It didn’t have to be this way…
Who hasn’t had the experience of going shopping and finding the perfect blouse, sweater, or jacket to round out an outfit. You buy it and when you get it home and try it on again — you find the security tag still attached. “Argh,” you exclaim and contemplate what you’d like to the sales associate when you return to the store, knowing you never will.
The salesperson forgot. It happens right? For luxury items, stores want to provide a deterrent to shoplifters. It’s frustrating. But in most situations, you can return to the store, show them your receipt and have…
You can’t have just one
I have three cats. Some might call that the starter pack on the road to being a crazy cat lady. People who know me believe I’m already there. I’m not going to dispute either point of view. I like cats.
Two of my three cats are littermates that I adopted together. The third cat, Scout is a kitten. She’s blind and is five years younger than the other two. Scout’s the kitty equivalent to being a surprise. She’s like the kid that parents have when they thought they were done. Scout’s older sisters haven’t bonded with her so sometimes she…
It will make you a better writer
I’m currently working on a young adult novel that I hope to see published. I’m also an avid reader. I’ve found as I read books — novels to be specific — I read with a writer’s eye. I carefully study things like plot and character development. Sometimes if the book really sucks, I struggle to finish it. I do try to finish it though. I often learn more from bad books than I do from good ones.
These books usually have a few things in common that make it hard to finish. …
We never painted by the numbers, baby / but we were making it count
The name Taylor Swift conjures up all different emotions. At times, she’s been known for who she’s dating as much as her music. Taylor’s been in and out of the news in recent years. She rose to popularity as a teenage country star, and at the height of that popularity, she switched to pop music. Her new indie album, Folklore, has sold 1.3 million copies in 24 hours. Through it all, Taylor Swift’s fans have remained devoted to her.
Her fans’ loyalty is something all creatives can learn from and attempt to emulate.
Take the Time to Work on Your Craft
Taylor set a goal at an early…
And what I did to fix them
In January, I adopted a blind kitten. I had gone with a friend to yoga at a kitty café. I hadn’t planned to adopt that day. We attended so my friend could scope out the kitties and perhaps find some kittens she might be interested in adopting. Instead, I fell in love with a blind kitten. I adopted Scout the next day. I’ve learned a lot from that experience.
I adopted on a whim and didn’t do any due diligence
I failed to do any research before I adopted Scout. As a result, I had no idea how different life with a blind kitten would be. Although I quarantined Scout in…
What I learned after binging YouTube videos for a year
Throughout the pandemic, I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time on my computer and on social media. Like most people, I’ve watched a ton of shows and movies on Netflix. And when I’ve gotten bored with that, I’ve moved on to watch YouTube videos. I’m slowly making my way through the 37 million+ channels on the platform.
The channels range anywhere from travel vlogs to cat videos to Influencers blogging about their day and anything you might need to fix or DIY. One cute Golden Retriever named Tucker has over 3 million subscribers. …
How to use hashtags to your advantage
There’s no doubt about it, the Publishing /Writing community has a love-hate relationship with Twitter. That’s probably because there’s no shortage of posts about this writer or this agent or that editor making a misstep or two. Nonetheless, the platform is a great space to promote work, network, and seek sage advice from your peers.
By putting the hashtag to good use, there’s no end to the treasures you’ll find. The hashtag, also known as the pound sign (#), acts as a keyword for social media posts. I’ve searched the platform and found some great ones for writers.
Here are…
Learning | Animals
What to do when you have to leave your pets home alone
A certain Texas Senator is getting a ton of crap for high-tailing it out of Texas for the sandy beaches of Mexico during the apocalyptic snowstorm that’s hit Texas.
When Twitter busted him, he said he was simply escorting his daughters there when in reality he was staying for four days. Pictures then surfaced of his little white poodle looking out one of the windows in Ted’s house like a refugee left behind after a disaster.
The dog, ironically named Snowflake, was potentially left alone in the freezing house while Ted and the rest of the family were kicking it…
They’re not unfriendly, they’re just introverted
Dogs have long been marketed as man’s best friend. You know how it is. If you want a companion to fetch balls and help you get a date, keep a dog. Meanwhile, if you’re an aging agoraphobic spinster, then a cat or twelve is more your speed. Why is it that way?
It’s simple. Cats need a better marketing team. Cats are actually really good companions and should challenge dogs for the best friend title. Because they are low-key and laid back, they don’t bother. Cats are confident in who they are. They don’t need a slogan to tell them…
What I learned after using HelloFresh
There has been an influx of online meal kit services in the last few years. It’s not that surprising. These services offer convenience to meal preparation that didn’t really exist before. And especially in the United States, we are a society that likes convenience. These services are so popular that they are projected to see an increase in revenue of 7.6 billion dollars by 2024.
What makes them so popular?
When many of these meal kit services started in 2012–2013, grocery delivery wasn’t as widespread as it is today. These services offered a niche market to people who wanted to cook but didn’t necessarily want…
Nancy Parish
Writer, Midwesterner, Amateur Cat Herder, Nap Enthusiast. Previously, Contributing Editor for Children’s Writers and Illustrators Market.
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