Is YOUR cat co-dependent?

I have to admit that my faith in the competency of my vet was shaken when he asked this question, but he was making a good point.  You see, I have a very anxious cat.  He does not handle stress well and it causes him to have eye infections.  He had these a lot when he was a kitten but I've been able to keep his stress levels in check.  Like most cats he doesn't like change and there are a myriad of things that can tweak him.


The one thing that tweaks him the most is *my* stress level. If I am upset or crazed (conditions I often find myself in) he is an absolute wreck.  Sometimes it makes me stress more, knowing that my stress is causing him distress.  Other times I use it as a way of letting go of some of the BS because we'll both feel better in the end.


We need to learn from each other.  I need to learn to focus on the important things in life and not get so wrapped up in the day-to-day.  He needs to learn that if I pack a bag it doesn't mean I'm leaving him forever.  He also needs to learn that the shower isn't hurting me and that 10 minutes of peace with hot water will be the best thing for us both.

Content of my character...or the contents of my pockets

I've been thinking about Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. lately.  With all the talk of equal rights and a new social movement, I guess it's natural that thoughts lean in his direction.  The "I Have A Dream" speech is one of the finest in history.  I'm sure you are familiar with the gist of it particularly the part where he hopes that one day his children will "not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." Powerful words, no?


It got me to thinking though - what traits am I judged by?  We all do it - judge each other, I mean.  We make assumptions about people based on how they dress, or how they walk and talk.  This is not necessarily a bad thing.  It's human nature.  


I have come across something in a lot of the crime novels and non-fiction I have read - particularly how a corpse is identified by the contents of their pockets.  Not just ID, but the random assortment of things they carried on them at the time of their demise.  For these poor souls, they are not initially judged by the content of their character, but rather by the content of their pockets.

Makes you think - what do you carry in your pockets and how do they reflect the person you truly are?  Do you have a special key chain or good luck charm that you carry with you?  Spare change, lint, and old receipts would most likely be found in searching my pockets.  Perhaps from that one would deduce that I am a bit of a pack rat, one who doesn't get rid of things too easily even if they are old or spare.  Or perhaps the only deduction is that I had some leftover change from a recent purchase.  What do you think?

Not far from the tree...

For a good portion of my life, someone near and dear to me has been suffering from a terrible, debilitating disease that most people do not understand.  It's called "obesity" - and its causes are many and can happen to anyone at anytime.  Watching this person suffer as their health deteriorates causing far more serious medical issues breaks my heart in a thousand pieces.  It is one of the things I would give up anything and everything to make better for this person.  But that's not how this disease works.  This person has to make the changes and that is the hardest thing to do.


I am very closely related to this individual and have come to see that I, too, suffer from this disease - though I am not at the same level.  I have given half-assed attempts during my lifetime to lose weight and diet - but never to any real success.  I know that the changes need to come from within and that they need to be permanent changes.  And damn, is this hard!


It comes down to the determination to make myself better or not.  And I'd like to believe that I am strong enough to make those changes.  


So I have begun a new diet and there are some rules that must be obeyed.  Diet - it means what and how you eat.  It is not a fad.  It is not a temporary event.  It is not a time period to do dangerous things to your body (i.e. starving yourself).  It is truly a way of life.  I need to need more well rounded meals,  More vegetables mean more fiber and vitamins from a natural source.  More fish gives me healthy fats and oils that makes my appearance healthier (hair, skin).  It also helps with mental health - something that many people overlook.  I need to drink more water before I eat, while I eat and after I eat.  This will reduce the times that I eat when my body is really just dehydrated.


Sleep!  I have always (even as a child) loved to sleep.  And I still do, I just don't get enough of it.  But sleep is imperative to your well being.  It is directly linked to your metabolism and your ability to gain/lose weight.  Instead of staying up late to watch that TV show, I need to be ensuring that I am getting at least 7 hours of sleep every night.


Exercise.  I get winded walking from my car to my desk at work - that's out of shape.  I just don't seem to enjoy the act of exercising even if I feel better at the end of it.  This is the category I struggle with the most.  I'm going to try a couple of tricks - we'll see how that works out.


I need to be healthier and I will be happier.  If I can do this, perhaps it will inspire the people in my life who struggle with their health and make them think twice about the choices they make.  But whether or not they do anything for themselves I need to learn, no...TO KNOW that there is only person who make me better - and that's me.

My reputation

Today I learned that I have a rep.  Who knew?  And what rep could a semi-introverted 33 year old single woman have?  Not one of partying and wild abandon - drunken blackouts and revealing clothing...no, I'm known for my Muppet, that looks like me.

I am big fan of the Muppets and always have been.  A few years back my friends pooled their money together and purchased this as a Christmas gift.  I love her - she is beyond awesome!  When I went to see the new movie "The Muppets" (3 times in a 24 hour period) I brought her with me.

We were even on the news for about 3 seconds as part of the opening day crowds. 


All in all, I'm not offended by this.  There are worse things to be known for, and this certainly sets me apart from most anyone else.


I mean, ask yourself, do you anyone who has a Muppet in their likeness? :)

Reality check

I think I failed my humanity test today. 


While driving to the store, I noticed a dog lying in a patch of grass in a primarily industrial area.  The quick glance I got gave me the impression that the dog's hind legs were flat. Turning back to check on the animal, I confirmed that the dog was seriously injured but it seemed to be an older injury.  In addition to being injured, it was clear that the dog was hungry and thirsty.  We scoured the car for water and found about a bottle's worth. We found a discarded plastic dish and gave the dog what water we had.  He lapped it up with gusto.


I immediately got onto the phone to try and get a hold of animal control.  That was when the owner emerged from the car he lives in to come talk to us. He said that "Airborne" was not able to walk and that animal services want to put him down, but he just couldn't let them do it.  It was clear that he cared for the dog but was unable to provide him with much of anything.  In the end, I did not call animal control.  All I did was ask if he had water or anything to give to the dog.  Then I went on my way.


My heart broke for the dog, who was clearly suffering.  I just didn't know what to do.  Animal control would not have any choice but to euthanize the dog. And I would be livid if some stranger intervened in my life and arranged for my pet to die.  It was a really helpless feeling.


However, some hours later I realized that I was so concerned about the dog that I did not think to offer any assistance to the old man who lived in a car and was trying to let his dog live out the rest of his life.  We took a different route home so I don't know if they were there all afternoon.  I imagine that they are not there during the week when the surrounding businesses are open.


I was ashamed at how easy I was able to brush aside the suffering of another person. Ultimately I guess I also brushed aside the dog too.  Should I have gone back to them with food and water?  Should I have called animal control knowing how that would end up?  I just don't know - but I think my decision to not get involved was not right either.


A good friend of mine said that if the universe wanted me to do something, I would have thought of it in the moment.  But I'm not so sure.  I think that we are all so conditioned to mind our own business that we neglect each other with dangerous results.  I wish I had some words of wisdom to sum this up - some kind of lesson learned.  But overall I just feel bad and still don't know what I should have done.  


I hope that when I am faced with this kind of thing again I show more compassion and charity than I did today.

Everyone else is doing it...

Beginnings are always a good place to start - or so it has been said. So here's to a beginning of sorts...

Blogging - the act of writing a blog or the word that best describes the mush in my mind? In my case, it would be more along the lines of "blahging" if I were to be honest. I have not seen anyone use that word "blahging" but there is no way that I'm the first to come up with it. There are millions of blogs and millions of blogger out there - and they all probably have more interesting content. But this blog is special - because it's mine. And I don't mean special unique...I mean little bus special.

So stay tuned. This will be the forum in which I pour out the random content that permeates my consciousness.  It may be good.  It may be bad.  But it is what it is.