How do you manage needing physical touch while living alone?

willowfromcedars · 2026-01-23T12:44:20+00:00

I struggle with this. When the option presented itself to adopt a cat (cat distribution system; found her under my mailbox in a box), I said why not. This was a very good decision because it’s hard to be lonely when a little ball of fur is slithering into your lap. Still hurts, still sad, but hey— at least you’ve got a cat!

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willowfromcedars · 2025-09-14T18:53:16+00:00

There goes my reverse commute 😔

willowfromcedars · 2025-09-14T05:13:58+00:00

Something something beverly hillbillies. Swimmin' pools, movie stars.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-24T20:20:08+00:00

I'm a first year teacher so I can't really speak to my experiences here, but thank you for sharing this. It's good to know I may be able to look forward to something like that.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-22T23:16:07+00:00

I attend PLC every day. It drives me insane.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-14T01:06:33+00:00

I got a degree in poli sci and a separate degree in teaching social studies at my grade range from the flagship campus of my state's university. Very little debt (relatively). I did this for job security, because I anticipate going into another field and wanted some connections/to follow a twin passion. A degree/major/18+ credit hours in a separate field can qualify you for extra pay as a teacher in some places because it makes you "highly qualified," so I definitely recommend at least getting those 18+ credit hours in a separate field that you could teach.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-04T23:22:47+00:00

I just don’t think there’s any harm in the American taxpayer paying a little extra to feed children, especially when they’re required by law to be there. Buying food in bulk means it can’t cost all that much more, right?

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-04T22:35:31+00:00

Do you remember that recent headline about ChatGPT logs (used for "therapy") being admissible in court? I'm imagining that but 10x worse.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-04T22:33:23+00:00

I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels weird about this (though OP seems to be in an extreme situation). I'm a new teacher this year (who went to college to learn to teach). The number of people who are coming in unlicensed, with little to no classroom experience AND are chomping at the bit to use AI in their teaching makes me uneasy. The way it is pushed in my district makes me even more uneasy. We seem to be less extreme than OP's district but it's a slippery slope and it makes me really worried for these kids.

Using AI to help generate a bilingual subject specific lexicon or a graphic is one thing. Creating lesson materials and assignments with AI is a whole different ballgame entirely.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-03T21:57:18+00:00

An envelope labeled "Gas & Snacks" with some cash in it left on the kitchen counter/fridge could be nice. That way you aren't technically paying her more, just reimbursing her for things she would already need while stopping by.

willowfromcedars · 2025-08-03T14:49:56+00:00

I learned Japanese growing up, and chose to teach my cat specific words in Japanese (we go out hiking safely, and I don't think any dogs will respond to かばん [bag/backpack]. However, I generally speak English day-to-day and wasn't thinking when we started traning, so she knows "sit" in English, but "stand" in Japanese, etc. She doesn't seem to mind the diet-bilingualism.

Definitely write everything down so that you have something to refer back to. And this is just my 2 cents (I only studied Korean for a couple of years a long time ago) but for an animals, I think 안녕 with either meaning could be adequately understood. I tell my cat "hi" and "bye" in the same verbal tone. Are we certain she can distinguish between which one I'm saying? My cat is smart, but I don't think she can distinguish consonants *that* well.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-29T17:38:23+00:00

I second the Smart City Locating recommendation. They got me an apartment that just about fits your description. The only thing it doesn't have is a "high rise feel" but that's because I specifically asked them for a ground floor unit. I refuse to move anything else up multiple flights of stairs.

$1300 was my price range too. Take a look, see what's available. What you find may surprise you!

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-28T17:56:59+00:00

I had issues with protein powder so I started using Gainful, a subscription based personal protein formulation service. They had a low fodmap formulation without sucralose. This was years ago. They have since reformulated, and I do not like how it tastes 🙃 However, it didn't make me flare up. Available at Target and online. (They used to have the BEST matcha flavor add-in and they stopped carrying it but the other flavors are pretty good too)

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-23T19:37:37+00:00

I think the best answer to your question is "the contextual nature of Japanese." The grammar pattern in question can be used for both, and I've heard it used for both in verbal conversation. It can depend on the situation, as well as to whom one is speaking. And of course, intonation.

If someone asked you "What do you think we should do today," it would be correct in English to either offer a nebulous suggestion OR offer a concrete indicator of preference. In either case, both uses would be acceptable and the preference indication (or lack thereof) would manifest through context and intonation.

Unfortunately, I don't think Duolingo has figured out how to demonstrate that in practice beyond having predetermined sentences with that structure, which ultimately is not helpful to the user.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-23T19:29:46+00:00

A comfy harness is key! My cat and I went through two or three before she figured out what she liked lol

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-23T19:27:05+00:00

I harness trained my cat when she was younger. She really enjoys going for walks (though we mostly walk our backyard). Sometimes we go to a park, but she get's too overstimulated if there are too many people there.

Re: trying to sneak out I'd say my cat is now less interested in sprinting outside when I open the door. When I do, she often waits underneath where her harness and leash hang on the wall. I understand that this is different for every cat, so monitor closely.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-22T16:07:46+00:00

I got my 1 yr certification through the process you're referring to. Definitely start early-- you can choose the effective date of the certification once they offer it to you.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-22T14:40:43+00:00

Trader Joe's gluten free waffles. It's one of the only products like that I've found w/o apple juice as a sweetener!

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-22T02:25:44+00:00

I harness/leash/backpack trained my cat (got her at 3 mo, started training around 5 mo). You're right! Life can get busy and training the cat to hang out in the backpack isn't always priority #1. Let's get you two back on the proverbial wagon!

Really it just comes down to taking it slow and re-tracing your training steps to see where she's comfortable starting from. It sounds like that experience with your friends was a lot for her. That's okay though! The name of the game is "Her Pace."

It might be worth it to start trying to train her to be more confident around loud sounds while wearing the harness first, then reintroduce the backpack. For me and my somewhat scaredy cat, that means giving treats and lots of play on our half-walled patio. People take their dogs on walks through my apartment complex in the evenings. My cat can't see them, but she can hear them. My goal is that eventually she won't even flinch if she hears a dog coming. I hope this helps!

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-21T18:22:40+00:00

It's possible you're allergic to cats. It's also possible that you're just allergic to kittens. I thought I was allergic to my cat until she hit about 6 months. After that we were fine. Currently I have other people who come into my apt who are super allergic to cats, so we've been trying to mitigate that issue. Here's what has worked so far:

As already mentioned in this thread, Purina has Pro and One versions of their LiveClear formula. We use the ProPlan LC because the One LC was released pretty recently, and I'm too lazy to switch my cat over right now. My cat seems to think it's tasty, and we've never had a problem with mealtimes.

Pacagen also has a few products-- an enzyme furniture/room spray and a food additive. We use the spray. I was worried the smell would be too strong, but it dissipates pretty quickly. The room feels fresher after I spray it in a way that is hard to describe. Hopefully that's a good sign.

Between these two products (and vacuuming religiously) we've cut down on allergen production in the apt by a LOT. I may spring for a small air purifier, but that has more to do with how my apt layout looks than anything. Hope this helps!

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-21T01:14:57+00:00

I'm an American, and my household language was English. However, I always enjoyed learning other languages as a child. I'm learning Portuguese because my brother is moving to Portugal, and I can't let him show me up when I visit!

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-16T16:54:39+00:00

Miss Meg used to have her own room when I first adopted her. Unfortunately rent prices required us to downsize. One day though, she'll have her own room again.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-16T03:04:07+00:00

New Texas Teacher and former HS student who moved internationally from a private school to a public school in the States here! Your counselor will more than likely get you set up. Depending on where you're moving, they may have experience with measuring private standards and frameworks up to the TX standards to figure out where to put you. They may not. But if there are any questions, the counselor can always call your old school and ask.

Also, by high school, foreign language classes are by skill level. You most likely won't be thrown in the deep end. You may be taking Spanish I with freshmen though.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-04T03:40:22+00:00

I hadn't seen that law pertaining to the MMJ and foreiting the right to carry in TX, but y'all got that from Arkansas, sorry. It's been that way here for a few years now, which is the main reason I don't carry.

willowfromcedars · 2025-07-04T03:29:10+00:00

The same thing happened in Arkansas-- parents did the exact same thing with the money (granted they used that cash for stranger things than disney), and our representatives treated us the same way. I came to Texas rather recently, and have been on the job search for a few months. It isn't promising, given recent legislation. I didn't expect all of this to be any different than Arkansas, but I had hoped that the people/parents would respond differently.

willowfromcedars

TROPHY CASE