra soft and thick beds, and in easy to reach locations. Some forms of pain are also alleviated by heat, which means that safe, pet-friendly heated blankets or heated beds could also be of use. Of course, you would need to take all necessary safety precautions when using any heated or electric products.

In more extreme cases, your furbaby might be in need of direct assistance with their mobility. If need be, you can use various forms of slings to help your kitty or pup ambulate. You can use a towel or blanket to create a makeshift sling, for example. Another option is to purchase a sling, or a harness with handles, which are indeed available on the market.

It is not easy to see our furbabies in pain. At the same time, it is not easy for them to feel such pain. That's why it is important to do what you can to alleviate your kitty or pup's pain, even if that means a bit of redecorating within your home.