I was putting away the Christmas china the other day – those mistletoe decorated plates, cups and saucers reserved for the Christmas dinner I host every year for family and friends. It hit me with a wave of nostalgia just how much life had changed as I carefully wrapped each piece in the same newspaper I’d been using as protective padding for years – newspaper dated December 31, 1994 – a quarter-century old. Read more

I was blessed with a wonderful Christmas – lots of family, good food, good conversation, and love. But the days leading up to it, and the days to follow were extremely hectic and stressful, trying to fit it all in-between my day job. To say I’m worn out and behind in everything in my personal life of a cat writer would be an understatement. Hundreds of unanswered emails, articles to write, bookkeeping to attend to and a Cat Writers’ Association conference to get back on track for 2020. Amidst it all, I was graced with a precious and much needed moment yesterday – a rainy day for some catch-up and the delightful company of my sweet Zoey who decided to grace me with her presence, curled up my lap to enjoy the peacefulness of the day.

Zoey looking up at me with her gorgeous golden-green eyes, waiting for me to take her picture.

Luckily my iPhone was close by so I could capture the moment in time – a purr-fect image for Sunday Selfie and a much-needed reminder to slow down and appreciate what’s in front of me, and not a race of what I need to get done.

Happy Sunday everyone – I hope you have some peaceful moments to enjoy, too!

It’s a Blog Hop!

Back in the fall of 2015, I was laid off. I’d been laid off before, so I was experienced with the “it’s not you, you’re great, but we’re just going in a different direction,” scenario. Regardless of how they sugarcoat the blow, it’s demoralizing, and it hurts, especially considering I was living from paycheck to paycheck, so any negative change in income was bad news. Like grief, one tends to process the pain in various stages, and for me, one of the ways that helped get me through the days as I struggled to look for new employment was taking early morning walks around the neighborhood to clear my head and start each day with a positive outlook. Read more

Zee – Christmas season 2019.

I was putting up Christmas decorations and Zee came to help. He looked so handsome with the tree in the background that I thought it would make a lovely Sunday-Selfie image. As the lighting was difficult to master, rending the photo difficult in sharpness, I applied a smoothing feature to it to give it a beautiful glow. It’s not perfect, but with Zee being my senior boy, every picture of him is purrfect in my heart. And look at his heart-shaped nose…doesn’t it just melt your heart!

Happy Sunday everyone!

It’s a Blog Hop!

Shadow has officially been with us for one month!

So, our little black cat, the one who showed up unexpectedly at our house the morning of November 8^th has been with us officially one month, today. We named him Shadow, a name perfectly suited for him, as he tends to lurk in the shadows of our house, blending into our counters, furniture, and more. He also likes to shadow the other cats, trying to make friends as only an energetic 6-month-old young cat will do, which they don’t find quite as endearing as I do. Especially Jazmine. Read more