Nice try.

Not common knowledge

Cats. Can't live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em. I kid, I kid. Cats aren’t for everyone, and people can definitely live with or without them. I'm a cat lover myself, with a beautiful little mischief-maker named Pearl as my daily source of joy and laughter. Cats, in my opinion, are one of the greatest antidotes to life's hardships. Pearl has this ability to turn any ordinary day into something special, and despite her sometimes troublesome antics, there's nothing like a cuddle with her to melt…

Airbnb hasn't been the most popular company lately. Hosts are notoriously unreasonable, greedy (and sometimes lazy) , and the cleaning fees are exorbitant. It's absurd to see a home listed for $200 a night when the fees actually bring it to twice that. Unfortunately, this is the reality of renting from the company's hosts, and though more people are turning to hotels for their lodging needs, Airbnb remains an important option for large groups, pet owners, and people seeking extended stays. This…

I went on a long-ish vacation this week, to celebrate a friend's wedding. One thing that every person in the bridal party has in common is that we are all obsessive cat owners. And being away from home, we really, really missed our cats. Somehow, between various wedding duties, we were able to fit in a trip to a cat cafe in beautiful Palm Springs, California. The cafe, cleverly named Frisky Business, was wonderful. The cats? Purrfection. The staff? Doting and delightful. It was the perfect ther…

I love animals. I have two rescue cats whom I adore and am eager to pet any dog that crosses my path while I'm on my way to and from work. We've even got an office dog, who goes by the name of Mousse. There's no question that his presence warms the hearts of the company's workers. He may even help improve productivity. But giving the okay for Mousse to join us Mondays through Wednesday was no easy feat. See, our HR administrator wanted to make sure that everyone in the office was comfortable wi…

I never thought I would be a cat person. My mom, a staunchly anti-cat dachshund lover, was not shy about her contempt for all felines. She'd recoil when neighborhood cats would come to her for affection, and loudly point out any time she got a whiff of disgusting cat piss. Basically, I was taught that cats are unfit for human companionship. While I enjoyed the company of my friends' feline pets, I never felt the connection. Fortunately, humans have the incredible ability to change their minds,…

Recently, a Twitter user ( @PhadkeTai) has sparked outrage and anger among pet owners and animal obsessives by suggesting that our beloved pets are incapable of loving their owners. The tweet, which quickly went viral - generated quite a heated debate and a lot of criticism from those of us who believe (or know!) that animals are indeed capable of love and emotional connection with their human companions. @PhadkeTai's remarks were perceived as insensitive and dismissive of the deep bonds that m…

I have a confession to make. I wasn't always a cat person. I might talk about them constantly, share memes about them, and think about kitties all the time, but for the first half of my life, I was a hardcore dog person. I think this is mostly thanks to my mom, who would denigrate felines whenever she saw them. She'd grown up with dogs, dachshunds to be exact, and felt cats were cold and unpredictable in comparison to her beloved weiners. Obviously, she was wrong. It's easy to simplify the diff…

It's been years since I had a dog of my own. Taking care of the energetic beasts isn't an easy feat, and it doesn't exactly suit the urban lifestyle - especially in New York City where we pay exorbitant rents for shoebox-sized apartments. While I happily accept my new cat-person identity, I enthusiastically enjoy dogs vicariously. This means cooing over photos of my friends' dogs, or spending time cuddling with my parents' adorable (and huge) canine companions. No disrespect to my cats, but the…