Monday, April 10, 2017

Imperfectly Painted Turns 7 (It's time we talk)

Today is Imperfectly Painted's 7th birthday. Every year that goes by I can't believe I've been doing this as long as I have. I still can't. When I started this blog 7 years ago I couldn't believe I blogged for a year, 2 years, or even 3 years. When I hit my 4+ milestones I figured that this was just a part of my life and I didn't really see that foreseeably changing until this year.

This year has brought about a lot of exciting developments and changes in my life and for the first time ever what's in store for Imperfectly Painted is not very clear. I don't plan on stopping this blog. I plan on maintaining it at the pace I've comfortably set over the past year and a half until that no longer becomes feasible which it might. Then, I'll play it by ear. I enjoy this blog and until I can't do it anymore or more infrequently I plan on running it the same.

What are these developments and changes? I can share some of them with you, but one is a surprise that I hope to reveal to you very soon that I think many of you will enjoy along with me!  As many of you may know from following me on Instagram I have been a cat volunteer at my local animal shelter (Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando) for 4 years now. I spend time socializing cats, providing enrichment, and helping adopters find the purrfect kitties for their family. I am also a lead volunteer and I train new volunteers every month.

My years at this shelter have provided me with so much passion in purpose in life. When thinking about a career path it dawned on me that I have been looking in all of the wrong places and the path was underneath my nose the past 4 years all along. I'm meant to serve animals. Every cat I come into contact with I want to make their life better, feel comfortable, and be happy. When I encounter a scared cat at a shelter and I sit with them, talk to them, see them relax, and have them head butt me or start purr I feel I've made a difference to them in their life. In that moment I made them feel respected and loved and that means the world to me. There are countless cats out there who need help and who need comfort, guidance, and someone who respects them to help them live happy and fulfilled lives. I want to be one of those people for them.
Starting in June I will be starting my certification to become a Feline Behavior Specialist (think Jackson Galaxy but not 😜famous). I will be taking courses through the Animal Behavior Institute in Feline Training and Behavior and doing field work at the shelter where I currently volunteer. The certification should take 6 months so I should be certified in December. I have goals of hopefully assisting in shelters/rescues as well as offering behavior consultations to individuals locally and nationally via Skype and email. Remember, I also have something else in store that I hope many of you will want to be a part of too! I should be able to reveal it in the next week or two. Stay tuned!

All of this is my priority right now and with certification courses as well as doing more shelter work that is going to take up a majority of my time. There maybe a few hiatuses here and there, but I do really hope I can maintain this blog. I love nail polish, while it's not my passion, it is something I enjoy and see it as a relaxing outlet for me.  This blog has served me so well and prepared me for this new venture I have in life I'm very excited about.

I want to thank you all for supporting me and staying with me all of these years. I do hope that I do have some more left in this blog long term, but time will tell. As for now, I'm thinking things will stay the same, but I wanted to forewarn you that they may change!

Many thanks!


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