Friendly Fill-Ins and Eddy's Glamour Shot

Hello, friends! I'm sorry for yet another terribly late post. I've been helping my parents with one of their sick kitties. She's seemingly having a pancreatitis flare, which isn't too surprising given that she's one of their diabetic cats. She's also a bit difficult to medicate and so I've been helping them dose her up. But, here we are now!

It is indeed Friday, and it is indeed time for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge. We'd love for you to join us. My amazing co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two fill-in statements, and I came up with the second two.

1. Let's bring back _________.

2. _________ is the new _________.

3. I appreciate that my local area _________.

4. _________ is my least favorite part about where I live.


My answers are below in bold.

1. Let's bring back the '90s.
(I grew up in the '90s. I existed in the '80s for all of 8 months, but I feel like a '90s kid because that's when most of my true childhood took place. And I'm so glad that's when I got to be a kid. No cell phones. Clunky computers with dial-up internet. Toys like Polly Pockets and Furbies. Playing in the sprinkler in the summer, riding bikes around the neighborhood, and catching fireflies at dusk. Though I know there are kids living in my neighborhood these days, I almost never see or hear them playing outside. I miss the '90s, just like I know a lot of people out there miss the '80s and other decades of the past.)

2. Staying home is the new going out.
(I saw someone around my age say this recently, referring to how they used to like going out but now prefer to spend their evenings and weekends at home. I can't really relate to this that much, as I've always been a homebody. But, during my high school years I did sometimes go hang out with friends and the like, and now when someone invites me somewhere I find a way to gently turn them down. Because I truly just love being home.)

3. I appreciate that my local area has dedicated meteorologists.
(This wasn't originally going to be my answer, but given this week's scary storms I'm going to give these guys a shoutout. They're the guys on the Central Illinois channel WCIA. I mentioned in yesterday's post how our state had a number of devastating tornadoes on Thursday, and our meteorologists streamed live for hours, and one of them did his usual storm chasing and providing warnings of oncoming tornadoes to affected areas as he went. They made national news and have been commended for their dedication to keeping our local area as safe and prepared as possible during tornadoes and other storms.)

4. Tornado season is my least favorite part about where I live.
(It's been a really rough tornado season in lots of areas this year. Living in Illinois means I'm used to tornado watches and warnings and funnel clouds and rotation and actual tornado sightings. A tornado hit the edge of my actual town last week, and while we only got peripheral wind we were out of power for nearly 48 hours. And this week areas just a bit south of us were hit with damaging tornadoes. I know we're not the only ones affected by this, and I again send my thoughts and prayers to anyone affected by inclement weather.)

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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Are you ready for your Eddy fix? It's a bright and shiny glamour shot. Here you go!

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

We're sharing yet another spooky summertime doodle from last year. This one of course stars Eddy, whose favorite chair I Halloweenified in this drawing.

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Tip of the Day

Not too long ago, we gave some tips all about summer safety for our furbabies. Given that we're experiencing some real summer weather, we feel compelled to give even more summer tips. These tips, however, will be more focused on how to help stray, feral, or other outdoor furbabies remain safe and healthy in the heat of summer.

Let's begin with a simple yet crucial way to help strays and ferals stay cool in the summer. And that is, please try to ensure they always have access to shade. Staying out of the sun is crucial for preventing overheating, heat stroke, sunburn, and all other such dangers. For this reason, try to make sure that strays and ferals in your area have somewhere shaded to stay in the heat of the day. This can be as simple as natural shade in a safe area, such as beneath trees or bushes that are away from the street and other dangers. Access to the area beneath a deck can also allow for shade, as well as areas beneath outdoor tables and other similar objects. You can even place a giant umbrella outside, under which strays and ferals can keep cool on hot and sunny days.

If you're feeling crafty or handy, you can even build a summer shelter. Then again, you can also purchase one, as there are many options available on the market. The important thing about any summer shelter for strays and ferals is that it should remain shaded but also cool, such as by being open and airy. Do not use an enclosed shelter that will insulate heat, like those better suited for winter weather, as a stray or feral would of course not be able to use such a shelter in order to stay cool on a hot summer day. So, to help those furbabies outdoors stay cool this summer, please ensure they have somewhere shaded to chill out.