#2417 three things: hashtags

 1. #Augustbreak2020.  The lovely Susannah Conway comes up with a few mindfulness photo challenges every year, usually in April, August, and December. She give us prompts every day and then you post a photo on Instagram (IG). In April and August, I usually post a pic I took that day because the prompt challenges you to be mindful of what's around you. December is for reflections, so I will dig into my photo archives sometimes to come up with stuff. I've been doing these photo challenges for a couple of years and now Mom and Lizzie are doing them too. I love to look at their photos and photos of other people, mostly women, who follow Susannah. If you are on IG and want to check it out, just put #augustbreak2020 in the search field and take a look

2. #Huskadorsofinstagram. My dog Mac is part husky part lab: she is a huskador. It just so happens that there is a hashtag on IG called #huskadorsofinstagram and it is full of photos of dogs who look a lot like Mac! There are also Facebook groups of huskador owners. Turns out these critters can be a bit exasperating, funny, goofy, and stressful and there are groups online to offer support and recommendations. We also share pics and videos of our pups being cute or naughty or smart. It's been fun to look at other dogs like Mac to get an idea of what size she'll be and to find out what other people do to keep this highly energetic and inquisitive dog occupied and entertained.

By the way, Mac gets her last set of puppy shots tomorrow, so I'll be able to take her over to the park for walks and to the dog park to run around. She needs more activity than running around in the back yard. I'm excited to see how it all goes. Also, on Monday we start a puppy training class at Petsmart. I'm very excited for that. We both need the training!

3. #cottagecore. I was listening to the show 1A on NPR this morning and the topic was something I hadn't heard of called cottagecore. It is an aesthetic related to idyllic, bucolic lifestyles, or at least the fantasy of it. It is photos of maidens in flowy dresses in a flowery meadow, or close-up pics of rustic homemade bread. I had to immediately look it up on IG, and then I followed the hashtag because, why not? Click here to read a bit about it.