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New Day Cafe: Bedtime Ritual [1]
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Date: 2025-04-27
Good morning, Newdists! Hope you’re all doing well this morning. I’m surviving, as usual.
I’ve always been a creature of habit. When I get into a routine, it becomes a ritual for me. Perhaps that is partly why I have such a fondness for cats, because we have that much in common.
Zoe and I share a very special bedtime ritual, which we carried out last night as we always do. The BF and I share a bed, but he’s a night owl, so I almost always go to bed without him. When I’m ready to go to bed, I announce it to Zoe. At this point, I think she actually knows the words “time for bed,” because she seems to respond to them. Usually, Zoe is lounging on the sofa around my bedtime. I simply walk up to her and say, “Time for bed!” Either she knows the words, or she can tell from my tone or mannerisms that I’m about to go to bed. At that point, it’s a 50/50 chance that she gets up and follows me. Last night, she did! On nights that she doesn’t follow me immediately, she’ll almost always come to the bedroom within about 10 minutes. Either way, she walks into the bedroom, goes over to the bed, lets out a little meow while getting ready for liftoff, before jumping onto the bed.
People who have met Zoe might not believe it, but she is a very sweet cat—to the BF and (especially) me. At no time is she sweeter than at bedtime, though. She likes to snuggle up next to me and use my arm as a headrest as we watch spooky YouTube videos before I drift off to sleep. I don’t know how this started as a ritual, but I think it began shortly after Autumn passed away. Autumn was always a cuddlebug, and it’s almost as if Zoe sensed a need to step in to make up for her absence. I don’t take it for granted. I miss Autumn every day, so I make sure to savor every second I get to snuggle with Zoe.
Right after jumping up onto the bed
Time to get comfortable
Watching YouTube while eating my dried corn snack is the other part of my bedtime ritual...based on her ears, I don’t think she’s a fan of the crinkly bag, lol
Of course, she’s still a cat, so bedtime cuddles have their limit. Whenever she hears the BF walk down the stairs, that’s when she decides it’s time to get up. She knows she can always score some bonito flakes from the BF, so I can’t say I blame her.
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From belinda ridgewood and our friends at the Inoculation Project:
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