Tag: love

The Legend of My Cat: Churro

Mikayla Olivia OrrsonLeave a comment

Churro has been adjusting to Los Angeles. He has become more adventurous in the apartment and is making friends with my new roommates.

For those of you who don’t know about Churro, it’s a beautiful story of how a kitten adopted me.

In July 2018, I found a small kitten outside my apartment in Brooklyn. This wasn’t surprising since there was a large population of strays in the area. The kitten followed me, purred, and asked for pets. He was so sweet, but also so little. I jokingly named him Churro, mostly because I was on my way home from work and I had a large to go box of churros in my purse.

But, I left him outside because I feared I’d be taking him away from his mother. Also, I didn’t know what I’d do with a cat in the apartment since I already had a dog.

The next day, there was a terrible thunderstorm. The storm mellowed out for a minute, in which we took Tate (the dog) outside for a walk. Tate started going berserk at something under a car.

I crouched down to find little Churro crying in a puddle. That was it, I knew I was meant to help him. I got him inside and the fight to save him began. He has cuts, intense fleas, and was starving.

But, he also was grateful. I could feel his love for every act of kindness. I didn’t plan on keeping him at first, seeing as I already had a dog, but he was different. Churro had his own plan, which was to take over the apartment and my heart.

Jump to a little over a year (today), my little Brooklyn boy is now living in Los Angeles!

He’s gone from coast to coast, he is spoiled rotten, and he still shows me unlimited gratitude.

He’s started this behavior again, one he had as a kitten, where he needs to always have a paw touching me. When he did it as a kitten it was cute, now doing it as an adult cat it’s a sign of our bond.

Churro and I have been through a lot this year but here we are, happy and healthy in California.

Who would have guessed these two little street cats would be where we are now!?

I do believe in the powerful bonds that humans and animals make. I believe Churro needs me as much as I need him. His pure (or should I say purrr) excitement for me waking up is indescribable. He’s changed my life for the better.

Thank you, buddy.

-Mikayla Olivia Orrson

11 Days of Showing My Makeup Remover Towelettes And What I Learned

Mikayla Olivia OrrsonLeave a comment

There’s my face in all it’s glory! I first started this project as a message about inner-beauty, yada yada. But, I learned way more interesting things about myself!

Here are my revelations:

1. I can clearly tell by looking at each picture which days I had work vs my off days. Can you tell?

At work, I wear vibrant lipstick colors and lots of mascara. On my days off, I do minimal makeup.

Not too interesting, right? Wrong! It put me in a tailspin of overthinking about make up at work.

I want to believe I put makeup on for work because I want to ‘put my best face forward.’ But, even that doesn’t sit right with me. Why? Because my ‘best face’ is my real face. So, why am I putting on this mask to work? I think to find that answer I need to do some more deep inner diving.

Which leads me to the bigger point:

2. Do you see the yellowish color on the towelette? That’s my foundation. Seeing how much I put on was really eye opening to me.

My skin is my biggest insecurity. I constantly obsess over pimples, red marks, and even my freckles (most I’ve had since I was a child).

In college, I was at a seminar with the entire student body. In which, the owner/founder of the school pointed me out in the crowd and said that I would be beautiful if I knew how to take care of my skin. That moment was devastating, I was humiliated. And that insecurity only worsened and developed into a unhealthy relationship with my skin.

I don’t leave my house without foundation. I don’t even like being alone in my house without foundation in case I catch a glimpse of myself in a mirror!

What can I take away from this experience? Tons.

I’m going to set a challenge for myself and since I’m blogging about it, I have to actually come through. (Feel free to hold me accountable.)

The Challenge

One week of minimal to no makeup. On work days, I will do bare minimal (light foundation and mascara.) And on my off days, I will wear absolutely no makeup.

I know this isn’t a huge challenge for a lot of women, but it is to me. And it’s not the size of the challenge, its that you’re willing to be challenged.

Moral of The Story: We all have insecurities with our bodies, but it’s the little steps towards self acceptance that make the difference!

-Mikayla Olivia Orrson