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The Benefit of Pets… To Many to Even Count!

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Quote About the Benefit of Pets

Quote About the Benefit of Pets!

During the pandemic, I’ve noticed many changes in people’s lives and in the way they look at life in general. One thing seems to be a return to the love of and focus on HOME. As I often say, this is actually one of the rare beautiful things that has come out of what is overall a complete nightmare. More people have realized the importance of making their home as beautiful, comfortable, and enjoyable as possible.

Basically, everyone has refocused their attention to making home a place they want to be.

If I can make a confessions, this has always been at the core of who I am simply because I am quite the home body! It is, however, interesting to see more people searching for ways to make their home a more fun, comfortable, and happy place to be.

I’ve also noticed more people seeking out companionship – possibly more than ever before. I think there are several reasons for this:

  • During bad times, we are reminded that family (which pets most certainly are, in addition to humans!) is absolutely everything. Not possessions, not appearance, not money… they’re fine and good, of course, but the ones who make us smile and FEEL the most are the ones who breathe.
  • Some people are feeling more lonely than ever. Tragically, many people lost loved ones during the past few years, but there’s another (nearly as tragic) phenomenon… many have lost friends and relationships due to the insanely frustrating division that have occurred the past few years.
  • People are socializing less and, again, spending more time at home. The amazing (and I think wonderful) thing is, not all of them are home more often because they think it’s healthier… many are home more often because they realize it’s a happier place to be!

This is where pets can can come in like the little superheroes they are. I have had pets all of my life and cannot imagine a home without them. My only experience with “coming home’ to a place where at least one pet doesn’t meet me at the door has been hotels and, quite frankly, it’s a cold feeling when you’re accustomed to warm greetings!

While I caution that one should always be completely certain they have the time, energy, and affection for adding a furry member to their family… (more about that in a minute) I simply couldn’t recommend it more. Their love and companionship are immeasurable and the entertainment they provide is greater than any movie (even westerns!).

Before adding a cat or dog, please consider:

  • Pets are completely dependent upon you. You have to have time and patience and be willing to feed them, clean up after them, and potty train them… basically they’re babies covered in fur!
  • Realize that things like dog or cat food, litter boxes, litter, vet visits, immunizations, and toys (animals love toys as much as human kids) will require an increase to your spending. Trust me, they give back FAR more than they take.
  • Make sure you have the space required and can provide them with a safe and happy environment.
  • Make your mind up to provide for them (find a loving home) IF things don’t work out. PLEASE never turn a cat or dog loose to fend for themselves. It’s a cruel thing to do – and an animal shelter isn’t much better. IF things don’t work out for whatever reasons and you’ve given it a few weeks, find a loving home by asking around and even putting notifications on Facebook, in local veterinarian offices, etc.

More times than not (MANY more times than not), when you give a precious animal a forever home and forever family… you find yourself asking, “Okay. Who rescued who, here?!”

I hope you consider adopting a cat (or two!) or dog (or two!) from your local animal shelter. You won’t only be adding to your family with a face you’ll wonder how you ever lived without… you’ll be literally saving a life (or two!).

~ Joi (“Joy”)

Tulip and Huck

Two of my babies!

One Can Make a Difference: How You Can BE the Change You Want to See in the World

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The review below is for one of the most inspiring and wonderful books I’ve read and reviewed over the years. I am editing it a bit and republishing it today. Why? Because, frankly, I believe we need bold, brazened, on-fire for the right reasons people more than ever before and if reading these stories lights a fire under even just one person, it will be more than worth it.

After all… well… One Can Make a Difference. ~ Joi (“Joy”)

I want to tell you about an inspiring book I know you’ll love as much as I do. It’s pictured on the right and linked to several times below.  It may sound flowery (fortunately I love flowers, so that won’t slow me down) – but I believe this book will, in some way, touch every single one of my tomorrows.  I’d love to see millions of tomorrows similarly touched, because I believe the result would be a better world for everyone and everything.

So, you find yourself on the fringe of a post telling you why you HAVE to read this book.

One Can Make a Difference: Original stories by the Dali Lama, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Dennis Kucinch, Russel Simmons, Bridgitte Bardot, Martina … Dozens of Other Extraordinary Individuals is a remarkable book, filled with information, inspiration, and motivation.  In its pages, you’ll read about real life heroes and heroines.  People who weren’t born remarkable, but through determination and compassion did their part in changing the world.

Everyday people just like you and me who put their mind to doing extraordinary things.

A Few of the Stories That Touched Me the Most:

  • Carol Buckley cofounded The Elephant Sanctuary in 1995.  The acres and acres of land in Tennessee are home to elephants who had been in circuses or zoos.  Elephants.com has pictures of these beautiful elephants, as well as a web cam, a gift shop, opportunities for support, and addictively interesting stories about each of the elephants – with pictures to help you fall even more in love with each.   In One Can Make a Difference, Carol Buckley tells about one of her elephants that loved to make Orange Juice.  She also details the very special elephant that led to this amazing sanctuary.
  • Kevin Bacon tells how, at first, he didn’t know what to think about the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.  When he realized that it was, in fact, flattering to have a game named after you, he realized something else:  With a heart full of genuine care for the world around him, he wanted very much to do his part to make a difference.  Thanks to this game, he now had an “angle” or as he calls it a “brand,” to launch a charitable organization and website called Six Degrees.org.  This very talented actor and family man details how this all came about.
  • Reverend Al Sharpton’s essay was also fascinating.  I especially loved his words of motivation:  The only person you ever have to conquer in life is not your enemy, it’s yourself.  And once you conquer yourself, your ego, your vanity, your misplaced overestimation – once you conquer yourself, then you can fight for a higher purpose and conquer what it is you’re supposed to conquer and realize that’s what your purpose is.

We define success by what we have, not by what we did.  But the only success in life is what you did.  Because whatever you have, you could lose, and whatever you have, somebody else could have more.  But nobody can take from you what you did. – Al Sharpton

  • Rebecca Hosking tells of the unbelievable impact plastic has on the environment.  I read her essay twice to make sure I was getting the full impact.  PlanetArk.com helps educate people about keeping our environment healthy, clean, beautiful and, frankly, about what we can to do keep from turning our earth into one big giant dump.
  • Oliver Stone’s essay was another one that was spellbinding.  He, like every single essayist in the book, had me putting pen to paper – I put the words onto paper as they put the words in my heart.  Oliver Stone tells how he has been led by ghosts, how they encourage him to make a difference.  Interestingly enough, he was also one of the first people to sign a petition asking NASA to stop sending monkeys into space.
  • Petra Nemcova tells of her horrible ordeal after the tsunami struck Thailand (she lost the love of her life and suffered a broken pelvis).  The experience made her better rather than bitter and a lot of LOVE, literally came from the devastation.  She now focuses her life on helping children who have suffered loss and pain from hardships all over the world.  She’s a classic example of being as beautiful inside as she is outside – and that’s saying something in her case!
  • Martina Navratilova talks about fair play, Russell Simmons talks about respect, and Willie Nelson addresses the subject of self-reliance.

There are far too many individuals and even more subjects to even think about covering in one post.  I guarantee that they’ll be mentioned in future posts, however.  Their stories have become a part of me.  I’ve always fancied myself one of the overly zealous “We can change the world” crowd… but now? Ready to take the ills of the world with a toothbrush!

One Final Thought:

It’s wrong that, very often, people who are trying to make the world a better place are looked upon as eccentrics.  Believing (rightfully so) that helpless animals shouldn’t be abused doesn’t make an individual crazy, it makes them compassionate.  The author of the book, Ingrid E. Newkirk, is also the founder and president of PETA.  So, she knows a thing or two about controversy.

I admit that when people are on the front lines doing battle for what they believe in, they sometimes seem to go “too far.”  But I’d rather they go too far than to not go at all!   The next time a PETA ad generates a snicker or two, challenge yourself to think about all of the animals that have been saved because of this organization…. of all the needless suffering and pain PETA has brought to an end.  If your own pet were being abused, wouldn’t you want PETA to ride in to its rescue?

I certainly would!

This book is one of the best books you’ll ever read.  So what are you waiting for?!  Order it today and, within a week, you will have opened a whole new world! When you click through to the book on Amazon, you’ll find several options for buying the book. There are many available “used,” which is one of my favorite ways to buy books!

One Can Make a Difference: (Amazon link) Original stories by the Dali Lama, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Dennis Kucinch, Russel Simmons, Bridgitte Bardot, Martina … Dozens of Other Extraordinary Individual

Kleiser Quote

Quote of the Day – Quote About Making a Difference

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Quote about Making a Difference

Quote About Making a Difference

“If you bang your head against a brick wall long enough, the wall will fall.  And once you start banging your head against that wall, others will join you.” – Ingrid E. Newkirk, One Can Make a Difference

You know how you normally say, “I just read this book…” or “I just read that book.” In regards to the book this quote was pulled from, One Can Make a Difference, by Ingrid E. Newkirk, the appropriate quote is, “This book recently changed me.”

Amazing book. Amazing Amazing book.


“Call of the Cats: What I Learned About Life and Love From a Feral Colony”

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Call of the Cats by Andrew Bloomfield
Can you believe it’s two months till Christmas?! TWO. How did this happen. It seemed like only yesterday I was dancing around my house celebrating the opening day of baseball.  And here I am dancing around celebrating the holidays.

As you’d imagine, I entertain my husband and cats greatly.

Speaking of cats (how was that for transitioning?), I just wrote a review for a lovely new book, Call of the Cats on my cat blog.

While this book is perfect for cat lovers, it’s also a must read for anyone who loves a great, inspiring read. For that matter, if we’re being completely honest, I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t enjoy this book.

It’s that entertaining.

Read the review here.

I’ll be giving you a few “gift idea” heads ups during the coming weeks because, if you’re anything like me, you could use a little extra help thinking during these months. My thoughts get pretty tangled up with all the information flying around inside my head – Thanksgiving pies, Christmas shopping, gift ideas, decorations, Halloween candy, cookies, candy… too many thoughts for one brain.

This particular book would make a great gift idea for any cat lover in your life. Below are a few other books that’d be great gift ideas.

Cat Lovers

I Draw on Cats!

Cooking for Two: Your Cat and You

Furry Logic (Adorable!)

Cooks

Gluten Free for Good (cookbook)

The Quick Six Fix (cookbook)

The Chew: An Essential Guide to Cooking and Entertaining

Pepper: More Than 45 Recipes Using the King of Spice

Inspirational And/Or Health-Related

The Bulletproof Diet 

Jesus Talked to Me Today (Beautiful!)

A Gift of Love (Also Beautiful!)

In Praise (High Praise) of Slowing Down

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Jelly Bean, a sweet and beautiful black cat.
Over the past two weeks, I’ve been reminded of the importance of slowing down and giving your entire attention and focus to what’s at hand. I’ve also become a HUGE fan of checking and double-checking, even when you’re 99.9 percent certain there’s no need to check even once. Doing so probably saved a very sweet cat’s life.

First off, let’s get something straight, I’m not a “go slow and be cautious” kind of gal. I’m a card-carrying “fly by the seat of your pants” kind of gal.  The kind who walks fast, talks fast, types fast, and challenges everyone and everything to keep up.  So, slowing down and scrutinizing details doesn’t come natural to me.  However, after living with my husband (who’s typing fingers, walking shoes, and words never seem to be in much of a hurry) for going on 28 years, I’ve picked up some of his country boy ways.

Slow down. Pay attention to what you’re doing. Check and double-check.

Sometimes when we’re in a parking lot and he grabs my hand in an effort to slow me down, I want to kick him in the seat of his pants. But I’d have to walk backwards to catch him.  I thought about his effect on me in this regard a few days ago and the last thing I wanted to do was kick him.  I realized I owed such a debt to him that the feeling of relief has yet to fade away.

At the risk of rambling (Who? Me?), I have to set the stage.  We live in a rural area that happens to be behind a gate (the gate’s probably a 1/2 a mile from our house).  From the window in front of my computer desk, I can see the gate, so I know when someone’s there. Usually the UPS man leaves our packages in a certain spot, but lately we’ve had a “fill in” that tends to turn around and take off.  Since we’ve got packages coming regularly for Christmas, I’m keeping a keen eye out.

The day before yesterday, I saw the UPS man pull up to the gate and ran out the door in my house shoes and jumped in my vehicle to go stop him from getting away.

As you probably know, we have 4 cats (3 outside and 1 inside).  It’s been chilly, so the outside cats have been staying in their various cat houses or even in the garage.  Even when they do occasionally get under the vehicles, they sprint out as soon as a door’s opened.

As I threw myself into the driver’s seat, I took a quick mental inventory of where I’d seen my cats (just minutes ago).  The two girls were in sight, by the carport door and I was 99 percent sure the sweet boy cat (Jelly Bean) was still in his favorite cat house, where I’d seen him only about 10 minutes ago.  As I saw the UPS man beginnng to swing around, I thought, “I’m just going to double check…” and I hopped out, got on all fours and looked under the vehicle.  Sure enough, there was my chubby, solid black, much beloved Jelly Bean SOUND asleep – right behind a front tire.  He didn’t even wake up when I called his name.

One of those nights, I guess.

I lured him out and took off for the UPS man, ironically enough, thinking, “Slow down for crying out loud! What’s your freakin’ hurry?”

I’ve been thinking a lot since then.  If I had ran over my sweet chubby faced cat that day I’m not sure I would have ever recovered.  My vehicle is a big heavy thing and he would have, undoubtedly, been killed.  I cannot even imagine the feelings I would have had if the unthinkable had happened.  It’d take another animal lover to understand when I say that it’s something I would have lived with forever.  Jelly Bean was a feral kitten that I won over with endless patience and even more love.  In the picture above (in his thinner days!), I was as close as I could get to him. He’s now a big baby who trust me completely. He purrs loudly as soon as I even look at him.  Such a sweetheart.

Thanks be to God – and to the influence of country boys who refuse to get in a hurry about anything – the scenario ended with one caught UPS man, two delivered packages, one relived cat mom, and (most importantly) one safe and unharmed black cat who isn’t so unlucky after all.  Can you even imagine the cat treats he got that day???

On a lesser… make that much lesser… level, I have also dropped the ball a couple of times lately.  I’m sure it’s because my mind is on Thanksgiving recipes, Christmas gifts, and cookies but I’ve made a couple of STUPID spelling errors and little goofs online lately.  Ironically, one was even a huge pet peeve of mine.  I forget the details (because they’re too horrifying to remember for someone who has always had a love affair with grammar) but I sent a tweet out in which I used “there” instead of “their.”  I happened to catch it several days later and was mortified.

Yes, silly to be mortified by such a thing, but I’m obsessive about things like that. Allowing myself to get in a hurry and not taking the time to slow down and double check led to a regret.  That almost always happens, doesn’t it?

This post is simply to serve as a reminder for everyone to take pains to slow down and double check what’s going on around you.  We live in a society that’s so fast-paced right now, it’s almost on hyper drive.  Think about it, people get ticked off if they have to wait in a drive through for more than 3 minutes!

I’m convinced a lot of grief could be spared if we just learned to slow down and live completely in the moment.  At worst we’ll spare ourselves embarrassment, at most we’ll save a life.