Happy making cuddles ...

My human is reading one of her books. I'm sitting here, as you can see, snuggled into the crook of her arm.  I just hope her hand doesn't get too tired holding me up.  I don't want to end up with a headache if she drops me.

This is a lovely happy-making cuddle ...

Cuddles are important ...

Me & human snuggling together 

I've learned a little bit about 'depression' since living with my human.  From what I've learned from her and her books, it sounds like a nasty thing to experience.  It can leave human feeling sad, lonely and hurting.  I understand that for someone living with depression, life can feel very hard, and each day can feel like a chore to get through. And that doesn't sound like a good way to live.  I wouldn't like to feel like that.

It's difficult for me to understand what depression for humans feels like, but I think I have a little idea.  Before I moved in with my human and was just living outside I felt very sad and lonely.  So sad sometimes, that I just needed to keep licking my tummy & my legs ... and lots of the fur fell out.  I didn't really understand what I was doing, or why I was doing it at the time.  It was just something I felt I had to do.

Look at how much love I needed ... all those bald spots

I now understand though, from my human, that I was probably trying to comfort myself.  I felt so sad and lonely because I had no human to live with or to stroke or cuddle me.  Us cats like the feeling of being stroked because it reminds us of when we were little babies & our mummy cats licked & groomed us.  Because I was feeling so sad and lonely, I was craving that loving feeling that I'd gotten from my mummy cat.  But she wasn't there.  And I wasn't living with a human who could substitute, so I had to try to love, cuddle & groom myself.  And I did that by licking & cleaning my fur.  Lots.  Because I felt so sad and lonely and needed lots of love.

And I believe that this is a similar thing to when humans 'self harm.'  It might look like they're hurting themselves, but whatever they're doing (cutting or scratching themselves, maybe over-eating or drinking), they're trying to comfort themselves or bring about a sense of relief.  I'll write more about this another day ... it's something else I've learned about from my human.

Once I moved in with my human though, she gave me lots of cuddles & spent a long time stroking me and she became a very good substitute mummy cat.  I purr a lot these days when she cuddles me.  Because I'm happy now.  I know I'm loved.  I know I'm safe.  I have a lovely home to live in & I get lots of nice food ... & treats!

A cute picture I found on Facebook

And cuddles are good for human too.  Humans feel safe & happy & connected too, when they give & receive cuddles.  Research (so my human tells me) shows that humans who don't get cuddles tend to be less happy, less fulfilled & experience more depression than those who do.  So people who live on their own, are more likely to feel depressed.  Not just because of the loneliness and isolation they can feel, having no one to talk to or share things with.  But also because of the lack of touch, of bodily contact they experience.

Apparently though, there are also some people who live together, in couples and families, who don't like cuddles.  And that can be hard for the people in the family who do.  They can feel deprived of contact & feel sad and lonely, even when they're together.  And that's sad.  I

And that's why furry friends (cats especially, I'd say!!) are so good for people.  And one of the reasons why it's good for humans to find, & live with a furry friend.  Especially for those people who live on their own, or don't get the cuddles and bodily contact they need from their families.

Me & my human cuddling each other 

I love cuddles with my human.  And I'm very happy now.

Coloured in claws ...

This is me looking in utter disbelief at my human's feet. Why would anyone want to colour their claws in? It doesn't make sense to me.

I just hope she doesn't get any ideas about colouring in my claws ... it's NOT happening.

I don't have a cardigan to wear ...

I know it's a nice day outside ... I've been out lots today.

But ... is there any need for my human to have all the windows and the back door open?  I think not.  I'm freezing and have had to come under the duvet to keep warm.

See that bump on the right?  That's me keeping warm.

Now, I know fresh air is good for us.  And I know from what  my human tells me, and what I've read in some of her books, that fresh air and exercise is good for us all ... cats, humans & all other animals too.
Fresh air and exercise apparently helps ease depression and can cheer people up, and make them feel better.

I can understand that because I get lots of fresh air and exercise.  I go out a few times every day.  Sometimes, I just sit in the yard, sometimes I run round it & sometimes I go for long walks or runs along the back yard walls.  I also like to go for a run around the block ... my human lets me out the back door & I go running along the walls & the pavements & then I turn up at the front door!! Or rather, I sit on the sill of my human's counselling room window until she can be bothered to come & let me in.

See ... .we both get our exercise.  Me outside & my human from when she has to keep getting up to see if I'm ready to come in yet or not.  Just another example of me looking after my human, making sure she gets enough exercise.  And then of course, there's all the times she has to get up from working at her computer when I'm shouting at her to give me those yummy treats I wrote about earlier!!  We're a good team!

But it's about time, she thought about me as much.  Because there she is, happily working away on her computer with all the windows open, letting lots of nice fresh air into our house.

And okay, that's a good thing, but she's got her cardigan on ... I don't have a cardigan to wear.  So I've had to come to bed ...

The human thinks I'm stupid ... I'm not ...

My human is very kind and buys me yummy treats.  She keeps them in the cupboard where I can't reach them and so I have to ask her when I want some.

I don't know why, but she seems to get annoyed with me.  I know I ask for them lots of times, but so would you, if you knew that yummy treats were in the cupboard and you couldn't get them.


She keeps saying to me; "You can't just keep eating these."

Well; what else does she expect me to do with them?  And she's not going to eat them is she?

And then she says; "These are meant to be treats.  You're just meant to get these when you've been a good girl."

Well; I'm always good.

Sometimes she gives me them to 'bribe' me out of here counselling room when she's got clients coming.  She shakes the packet and I go running into the kitchen.  She thinks she's clever because I always go running for the yummy treats.  What she hasn't realised is that I only go into the counselling room when I know she's got clients coming because I know that if I sit in there, she'll give me treats.  See; these humans think they're clever, but they're not as clever as us cats.

And then today, she tried to con me.  The second time I asked her for yummy treats, instead of the treats, she just put a few of my crunchy biscuits on the plate!?  Does she think I'm stupid?  Did she think I wouldn't spot the difference?

Of course, I knew straight away.

I just looked at them.  And then I looked up at her.

And then she laughed at me.

And then she gave the proper treats ...

My Sunday night take away ...

Those of you who have 'liked' me on Facebook might have already read this story; but for those of you who haven't, here it is again.  

And for those of you who haven't 'liked' me on Facebook, please click on my badge over on the right and 'like' me!!

Most Sundays my human goes out somewhere.  I'm not sure where she goes, but when she comes back, she brings me my very own Take Away.  And you thought it was just humans who had take aways!?!

It's always a bit of a surprise because, although I know that it will be meat and gravy, I never know what flavour it will be.

Yesterday, I was really lucky.  When my human put my take away in my dish for me to eat, there was loads of yummy gravy on it ... which, of course, I licked off first.  How else do you eat it?  And then I saved the meat for later.  When I went back for it, and tasted it, I was surprised at just how yummy it was!  It turned out to be chicken flavoured with garlic!  Mmmmm .... I wonder if my breath smells today?  I'll have to ask my human later ....

But then, I was having a conversation with a human who has 'liked' me on Facebook and she asked me why I never go out to eat.  I thought it was a bit of a funny question, because I often eat out ... me and my human have a lovely neighbour who lives upstairs from us. She keeps a bag of my favourite treats at the bottom of her stairs, and if we're out in the yard at the same time, she puts some on the ground for me ...

 ... So you see, I often get to eat out ...

The stupid finger pointing the way forward ...

My human and I have been having a meeting this morning about the direction in which I should take this blog.  I have lots of ideas about things I would like to write about, but my human has been trying to tell me that I should find a better focus for it  ... I think it's just because she doesn't like that I've just been writing about her recently.  Or more specifically, about her and her clumsy attempt to light a candle, which ended up in lots of trips to the vets; & it's still not mended.  I'm not going to get distracted by my thoughts on those useless vets though ...

So anyway, we sat down together ... she on her chair, me on the desk and did some of this 'brain storming' I've heard humans talking about.  We came up with lots of ideas together ... I let her write them all down, because I can't hold a pen very easily in my paws.  And why should I do all the work anyway when I've got a human to do it for me?

Mind you, her attempts at holding a pen are a bit clumsy right now too!!  Just look at the way that finger sticks out!  Looks stupid, doesn't it?  She says it's because her finger is still very sore & stiff & she still can't use it properly ... I think it's just an excuse for her untidy writing.

After posting this, I'm off to bed to sleep & dream about the direction my blog is going in.  My human spoke some sense, but I have to think about it myself.  It is my blog afterall.  And it's up to me what I write about.  Tough if she doesn't like it.

But I did like some of her ideas ... I'm off to sleep on them now though ...