#tomorrow i go into the office & i'm gonna pet some dogs!!! (and have more boring meetings i guess)

[wickedhawtwexler]

i survived my first day at my new job <3

[flick1224]

Today

Today was a little better than normal. I felt like I had a few months ago. To top it all off, before the clock hits 12, I get a sickeningly sweet message from my friend. What happened? I felt so bad and run down, and now suddenly, I feel awake again. I'm gonna blame the cats.

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I ordered my electric drum set (and a 3d pen bc I think I will like it better than the printer), and it will be here Wednesday. It'll be my reward for surviving the day; seeing as I'll be at the farm again and I have a meeting, I'm expecting to have some light judgmental discussions laces throughout. I'll get to come home and have a terrible time setting them up, likely having technical issues from me not doing something right, before I finally figure it out and have a working drum set! That's usually how it goes with everything electric I buy, anyway.

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Also, I got the money for my name change! So tomorrow, I will work on getting the forms filled out and posting them! Dropping off mail is one of the few things I can do alone, as I live across the street from the post office. It'll also be nice to step into a place I don't usually go to. I've been getting bored of my surroundings.

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The cat sanctuary we are starting is feeling better. We have a lot of leads, and I'm confident if we get the word out, we can garner the support and donations we need to get started. The goals currently are to get a small, reparably dilapidated building, bring in the volunteers we collected who are willing to help us fix it up and build what we need, and make a small rescue solely for stray cats and students at first. Many of the town's overpopulation of cats come from the local uni - kids having to move out and dumping their cats because they can't take them home. It sickens me to think about it. But it's a big issue because these dumb kids aren't fixing their cats, so they make MORE cats. Even the fixed ones - Domesticated cats are called "domesticated" for a reason. Aside from the fact that I am against "owning pets," you do NOT abandon an animal that way. Imagine adopting a child, and one day you're like, "Hmm, I wanna move into a smaller apartment, so you're gonna have to go. But I dunno anyone who will take you, so, uh, good luck!" and you drop them out the door. Not to mention the emotional damage that happens (yes, to cats as well, it's an objective fact that they are not unaffected by abandonment. I've also personally seen this in the cat I have been living with for years)

It's mind-boggling the state of how humans view other animals. I desperately hope we can make a dent in this. One thing I always want to note, since people are weirdly aggressive about the cat vs. dog thing (or bird), is that More than one animal in this weird category we created can exist at once. All of them matter equally and are all as important and valid. They all should have the same consideration given. I'm working with cats because I know how to communicate better with cats, I understand them, and I know how to act to make sure they understand me as best as I can manage. I CANNOT read a dog, so outside my personal experiences, I wouldn't be good at advocating for them.

I am, indeed, a crazy cat dude, but even if someone doesn't like cats, I have an excellent reason for them to support my cause anyway;

Say the ideal situation happens; Declawing cats is illegal, there are mandatory cat shelters like there are for dogs, and cats aren't seen as property and are treated as they should be; with all of the respect given to any life. The best part? If this were to happen, it could NEVER just be cats. All of this would carry over at LEAST for dogs as well. At LEAST mammals would be treated better and cared for. The biggest part I find value in is people starting to understand they can't just treat an animal as an accessory to their life; it's a friend. You can't just have an animal in your home; give it the minimum for life and MAYBE comfort, snap a few photos, and call it a day. Interacting with them as equals is so, so meaningful and fulfilling. When you start to understand this creature, you are sharing your home with, your whole world changes.

I used to feel alone as a human being, not as an individual but as a species. We used to have more human species, but now it's just sapiens. I thought that was sad; we were alone. But when I finally opened my eyes to the world around me, I now feel like I can't get any alone time! Everyone is so unique, even the insects. I felt terrible when I saw someone crush a roach. Every animal is equal in value. Sadly, we're all different, which makes it hard for people to see that, but we are as incredible as each other. Seeing that changed everything for me. I have so much more love in my heart now…