Make me a MacArthur Fellow? My mad scheme, explained

[WereBear]

Hey, most of my ideas are wild and "outside the box." Isn't that what we are known for, along with honesty, ethics, unconventional thinking, and being wickedly attractive?

I realized the other day that -- at least to my wild mind -- I qualify as a MacArthur Fellow, aka the "Genius Awards."

My Cat Guru skills have just been launched with my first book, which will be part of a series. I have built my WayofCats.com website with a blog that is pretty popular on just word of mouth and lately, a bit of advertising. I am starting to get Cat Consultations on a more regular basis.

All of this, and I am still in the hole financially; Mr WereBear and I have invested a lot of time and money because this is truly a labor of love for us, and part of the impetus to make it a functioning business is that it has to be. On the Web, popularity comes with a price; the more traffic a blog gets, the more expensive it becomes. My own success is threatening to destroy my dream.

I am performing an important service by creating a "cat system" that makes both cats, and their people, happier. I invented Cat Types, have a whole Lexicon of training and affection terms, and created concepts that people love.

Most importantly, my Cat System works. It is truly an innovative revolution in Cat Understanding.

MacArthur Fellows Program

The MacArthur Fellows Program, MacArthur Fellowship, or "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation typically to between 20 and 30 individuals, working in any field, who have shown "extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction" and are citizens or residents of the United States.​

MacArthur Fellows Frequently Asked Questions

What is the MacArthur Fellowship?
The MacArthur Fellowship is a five-year grant to individuals who show exceptional creativity in their work and the prospect for still more in the future. The Fellowship is designed to provide recipients with the flexibility to pursue their own artistic, intellectual, and professional activities in the absence of specific obligations or reporting requirements. There are no limits on age or area of activity. Individuals cannot apply for this award; they must be nominated.​

So how about it? Anyone want to nominate me? It's a goal I can't embark on myself, but after giving it considerable thought, I think this is an intriguing concept that keeps spiraling outward with beneficial implications.

Of course, this doesn't have to be me. There are lots of people on the Spectrum who qualify for their innovative contributions. Share such folks in comments and let's build a wave here. Start throwing nominations at the place.

If any of us folks on the Spectrum gets one, it will raise our profile and combat prejudice. Which is a worthy goal in and of itself.

 

[Catana]

Um, I think you have to do something a bit more significant. I hope you're joking about flooding the committee with nominations.

 

[kay]

hmmm.... I need nominated, too! No unsoliciated nominations though so I really don't know how one manages to get nominated. Apparently you have to wait to get a someone's attention. And I really want to spend five years painting portraits of dead sharks. Or at least dead animals. I'm not morbid, just dead animals pose better.

But about your cat thing. Might look at grants and stuff directed more toward small business and less toward the arts which is where most of the MacArthur money seems to go. Hope you do well with the cat thing, I know the last time I had cats I could have used a system or two. So I switched to bunnies and.....
If you had a bunny system instead of cat I would gladly pay you to solve my issues with my little Larry who is now known as Mr. Messy Pants for refusing to use his litter box for three days straight.