Friendly Fill-Ins

Hello and welcome to yet another ridiculously late post, friends! I'm still having all sorts of quarrels with Blogger, as well as with the internet at not only my house but also at my workplace, and also now my laptop is informing me that it's rapidly reaching the end of its useful life. All that said, we're finally here, and things could be much worse in life, so we'll count our blessings and stop complaining.

Welcome to Friday! We're ready for the Friendly Fill-Ins, and 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 am not always _________.

2. I refuse to eat _________.

3. I would happily accept a job offer at _________.

4. _________ is a job I could never do.

My answers are below in bold.

1. I am not always immune to retail therapy.

(I'm not generally someone who shops much or spends much money, unless it's on my furbabies. That said, I have my certain days where I find myself perusing sites like Etsy or the Target website, and adding things to my cart, and often checking out said items. As indicated above, my retail therapy mostly comes in the form of online shopping. For me, there is very rarely anything therapeutic about facing the crowds in a physical store.)

2. I refuse to eat gluten.
(This is simply due to an intolerance with side effects that are less than ideal. I'm also lactose intolerant, but for some reason gluten affects me way more than anything in the realm of dairy. Don't worry, though, because I still eat plenty of pasta and bread of the gluten free type. I could never give up my beloved carbs.)

3. I would happily accept a job offer at a company that would allow me to work from home.
(I think I've mentioned this before, perhaps even recently, but currently one of my biggest goals in life is to transition to a position that allows me to work from home. I started working as a pet-sitter and such in my neighborhood when I was 10 years old, and I've been working jobs outside of the home for the 23 years since then. I've officially reached a point in my life where, though I am more than willing and eager to work for my living, I would love to do so from home. I'm a homebody who really wants to stop leaving my furbabies home alone all day. Obviously there would be some stipulations, and of course I'd prefer to work from home doing something I love, but I'm also willing to work my way there. And I'll stop rambling now.)

4. High-rise window washing is a job I could never do.
(This is such a random answer, I know. That said, I recently saw a video of some window washers who specialized in going way up to the top stories of high-rise buildings and cleaning the exteriors of windows many, many, many feet above the ground. I've discovered in the past few years that I'm apparently afraid of heights. I'm usually okay if I'm inside a building, or if there's some sort of significant railing or other secure barrier, but being suspended by a harness to clean a crazy high window? That's a hard no from me. Kudos to those who can keep those insanely high windows squeaky clean without seeing their life flash before their eyes.)

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.

***

We bet you're all ready for your Eddy fix. Right? Right? Well, lucky for you Eddy is indeed here today, but she's getting some beloved window whiffies and so simply can't look at the camera right now.

Eddy and all of us here are wishing you a fantastic Friday!

***

Flashback Doodle of the Day

Yesterday was the birthday of my angels Rosie and Sammy. We shared a couple of their flashback birthday doodles, but today we thought we'd share another doodle starring them, this one from either 2 or 3 years ago.

***

Tip of the Day

Since we've reached September, we're all excited for autumn and are therefore doing a series of autumnal tips. Since autumn means the beginning of the new school year, yesterday we mentioned keeping school supplies out of your furbaby's reach. Today's tip also relates to those furbabies potentially affected by a new school year starting up. School starting up can mean a new routine, which can include a cat or dog suddenly being home alone more often, or for longer periods of time. For some furbabies, this type of change in their routine can lead to anxiety, which can in turn lead to destructive behavior, increased vocalization, and other behaviors that are out of their ordinary.

There are some potential ways you can help combat a cat or dog's separation anxiety, such as that which might result from the start of a new school year. First, you can try to introduce changes to your furbaby's routine slowly. If you are a teacher or have children with whom your cat or dog is used to playing, then leading up to the school year, transition your furbaby to being home alone by going out of the house more often slowly over time. In addition to this, you can set up interactive toys to help keep them busy when their humans are away. Of course, ensure that any such interactive toys are safe and will not cause any harm to an unattended furbaby. You can also try using diffusers with synthetic pheromones that can potentially help a cat or dog feel calmer. All of the above being said, in some cases, the safest thing might simply be to ensure that your cat or dog is kept secluded in a safe area where they cannot harm themselves, or the house. This might mean keeping them contained to a safe room or a crate of a sufficient size while you are away from home.

What's more, if your cat or dog does display signs of anxiety that do not relent, it is of course wise to discuss this with a veterinarian. First and foremost, it is important to ensure that there is not an underlying medical reason for anxiety in a cat or dog. Once medical issues are ruled out, anxiety in a cat or dog might require medication, which can help calm them or help balance out their mood and behaviors. Anxiety can lead to an unhappy and unhealthy furbaby, so if you notice any signs of anxiety in your cat or dog, do not hesitate to seek advice from a veterinarian, and to implement anti-anxiety techniques to help your furbaby feel happy and healthy.