Tag Archives: Volunteering

Weekly Check-In

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! This is my weekly check in and I really didn’t do as much as I had planned on doing. The main thing I did was hang out with friends. Mostly hanging out with friends throughout the week is what helped me the most. It appeared that hanging out with friends including eating food and lots of it. So, I had great company and awesome food.

Another thing that I did this week was volunteer at PAWS Cat City. It was mostly learning the day to day operations. Some of which I already knew as I experienced it as an adopter of a cat at PAWS Cat City. I also got a lot of kitty time. Specifically with one cat in particular and I am hope she got adopted. I am really happy that I am volunteering there as it is going to be a great healing process for me in regards to Lil Gertie and I feel like this is a way I am honoring her memory.

I didn’t attend any of my groups this week. I didn’t attend the D&D group due to a migraine and really want to attend it. Now as far as my DBT group it was cancelled “due to snow” at 8:30ish in the morning when I know for a fact there was no snow in the city of Seattle and informed the clinician of it. He then stated “oh it is cancelled due to the potential of snow.” When I asked why he didn’t wait till later in the morning to make sure if the weather would actually have it snow the clinician didn’t have an answer so I said bye and hung up. It didn’t snow in Seattle on Thursday and was quite upset I was lied to.

Now I am on way to work. Thankfully, no snow yet. I hope we don’t get snow as I am not a big fan of the white stuff. I do not like the cold that comes with it as well. Snow is a big deal here in Seattle and pretty much closes down the city. Anyone who has lived in Seattle during snow already knows this. I think I should finish getting ready for work. I hope work goes well tonight.

I do not have much more to say. I want to thank you for reading my blog as it is greatly appreciated from end of things. Have a great weekend everyone. Peace Out, World!!!!

Feeling Good About Volunteering

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World!!! So, my last blog post was in regards to my anxiety regards to my new volunteer job at an animal shelter. It is the same animal shelter where I adopted my beloved cat, Lil Gertie. The staff and most of the volunteers where I adopted Lil Gertie, remembers her and have given me their condolences.

In fact, I already feel like I am apart of the the “family” where I volunteer at. They are so accepting and caring. When I arrived for my first shift there was a “welcome to the family” card signed by staff and volunteers.

Anyway to get on to my first day, I volunteer at a local animal shelter that is known well to the Seattle area. I volunteer at PAWS (Progressive Animal Welfare Society) satellite cat adoption center; PAWS Cat City. PAWS main location is in Lynnwood where they have a wildlife center as well as an adoption center where they adopt both cats and dogs. Like I said I volunteer at PAWS Cat City which is in the city of Seattle and is a satellite center where they adopt cats only.

The community where PAWS Cat City  is located is awesome. Many of the the volunteers at Cat City are college students and they are protective of Cat City as they should be. But the thing I find heartwarming is that the homeless community is just as protective as the college student community and it is something both of these completely different communities can agree on. In fact the homeless community makes sure that the block Cat City is on as well as the alley is kept clean and makes sure it doesn’t get tagged up. In fact the homeless community have even helped with preventing any crimes against PAWS Cat City. I find this heartwarming because my paid job is working with the homeless community so I feel like I am where I am suppose to be with volunteering at Cat City.

I hope to be able to take some pictures of available cats to post them here but I am not sure what the policy is. So that means, I am waiting on a response to an email to see if it would be okay. If it turns out to be okay then I will post pictures. I most likely would post pictures of cats that have been at Cat City the longest as I want good homes for them.

I do not have much more to say as I do not want to become repetitive. I want to thank each one of you for reading blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of things. Again, I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. I hope everyone has a great Friday. Mostly importantly I hope everyone has an awesome weekend. For those who live in the Seattle area, I would like to remind you all to be safe if it starts snowing. Peace Out, World!!!

Anxiety Over Something I’m Looking Forward To

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World!!! I am high anxiety right now. In less than forty-five minutes from now, I will be starting to volunteer at the animal shelter, I adopted, Lil Gertie from. I will be volunteering with the cats and am excited about it. I am also extremely nervous about it. I am not sure why I am anxious about it especially since I have looking forward to it. I hope I am able to meet their expectations of me and exceed them. But then again that is the perfectionism in me. Wish me luck as I start this new adventure.

I wish I could write more but I need to finish getting ready and most likely would repeat myself. I want to e thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from end of things. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. Peace Out, World!!!

An Anxiety Type Post Dealing with Cats and Volunteering

Posted on by Gertie

Hello, World!!! It just barely after nine in the evening in my corner of the world. I am anxious about tomorrow. I am anxious because I am going to have my first shift at the animal shelter I adopted Lil Gertie from. It is going to be bittersweet as it will bring up some grief and sadness but also be a blessing for me as it will remind me of the love I received from Lil Gertie. Plus the animal shelter I adopted my precious cat, Lil Gertie, has indeed become like family to me. I was encouraged to apply a number of times but when Lil Gertie received the dread diagnosis of cancer, I knew it was time to apply and I actually followed through with it even though I was in the midst of going to info sessions and trainings, Lil Gertie crossed over the rainbow bridge.

I think the family I received just adopting Lil Gertie is growing a little stronger and becoming larger now that I am going to be volunteering. I will be meeting new friend which means they will become family or at least that is what I have experienced with other volunteer gigs and the same thing at all my paid jobs. I never knew how much support I would get or how my support system would grow when I adopted, Lil Gertie. The adoption of my cat, Lil Gertie is has been proven helpful for me with growing some great support from people I would have never encountered in any other way. If I didn’t adopt Lil Gertie, I wouldn’t be making new friends and have them become family to me.

So starting to volunteer at the animal shelter I adopted Lil Gertie as is a way to not just honor her and her memory but a way for her to still be with me in spirit. I am anxious about it but I know she would want me to do this. I am hoping this will help with my grief as well.

I do not have much more to say because it feels like I am starting to repeat myself. Thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of things. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. I hope everyone has an awesome week ahead of the. Peace Out, World!!!

Weekly Plans

Posted on by Gertie

SUNDAY

  • Get off work
  • Mindfulness and Meditation
  • Take nap
  • Lunch with friends
  • Do a workbook focused on recovery
  • Take a walk

MONDAY

  • Mindfulness and Meditation
  • Community Meeting for apartment building
  • Group Therapy; Dungeons and Dragons (D and D) Yes it is a group I go to.
  • Work on a workbook focused on recovery
  • Walk with friends
  • Dinner with neighbors

TUESDAY

  • Mindfulness and Meditation
  • Walk alone
  • Breakfast with a friend
  • Work on a recovery focused workbook
  • Volunteer at PAWS Cat City (I get to help people find the right kitty for them)
  • Dinner with a Friend

WEDNESDAY

  • DSHS office
  • Grocery shopping
  • Make lunch for friends
  • Mindfulness and Meditation
  • Do a recovery focused workbook

THURSDAY

  • Breakfast with friends
  • Mindfulness and Meditation
  • DBT Group (Group Therapy)

FRIDAY

  • Mindfulness and Meditation
  • Do recovery focused workbooks
  • Cook dinner with friends.
  • Read and watch movies all night to help me sleep during the day on Saturday

SATURDAY

  • Sleep all day
  • Work all night

 

 

Weekly Check-In

Posted on by Gertie

Good Evening, World!!! As I stated in a previous post, I am restarting to do my weekly check-ins with you all every Saturday evening. This is help keep you my reader engaged and not bored with my blog. Not only is it my hope to keep you engaged with my blog, it is also my hope for my blog to help me. When I first started my blog I never expected it to be of help for me personally however I quickly realize it was helpful for me.

Well, as many of you know we all celebrated the New Year on Tuesday night. I really didn’t do anything but be in my jammies and watched the New Year come in on the television. I was hoping to bring it in with my cat Lil Gertie but sadly she crossed over the rainbow bridge on Thanksgiving Day evening.

Another thing I did this week was finished up my training to become a volunteer at the animal shelter where I adopted Lil Gertie at. My first shift is this coming Tuesday on the 7th of January. It is something I am looking forward to.

Something else I did this week and was happy inform him of my new volunteer gig was see my new therapist. It was only my third session with him but he appears to be cool. He was happy to hear about my new volunteer job. We discussed a great deal He also was interested in my job as well.

Speaking of jobs, I will be going work in the next half an hour. I enjoy my job for the most part. I just do not like the fact that it is at night. Night shifts aren’t the best for someone with sleep issues. Having insomnia sucks and a night shift doesn’t help much.

Speaking of sleep, I slept okay today. My sleep could have been more restful but at least I got sleep. I just don’t like sleeping during the day.

I do not have much more to say. I just want to thank you all for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of things. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I hope everyone has a great rest of their weekend. Peace Out, World!!!

Goals for 2020

Posted on by Gertie

Happy New Years, World!!! This is the time of year where many people make resolutions for the New Year. I, however don’t make resolutions. I make goals. I make goals as I tend to keep them as well as they can be made at anytime of the year. I just wanted to share with you my goals for the upcoming year. It is my hope to be held accountable to you my reader by posting my goals with you fine folks.

~Attend appointments with mental health treatment team as well as groups on the regular basis. (I already do this however when things get bad I tend to isolate and avoid life like the plague. No, I am not expecting things to start going bad with my mental health symptoms.)

~Blog an average of three times a week. (I have found since I started blogging that it is quite helpful for me. I hope that blogging an average of three times a week will help you my reader stay engaged.)

~Read six books. (Last year it was my goal to read twelve books and I only read one. So I am making the goal a little more reachable.)

~Start and complete two recovery focused workbooks. (It is my hope that starting and completing two workbooks will help me with my recovery.)

~Get a job that is not night shift. (I have realized that working night shift is not for me especially since I have insomnia and need a regular sleep schedule.)

~Start volunteering with cats at a local animal shelter. (Hell, I have already started this process and my first shift is January 7th. In fact it will be where I adopted Lil Gertie and am looking forward to it.)

I have a few more goals but they are a little bit more private. I hope that you all can hold me accountable to the goals I mentioned above. You guys are all amazing and awesome.

I do not have much more to say. Thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated. Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading my blog. I hope you all have a wonderful New Years. Happy New Years, World!!!

Words to the Emotions

Posted on by Gertie

Hello, World!!! I didn’t do much of anything for a good portion of the day. I did go in for a meeting with the supervisor for the peer run help line I volunteer for. They wanted to “check in” with me because they got information from the crisis line that I had been calling frequently as well as the peer run help line I volunteer on. They said “it sound a lot like you.” I informed this person it was not me and asked him seriously, “why would I call the crisis line or this line when I have a distinctive and unique voice?” He replied “I don’t know why you would.” I informed him that I did not call the crisis line the peer run help line however I did call the after hours crisis team of the agency I am a client of on Valentines Day due to the anniversary of my grandma’s death. I went to show him my phone to prove to him I didn’t and I offered to sign an ROI for him to talk to my therapist. He declined both and said “I am at a loss of what to day.” More or less I validated him that he was in a tough spot no knowing who to believe. So, he is “cautiously” letting me back to volunteering on the help line for a handful of reasons. I guess, I am bothered that he thinks that I have been calling both lines but I understand him wanting to “check in” to make sure I was doing well. I just can’t get out of my head that I am being told that I am call helps lines when I am not but this is something I need to stop ruminating over as I was told I could go back to volunteering.

When I got home from my meeting I decided to paint. I decided to paint due to the mixture of emotions I was dealing with in regards to the meeting. It helped me get the emotion out that needed to get out. It helped me realize that I needed to find the words for my emotions.

That is when I decided to journal. Granted, I am still trying to find the right words to put to my emotions but journaling did help. In fact it helped a great deal just like the painting did.

I do not have much more to say except I am grateful that the supervisor is letting me back to volunteer. I hope everyone has a great rest of their evening and night. Peace Out, World!!!

Fighting Off Depression With Humor

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, World!!! I have been up for several hours now and could really use a nap. The problem with taking a nap is if I do take one, I won’t be able to get up in time to go to my volunteer job and will not be able to sleep tonight. The sad thing is I woke up in a very depressive state. A depressive state that is quite concerning for me however if I am able to get through the next few days it is my hope that the depression symptoms with start to subside. I am pretty sure that the grief I am dealing with in regards to the loss of my grandma on Valentines Day of this year (2018) could have a lot to do with the increased symptoms of my depression.

Since I have been fighting off depression and grief I decided to watch the Netflix special that Ellen DeGeneres did and is so happened the show they made into a special was here in Seattle. I wish I was able to attend it in person however I was unable to do so. I am just thrilled that I was able to watch it earlier today on Netflix to help with my mood. Ellen is quite funny and I personally think she is relatable to people or at least she is to me. After watching Ellen’s Netflix special, it was quite helpful in lifting my spirits and not making the decision to call out “sick” for my volunteer job this evening.

Not only did watching the Ellen special on Netflix help me make a good choice to go to my volunteer job tonight but helped to blog about how I am feeling about shit. Shit like the depression and grief I am dealing with at the moment. Blogging seems to help and hope that sharing my story help you my reader some how. Blogging is a great outlet for me just like watching comedy is.

I don’t have much else to say at the moment. So, I want to thank you for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of things. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Peace Out, World!!!

 

Still Fighting Off Fucking Depression

Posted on by Gertie

Good Afternoon, again, World!!! I am still fighting off fucking depression however it is slowing going away with the things I have done so far. I hung out with a friend. We went to Red Robin and had a late lunch, early dinner. We then walked around the mall and ended up getting pictures with Santa Claus. Getting a picture together with Santa was fun.

Even though the holidays bring more depression my way, I am glad I am coming up with new ways to fight off the depression and to start new traditions. My friend and I are going to do the Santa picture every year from now on.

I am now at my volunteer job waiting for five o’clock to come around as that is when my shift start. I only have about fifteen more minutes till my shift starts which is okay with me. I love my volunteer job. I have been at this volunteer job for four years now. It has helped me a great deal with my life and mental health.

Granted my depression is still acting up at the moment but I am glad I have decided to not isolate. Isolation is a persons worst enemy when they have depression. Fighting isolation and depression sucks shit but I am currently doing it at the moment.

I am just realizing this is my third post today. I have not posted multiple times in a day in a very long time. I am grateful that I am utilizing this great coping skill for me. I hope that me blogging helps you my reader.

I do not have much else to say. I hope everyone has an awesome Saturday afternoon and evening. Thank you so very much for reading my blog. It is greatly appreciated from my end of this. Have a great evening. Peace Out, World!!!