I'm in the Petties...

Did you hear?  DID YOU HEAR?  I'M IN THE PETTIES THIS YEAR!

I am so excited.  I can hardly believe my good fortune.  I'm a finalist for the Funniest Blog or Blogger in the Petties. Can you believe it?  MOUSES!

As you can imagine, I was pretty excited when I found out about this.  I was practically over the moon.  I was lyin' on the couch in the family room when Peep #1 came in to tell me.

Picture it...  Nova Scotia, Canada...  My house.  "Nissy," the peep said.  "Guess what.  You're a finalist for Funniest Blog or Blogger in the Petties."

Well I sat right up right there and then and exclaimed, "I am?  MOUSES!"

Seville was lyin' on the floor and started laughing.  He was laughing so hard, he rolled over on his back and his belly started shakin' like a bowl full of jelly.  Of course, Seville has no jelly in his belly. He's a cat.  Cats don't eat jelly.

"They think you're funny!" my brother sputtered between fits of giggles.  "That's hilarious!"

"Uh...  yeah.  That's the whole point, Sivvers."  I looked up questioningly at the peep.  "That is the whole point, isn't it?"  I looked back at my brother and narrowed my eyes.  "Just what are you talkin' about there, marmie?"

Then it hit me.  What if I'm a finalist for bein' funny?  What if it's not for bein' funny as in ha-ha but rather, funny as in... off?  MOUSES!

That very morning, when the power came back on after bein' off for three and a half days 'cause of nasty ol' Hurricane Arthur, the peep had checked on the milk in the fridge and she had said, "Ewww...  This milk smells funny."  Funny...  FUNNY.  MOUSES!

My jaw dropped and my whiskers drooped.  My tail gave a little tremble.  I, Nerissa the Cat, did NOT want to be a carton of sour milk.

That's when the peep scooped me up in her arms and gave me a little congratulatory snuggle.  "You're a finalist because your blog makes people laugh," she explained.  I glared down at Seville but he didn't notice on account of his fits of the giggles.  Apparently I had made him laugh, all right. Once more I say, MOUSES!

But what does it all mean?

Well for starters, it means that I owe each and every one of you out there who nominated me, a big ol' THANK YOU!  I am honoured.  I'm at a loss for words.  I'm speechless. Well...  maybe not quite speechless.  I do - as you know - have a tendency to ramble on just a tad.  Just a teeny-tiny tad.

Anywho...  I LOVE YOU ALL!  How's that for bein' short and sweet, huh?  Short, sweet and oh-so-very true.

But now comes the hard part, I'm afraid.  Now the VOTING begins.

If you would like to see Nerissa's Life WIN the Pettie for Funniest Blog or Blogger, you can vote for me once a day, every day, from now until August 7th.  It's a Thursday.  I checked.  Not sure it matters but I checked anyway.

To vote, all you need do is go to the Petties website by clicking here...  THE PETTIES;  or over on the badge I've put up in my sidebar.  Once there, click on "finalist voting" in the upper bar, on the right-hand side.  You'll be directed to sign in with e-mail or Facebook and then a ballot will pop up. You'll find Nerissa's Life in the Funniest Blog or Blogger category.  Just click on the little circle to the left of Nerissa's Life to vote and then click on "submit ballot" at the bottom and viola!  Your vote will be cast.

You can also vote in all the other categories, if you so desire.  If voting in more than one category, be sure to do all categories before hitting "submit ballot" 'cause you only get the one ballot each day.

Winning this award would mean so much to me.  Winnin' an award like this would mean that cats and peeps out there enjoy readin' my blog.  It would mean that twice a week, every week, my blog posts bring a little joy into the lives of my readers...  my pals...  all of you.  And it's you for whom I blog in the first place.  Without all of you, what would be the point?  I might as well just be keepin' a diary or somethin'.  You know?  Of course you know.

But do you know what else?  IT GETS BETTER.

The winners in each category get to choose the shelter or rescue of their choice to receive a donation of one thousand dollars.  ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS!  Can you believe it?

That means, IF NERISSA'S LIFE WINS, the peeps at the Petties will donate one thousand dollars to the Homeless Animal Lifeline in Manalapan, New Jersey 'cause that's the rescue group I've chosen.

The Homeless Animal Lifeline, also known as HAL, is an all-volunteer NJ 501c3 nonprofit charity. They work closely with shelters and rescues, helpin' to save as many lives as possible through foster programs and the like.  And they go that extra mile to help save the lives of kitties that are hard to place.  Special needs kitties.  Kitties that might need some extra medical attention which is expensive.

HAL is super small but they do so much good, often workin' with very little. Receiving this money would mean the world to them.  I just know it would. PLEASE HELP ME WIN THIS FOR HAL.

Remember...  you can VOTE once a day, EVERY DAY, from now until the competition closes and let me tell you, I need every vote I can get.  MOUSES!

Come sing with me!  I'm in the Petties... I'm in the Petties...  I'm in the Petties, this year.