By Rachel Brandes
Quote of the Week
“You have been criticizing yourself for years, and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.”
– Louise L Hay, American motivational speaker
Moments by Mira
Ever After Photography PNW, located in Gig Harbor, Washington. Click the link below to see the creative catalog of work on Mira’s website.
Feline Tomfoolery
with Brady & Belichick
Dear Belichick,
Why are you always asleep when I want to play? I will sit wide-eyed until you wake.
Much Love, Brady
Brady & Belichick are Rachel’s adorable felines. These two cute boys turned two on May 4, 2025.
Salt Lake City Sights
The Phobia Experiment
As part of mental health awareness, for the first 26-weeks of 2026, Rachel will explore her phobias A-Z. This experiment is to bring awareness to why the fears exist and attempt to reduce the impact they have on her daily life.
Phobia List Website — Check it out
Decidophobia is the fear of decision making. Rachel has no phobia on the D list but found this one interesting. Decidophobia must be a rough one to live with. Do you know anyone with decidophobia?
Alec & Victoria’s Adventures
in
– Salt Lake City, Utah –
It turns out participating in a fantasy football league has consequences. Imagine it, a season of excitement and fun, and then… punishment for the loser. Poor Alec. After losing his fantasy football season, he was faced with three options for punishment.
- Shave your long, curly locks.
- Allow your friends to dress you up for a night on the town.
- Perform five minutes of stand up at a comedy club.
If you know Alec, you know that shaving his hair would be the most tolerable punishment. It’s a good thing his head turns out to be a nice shape. It looks like his friends had a good time delivering the punishment.
Alec, Rachel’s youngest son, and his partner, Victoria, live in Salt Lake City, Utah. Rachel loves to share their adventures.
Belichick Bounces Back
At just two and a half years old, Belichick is a little black cat, the runt of his litter, known for his surly expression and long, messy locks. His mischievous brother, Brady, is his constant companion; together, they get into plenty of trouble and curl up together for afternoon naps. However, just prior to his move from Washington to Utah, Belichick’s playful spirit dimmed. It must be stress, right? Once settled in Utah, Belichick went downhill fast with symptoms that left everyone puzzled.
It started with small changes in his behavior. Belichick no longer chased his favorite toys and spent more time hiding under the bed. Soon, he wasn’t trying to eat or drink very often. When he tried, he had seemingly lost the ability to use his tongue. He would smash his face into his food and get what he could into his mouth. The same method was used when attempting to drink. He was essentially drowning himself with each attempt to drink and would pull his face out of his water bowl with coughing fits. His coat lost its shine, his weight dropped, he was no longer able to turn without falling over and he could no longer clean himself. He was like a rag doll to hold.
Concerned, his human took him to the vet, where Belichick was evaluated by neurology, orthopedics and finally a belly ultrasound. All negative. There was nothing that explained his symptoms. Rachel feared she would need to let him go, as he had lost any quality of life.
Belichick’s human brother, Alec, and his partner, Victoria, work in veterinary medicine and were able to provide Rachel with support and ongoing discussion about what might be wrong. Stress was certainly an issue. Alec reminded Rachel that when she hyper-focused on Belichick, he felt it. “Stop stressing him out, mom,” Alec said. She knew she would need to alter her outward fear into a positive outlook. Another suggestion that continued to surface, allergies. Was Belichick allergic to Utah?
Over the four plus months of this ordeal, Rachel tried several things in stages. She replaced her smooth rugs with carpet type rugs for traction. She trimmed the hair on Belichick’s paws. She replaced a cat perch at the window with a cat staircase. She changed his feeding bowls to wide opening bowls and plates to keep his whiskers from getting matted with food and stuck together.
Slight improvements took shape, but overall, Belichick was still miserable. Rachel finally revisited the idea of allergies and consulted Alec on medicine options. Within hours of administering Benadryl, Belichick showed some improvement in his demeanor. Rachel wasn’t going to stop there and didn’t want to have to continue giving him medicine. She obtained an air purifier and decided to leave the patio door closed to keep the outside air outside.
Brady, always loyal, stayed close to Belichick during these months, offering comfort with his presence and doing his best to keep Belichick clean. This was a group effort.
Recovery has been gradual. Step by step, Belichick began to regain his energy. He emerged from his hiding places, his appetite improved, and before long, he was once again wrestling with Brady. Each step was a wave of happiness for Rachel. He continues to make improvements every day. The day Rachel caught him cleaning himself, she was ecstatic.
Despite his size (now 8 lbs), Belichick proved that even the tiniest members of the family can overcome big challenges. Whether it was switching out rugs for better traction, changing feeding bowls to relieve whisker stress, or experimenting with antihistamines, every effort was a step toward recovery. Utah’s air might have knocked him down, but Belichick’s resilience, and the love that surrounded him, helped him bounce back stronger than ever.
The only problem… Now that Belichick is feeling so much better, he is exploring his new environment in Utah and trying out the new cat perches (even if Brady is already using them). Oh, Belichick, you little rascal. Brady will surely share his new woes in an upcoming issue. Until next time, be well.
