Tabs

It’s that time of year again — the holiday season. And it’s in full swing! Halloween zoomed by, and now Thanksgiving’s on the docket. After that, it’s smooth sailing till Christmas.

Seriously, though, I don’t know about you, but this year was an enigma wrapped in a riddle for me. We always say, “This year went by so fast!” but no, really, what the heck happened to 2025? I feel like I kinda lost a year, like, I went to bed last July and woke up in November. This was like the cheetah of the 2020s! Zipped right by.

Anywho…Thanksgiving. I cannot lie — I have a lot to be thankful for. I know we’re all working on borrowed time. Life is cruel and always too short. I’m thankful for my family and our health right, and I’m thankful for everything that has ever made me smile, including you. 🙂

Thank you, dear universe, for another blessed day.

As usual for a holiday, my mind always wanders to thoughts of Tabs… He passed away six years ago. Six years. And I still think of him every single day. That’s the honest truth. Not a day goes by when I don’t think of my tabby.

Thanksgiving was, of course, a big day around here when Tabs ruled the roost. He was a very thankful tabby.

He was thankful for his fabulous physique, his business acumen and, let’s be honest, for gravy.

The newer members of the family aren’t so new anymore. Rosie has been here since 2019, and Marnie joined the company in 2023.

Speaking of Marnie, she’s thankful for her family.

Even for Rosie, although there is some tension there…

As for Rosie, she’s thankful for her preternatural intellect and her many international science awards.

Happy early Thanksgiving! Hope you have a wonderful week ahead. Thank you, friend. 😊

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Rosie and Marnie already have their Halloween costumes picked out, but it’s funny — compared to Tabs, both of them are low-key basic.

Tabs just had that je ne sais quoi.

Every year on Halloween night, before he got dressed up for the annual party, he would do his rounds patrolling the neighborhood to make sure the paparazzi weren’t around.

Most of the time they weren’t…

But sometimes they were!

It was never anything he couldn’t handle because he was fierce, but it was still annoying.

Some cats just don’t understand boundaries. 😹

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

We had an exciting weekend!

Yup, Marnie entered her first race. She was vying for the title of “World’s Fastest Dog of Novato.”

Unfortunately, there was a greyhound in it. Fastest dog I’ve ever seen. But Marnie came in a close second.

She was very disappointed that she didn’t get the win…

Rosie felt bad for her, so she put on her tiara and her favorite tutu and went over to her workshop…

She wanted to make something to help cheer Marnie up.

Rosie worked really hard at it…

Eventually, she came up with this!

A participation medal for Marnie.

It instantly cheered her up. 😊

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

So, Marnie Mae’s internship here at Tabs the Cat Industries is unpaid.

Luckily, she boards here on the corporate campus rent free, but there are a few things she likes to purchase from time to time…

Like the other ladies in the house, she buys some beauty products. She’s also saving for a Labubu and a trip to the dog spa (gotta get her nails done!).

To that end, she relies on her weekly allowance for her spending money, and this week she made bank!

She did double her normal chores and made an extra $5!

Yup, she barked at three dogs and spent an extra 10 minutes looking out the window.

The big question now is what’s she going to do with the money??

What do you think she should do with it?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Man, this inflation is crazy, isn’t it?

Rosie’s been doing everything she can to help. I can’t say I have much job security, though, because Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC isn’t quite the plus-size kitty modeling powerhouse it once was.

We’re getting by, but it’s tough.

At least Rosie’s trying new things and coming up with new ideas to keep the business relevant, like her collaboration with FASA, the Feline Aeronautics and Space Administration.

We got a lot of good sponsorships from that one.

Yup, that one paid for a lotta chicken, if you know what I mean. 🙂

I gotta say, though, things have been tense around the office. Poor Marnie gets the brunt of it, too. Being an intern, she isn’t used to Rosie’s intensity, and it bubbles over every once in a while…

Today Rosie spent five hours exploring the company garden, where she says she does a lot of her best brainstorming work.

That’s funny because Tabs used to say the same thing, except that he coupled gardening with deep-tissue kitty massage…

I mean whatever, right? Tabs was a boss’s boss. He was such a business genius that he could pretty much do whatever he wants.

I guess that’s the cross one bears for greatness. 😊

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Man, some of the neighbors around here used to have no respect for authority. Everyone knew that Tabs was the head honcho. He was the CFO (Chief Feline Officer), for meowing out loud!

Like the local turkey troupe? They were always monopolizing the corporate salad bar. One day, Tabs wanted to grab a quick bite before he started some intense kitty modeling negotiations with Dior, but he couldn’t because of these guys…

The nerve!

[Continue reading…]

Tabs…

One year on a very special Labor Day, Tabs gave the employees of Tabs the Cat Industries LLC the day off…

I know! This came as a shock to everyone because Labor Day was normally one of the holidays the company did not observe, because Tabs liked to interpret “Labor Day” as meaning “a day to labor,” instead of as a day to celebrate labor by taking a day off. 🤔

Even though I basically ran the office on a day-to-day basis, it was hard to question him. He was, after all, the most successful plus-size kitty supermodel in Novato, California, history, so he obviously knew what he was doing.

Even though Tabs didn’t encourage time off from work (he was a total workaholic), there was one thing he did encourage…

Fashion!

He always dressed to the nines, and he liked to see his employees do it too.

Whether it was clothes, jewels or crowns, there were always people and cats playing dress-up at the office.

Yup, it was a fun place to work.

Rosie…

Nowadays, the office isn’t as “spicy” as it once was, but Rosie has been getting gussied up more often lately. Like today, she had four wardrobe changes!

That cat is definitely improving her style. 😄

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen