A Silent Brush-Off

My cat gives me attitude. Not surprising, for a feline. She loves a good pet, but if I’m in the middle of typing or watching a TV show, I may take a few minutes to respond. If she feels like I’m not responding quick enough, I’ll look up and see cattitude, meaning she’s  settled down—with her back positioned toward me. It’s intentional, letting me know she’s not pleased. Some family members insist on getting our attention.  

                                         https://youtu.be/UwjHFUBnDCQ

That small family member is gentle and persistent. We usually get one of two responses when we fail to respond to attention requests, it’s either cattitude or the more assertive behaviors that demand our attention. When you survey your important relationships, which one(s) have you been ignoring?  

Crying for Attention

Creaks and cries are calls for attention. When my vehicle began creaking, the mechanic said it needed a new boot. When my cat looks up and meows, she wants food or a head rub. When babies cry, they want something—food, comfort, a diaper change—and it’s the guardian’s responsibility to understand what they need and how to fulfill it. See if you can identify the cry here:

                                         https://youtu.be/kNGi50MaiMA

The cry sounds something like this: Look at me! Look at me! Yes, it’s a cry for attention. It comes in all forms. Not all are loud, but whatever way they come, they cause us to stop and stare, capturing our attention for a moment or more. What’s the best vehicle for capturing someone’s attention when you need help?      

Surprise!

My cat had a nightmare, I think. Our cat usually sleeps through the many noises around her. Despite the blaring television and rattling dishes, she keeps on snoozing. One day during nap time, she jumped up into the scary hunched back position. She stared at us, jumped to the floor, and ambled away as if nothing happened. Maybe she dreamed about an encounter with the neighborhood dog. Cats are full of surprises.   

There are pleasant surprises and downright awful ones. Here’s a surprise this young man didn’t anticipate:  

                                         https://youtu.be/n4mznkHDMGk

Active military soldiers and their families deserve heartwarming surprise reunions, and much more. What sort of surprise would give you joy?  



Modified & reprinted from Nov. 2013

What About Them?

Not all mammals go to heaven. Obviously, that’s only one opinion since some people believe they’ll see Fluffy or Fido in the afterlife. What about racoons or bears—will they be left out? It’s weird imagining everything on Noah’s ark, flying and running around heaven. But, it’s not too difficult to imagine monkeys lying beside tigers or birds hanging out with cats. They do it now. Somehow, they overcome their basic instincts, doing what “higher species” have a difficult time doing. Take a look:

                                      https://youtu.be/Mth49PbTbrY

 The key is exposure. The trio has been together since their early years, and there’s no reason to quit at this point. Unfortunately, people box themselves into categories, then erect walls to segment themselves even more. If a cat and bear can get along, surely, we can do as much. What people do you avoid, and how can you reach out to them now?      

Watching Your Back

If I’m sitting at our kitchen table, I try to watch my back and that’s not out of paranoia, but because our cat uses the opportunity to grab my attention with a friendly tap. Sometimes it’s a gentle, one-pawed tap that seems to say, “Hey, I’m here! Remember me?” Other times she uses a forceful, two-pawed push that causes me to think somebody’s not happy. A shoulder tap usually means someone wants something from us. The trick is to decode the request and decide whether we’re willing to respond. What’s the request here?

                                     https://youtu.be/P0-_AH5mxTM

 I discovered other cats give taps, but this video takes pet interaction to new heights. Apparently, it’s a nightly habit—one I would discourage. What’s this creature’s message to its owner anyhow? Who’s been tapping you on the shoulder and what their message to you?   

Under Your Nose

We may have a new couch potato in the house.  This week our cat had an “aha” moment—she discovered television. During the past eight years, she has never paid attention to the TV. But for some reason, this week she decided to watch an exercise video. She walked over to the same TV we’ve had for years and plopped herself down, just two inches from the screen. I probably should have warned her to move back before she ruined her eyes. Standing behind her, I could see her head moving from side to side as if the show were a tennis match. A couple of times she touched the screen with her paw. Awww! Maybe our cat has discovered a new hobby.

Have you ever found something, only to realize it was under your nose the entire time? Is the best book you’ll ever read sitting on your bookshelf? Or is your future favorite outfit the one you bought, stuffed in the closet and forgot? Check out another incredible find:   

                                          http://youtu.be/koEynMsIJS4

Isn’t it fascinating to think that someone you know from afar could be related to you?  Some of the best discoveries you’ll ever make may be closer than you think. What’s your primary mission right now? What kind of resources are sitting right under your nose?         

The Best Things in Life are Here

Every so often our cat approached me with a pitiful meow. I assumed boredom had taken hold of her so I went to the pet store to buy the perfect plaything. The task seemed simple: find a fun, inexpensive toy. Since she had a big, pink stuffed fish, cat teasers, and an assortment of rattling balls, I needed something new. After scouring the shelves, I chose a feathery, spinning thing that cost more than I wanted to spend. Would she play with it?

I took it home and set it up. She looked at it and walked away. Cat toy fail! I picked up one of her old toys, a five-year-old rope with a pipe cleaner attached to the end. I flicked it once or twice, and our cat darted after it. That little lesson reminded me how kids will spend a few hours playing with a pricey toy from the store, but give them a cardboard box and they’ll entertain themselves for a week.

Neither cats nor kids need the fanciest items in the store to be content. Sometimes the right item is already within their grasp, like this one:        

                                          http://youtu.be/RP4abiHdQpc  

If you’re trying to save cash on the kids’ Christmas gifts, buy good ripping paper and a couple of large cardboard boxes. Those kinds of items never let you down. They say that the best things in life are free. In what way is that saying true for you?    

This Is How We Roll

One night, while driving down a side street lined with tidy lawns and comfortable homes, we saw a ferocious animal race into the street and chase the car in front of us. This scene might sound normal except the ferocious animal that chased the car was a cat. I’m not sure what caused the confrontation, but the car kept going and the attacker retreated to its lair. For whatever reason, a little, white kitty decided to harass a passing car. Animals don’t always do what we expect. Take a look:

                                          http://youtu.be/y__iU-TgHCY

We couldn’t see who drove the car that the cat chased. If it was anything like the driver in the video, then it all makes sense. Some animals can perform or appear to perform amazing feats, while other animals astonish us simply by acting on instinct. Our cat will chase a tossed ball like a dog, but she won’t retrieve it. We trained her to run to us for a treat when we ring a bell, and she understands what it means when we say no. But what about you? What do you do that might be considered normal by some people, yet abnormal by others?   

           

Under Surveillance

Our cat went “off the grid” by wiggling out of her collar three times this week. A bell attached to her collar is our radar tracker. It warns us of her presence, but without it she follows us undetected until the last minute when we turn around and stumble over her.   If she’s wearing her collar, we don’t have to follow her to know when she’s wrestling with a toy or jumping onto the window sill. We can tell by the type of jingles. These days she’s not the only one under surveillance. Have a listen:

                             http://youtu.be/Ze5eDmGX-lc

I can’t imagine hearing a mysterious voice from a faraway office scolding me for dropping trash or jaywalking. The video resembles a scene from a dystopian movie, not reality in 2014.  Welcome to the future—or is it? Maybe the future is now. How do you feel about being under someone’s watchful eye?     

         

Free Greeting Cards

Several years ago a friend gave me a birthday greeting card. The envelope lacked a name and the card had no signature. This seemed odd, but my friend assured me that it was no accident. She described how often people read cards, display or frame them, and eventually stuff them in a drawer, or (gasp) in the trash. I suppose her plan had triple benefits.  She recognized my birthday, gave me a gift to use in the future, and provided a good laugh. Kind of quirky, yet it made sense. What would you say if someone gave you a blank greeting card?  What if you received one like this?     

 http://youtu.be/ixc_oGml5L4

I can see this greeting card generating fifty different reactions—some positive, some not. I’m okay with cats, but I almost groaned when the kitties paused and then meowed some more. Somewhere, somebody wants that card. It just goes to show that whatever you enjoy, someone else is bound to dislike it—and that’s okay. What do you love that seems unpopular?

Fact vs. Fiction?

A pair of glassy eyes studied me. No need to feel intimidated just because it’s the bustling city, right?  I stared back from the security of my car.  In the end, I won the stare down contest and the little squirrel scampered away. How interesting that once I spotted the critter watching me, I assumed it had horrible plans to chase me up the street. The citified squirrel probably came in contact with people more often than its skittish suburban relatives, hence its lack of fear toward humans. It probably just wanted a handful of nuts. How often do you jump to conclusions before weighing the evidence? What do you think about this scene?

                                         http://youtu.be/ECbvHQowmhE

Someone from the video commented about how the squirrel was a juvenile and may have lost its parents. Does that change your perception of the squirrel’s behavior? Maybe the little guy simply wanted to move indoors for warm shelter and gentle belly rubs here and there. We can’t take everything we see and hear as gospel. How do you filter information to ferret out the truth? 

Surprise!

My cat had a nightmare, I think. Our cat usually sleeps through the many noises around her. Despite the blaring television and rattling dishes, she keeps on snoozing. One day during nap time, she jumped up into the scary hunched back position. She stared at us, jumped to the floor, and ambled away as if nothing happened. Maybe she dreamed about an encounter with the neighborhood dog. Cats are full of surprises.   

There are pleasant surprises and downright awful ones. Here’s a surprise this young man didn’t anticipate:

                                              http://youtu.be/n4mznkHDMGk

 Active military soldiers and their families deserve heartwarming surprise reunions, and much more. What sorts of surprises have you experienced?     

 

 

 

Giving More Than a Party?

Our cat had a birthday last week.  We didn’t throw her a party and I’m not sure she wanted one. She received extra attention and a little bit of tuna; fortunately, she doesn’t require much.

I like celebrating birthday and holidays however the fun diminishes under the weight of commercialization when ads push me to purchase expensive cards and extravagant gifts. The spending frenzy causes too much pressure.  Sometimes we believe that buying an expensive gift symbolizes the depth of our love. How much better would our relationships be if we treated one another well and simply made guilt-free gift purchases? 

 Conversely, we can be guilt-free and still pull out the stops on our gift-giving. Watch how this pet owner demonstrates her special connection to her dog:

The dog looked confused. He probably expected a bone. Selecting the best gift means focusing on the birthday person’s desires, even if we would never choose that item for ourselves. So, if a friend knew you really well, what perfect gift would they give you?