Serious stuff

...(though not apparently serious enough to make me get this posted on time... I can be such a loser...)

So occasionally (and I use that term loosely), I get the "So what's new?" question. And since I don't believe I've shared this here yet, I thought I would let you know. I've been volunteering (for four+ months now) at the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria. The AWLA is a great organization that takes care of animals here in (you guessed it) Alexandria. So one night a week (or more if my schedule permits) I stop by the Voila Lawson Animal Shelter and pet cats. Yep, that's right. I pet cats. Who even knew that was a job? But it's not only a job, apparently, it's an important one. Live in the shelter can be stressful on the animals, and no one who comes into adopt says, "Hey, can I have that stressed out looking kitty in the corner?" By us (and by "us" I mean myself and the other volunteers, amongst whose ranks I'm managed to convince MLW to join) spending time with the animals and continue to keep them "social" we reduce their stress level, which in turn makes them more marketable, which in turn gets them adopted quicker into a good home. The folks at the League tell us we're saving lives, and on my less humble days, I choose to believe them. But I'll let you in on a secret, I really feel as if I should be paying them. No matter how bad my day or how bad my week is, I know that on Tuesdays, I get to play with cats (and kittens, but I personally feel they don't do much before 5 months or so). This lows my stress level. It's a win-win (as I think we've covered in earlier posts...)

So, if you're looking to support a local animal charity with either your time or your dollars, please allow me to suggest the AWLA for their fine work. And expect to see me occasionally referring to different cats I may interact with. Some of them can be quite memorable (like Bobbit). And please don't think AWLA only deals with cats... there are an equal number of people working with dogs, rabbits, birds, and various little critters (hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, etc.)

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Okay, so that's what I've been up to, but it's not even remotely everything I want to share. A lot of environmental stuff has been across my inbox of late, much of it worth sharing...

Do you know anyone that actually likes junk mail? Yeah, me neither. But did you ever stop to think about how much of a waste it is? For everyone. Time, money, trees, gasoline, more time, and more money. Why not opt out instead?

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And speaking of wasteful... OMG! Was I disturbed when I read this... Did y'all have any idea how bad an idea bottled water is? Now, I'll be the first to say I can't see it disappearing, but maybe working together we could do something to reduce the amounts. I mean, DAMN. Out of control. This will straighten your hair...

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Okay, enough ranting for the time being. Next time we'll have some lighter topics like the Bionic Woman, the Lone Ranger, and Halloween costumes...