Dear dogged reader,
It’s interesting how we keep seeing things in the world reflected back to us when the subject is on our mind. Last week I wrote about love, especially in relation to our heartfelt attachment to our various animal companions. I’ve been seeing stories and hearing tales constantly that reinforce the focus of that newsletter.
In particular I read a touching account by author
about his twelve-year old cat, Roscoe, and her previous health crisis (spoiler: it ends well, so don’t worry). It’s always a pleasure to read Cox’s newsletters, and this was no exception. It’s a story of love and resilience for both parties.And for the writers among you I recommend his short and sarcastic post, ‘Why It's VITAL To Remember That Big Publishers And Their Sales Departments Always Know Best’, which details his own route to success by determinedly writing what he was told by experts wouldn’t sell because that genre was ‘over’.
Even if those people were accurate soothsayers, writing what you truly enjoy is always going to be more vivid and exciting than trying to match the latest trend. This means placing the value on the quality and originality of the art, instead of on its perceived marketability — because the funny thing is that salespeople often have no idea that’s going to catch public attention anyway.
This is not to disparage all the different types of commercial writing out there — people need a paycheck, after all — but if you are trying to express your unique voice then go for it hell-for-leather and ignore those who don’t vibe to your frequency.
Here’s another video that slipped into my attention-stream from Andrew Cotter, a sports commentator and mountain hiker, who gained a different fame during the maniac 2020 era for being the owner of two Labrador dogs: Olive and Mable. It’s about the joy of owning two dogs.
Cotter started posting videos of his dogs, overlaid with his signature commentary style, as a way to pass the time when there was a lack of sports events in the 2020 period. The viral popularity of ‘The Dog’s Breakfast Grand Final’ and ‘Game of Bones’ resulted in Cotter putting out two books Olive, Mabel & Me: Life and Adventures with Two Very Good Dogs and Dog Days: A Year with Olive & Mabel, which went down a treat with the dog-loving public who had also been spending far more time with their loyal pooches. The popularity of the books was partly due to Cotter’s elevated profile and his ease with video and photography, but mostly it happened because he did something he liked for a bit of fun about a subject he loved.
Olive is now getting a bit elderly so Mabel is accompanying Cotter solo on his extended mountain hikes, and this is the other advantage of sharing your life with dogs who are at different ages. The elder one trains up the younger one, who also keeps the older dog more active, and the younger one will be there to ease the eventual dog-shaped void in your life that is sadly inevitable.
Will Cotter’s books and the videos of his dogs change the world? Not compared to the dangerous, high-risk manoeuvres being performed daily in the global circus. It’s easy to disparage Cotter’s output as cheap fodder for a sentimental public, but after being wrung out from online info-bombing, I value stories/videos that remind me about the joy from comes a genuine connection. It grounds me in a reminder of the regular and ordinary kindnesses that abound, and which matter when it comes to navigating your everyday life.
One of the other things that owning a cat or a dog will remind you of is the joy of play. All young animals learn vital skills via play, and humans are no different. We can excuse throwing a ball for a dog or engaging your cat’s desire to hunt via a dancing red dot thanks to a laser pointer because it’s good exercise for the creature with a side effect of pure entertainment for the human.1 Otherwise, fun often gets a pretty low priority for adults, as we’re so busy and occupied these days. Something that is deemed frivolous or time-wasting becomes more frowned upon as you age, even though it was highly encouraged as a child.2
A helpful policy is to review your day and ask, ‘Did I have fun today?’ If you keep coming up empty then it might be useful to do at least one silly or ‘just for fun’ activity a day, because over time you will begin to resent your schedule and it will encourage rebellion in your heart against your life.
Previously, I wrote about my history of playing video games and the positive impact they’ve had on my life, which you can read here:
But throughout my life I’ve played all kinds of games, from card games, board games, and role-playing games (RPGs) such as Dungeons & Dragons. This is on my mind at the moment because I’m going to be a special guest this weekend at a local gaming convention, AthVentureCon in the nearby town of Loughrea. It’s the annual event of of the Athenry Adventurers RPG Youth Club. When I was growing up the idea of there being a club devoted to role playing games was utterly foreign. In my small town in the west of Ireland I couldn’t even find other nerds like me who could name a RPG, don’t mind start a club to celebrate it.
These days you can go to physical shops that specialise in selling the vast variety of available games — such as Dungeons & Donuts in Galway city — and they often have a room where they host regular card game tournaments or RPGs.3
Some of my closest friendships have developed from playing RPGs with people who were strangers at first. The games demand you flex your imagination in an arena where being inventive and playful is valued and rewarded. Sometimes it can be stressful, or even a bit aggravating, but mostly I remember the laughter and the outlandish escapades.
But there are so many other games that adults play, that are somehow slotted into respectable categories because they have more official sanction. Such as card games like bridge, strategy games like chess, or those that have ‘professional’ leagues such as poker, or even scrabble!4 And there are plenty of physical games like golf, badminton, pickleball, football, basketball, etc that people play for exercise and fun. Many of these can be played virtually as well, but no matter how people bemoan the arrival of AI and the erosion of our attention via online media, we humans (even the introverts) still need to hang out with one another, and its easiest to forge bonds via a shared interest.5
Last November, while visiting Waterford, I was brought to what in Ireland people refer to as an ‘old-man’s pub’. This means a cosy atmosphere, no screens, and minimal music; basically it’s a shared space for convivial conversation over drinks. On a Friday night this pub was busy, and buzzing with chat and laughter. While going to the bar I noticed a couple playing a game of chess. A short while later five older men began a games of cards while they supped their pints.
If I’m going to a pub, this is the kind of establishment I like to frequent.
But, nothing beats hanging out with friends, rolling dice and fighting monsters in a shared imagined location. It’s pure magic.
If you’re in the vicinity, I’m attending AthVentureCon this Saturday, where I’ll be discussing running a games as a Games Master, and I’ll be participating in a live Dungeons & Dragons session in the morning.
Come along, play a few games, and perhaps meet your next best friend.
Yes, there is tremendous footage of all of this online, of varying quality. But, hearing the owners laugh and watching the animals perform marvels always lifts my spirits. Just one small, adorable example is the video of Dutch goalkeeper Koen Geven teaching his cat Olli to become a goalkeeper (it’s an Instagram reel).
Weirdly, scrolling through social media, probably the greatest time-sink of any era, often with negative impacts upon your mood, is considered normal.
Some comic book shops in Ireland stock a wide variety of material which can include these systems too.
I’m not discussing video games in this instance, but I should add that eSports is massively popular, and most fans regularly watch their favourite gamers play live via Twitch or other channels. It has become a legitimate profession for lots of people around the world. And in relations to role-playing games, there are many podcasts devoted to discussing and reviewing them, as well as role playing sessions that are broadcast online also.
I often recommend that single people who are looking for a partner take up a hobby and join a club that celebrates their pastime. Hey, it worked for me!