testmeat photoblog

this is the resident cat of the hostel where i stayed in coro, venezuela - a friendly cat who i once set on fire. actually that makes me sound like a bit of a monster - the truth isn't quite as black and white - let me explain. i had just returned from the shops, poured myself a glass of 7up and was about to tuck into a sandwich when the power went out. this was a fairly common occurrence in venezuela, and as the sun was going down i decided to light a few candles to illuminate my banquet. i placed them around my hammock and then turned my focus back to the sandwich. the cat approached the hammock hoping to get my attention, and in turn hoping to get a bite of my dinner. as she paced the ground i saw her tail wiggling dangerously close to the open flames. a simple option would have been to move the candles, or move the cat, but instead i watched. i assumed that the intense heat which you and i associate with fire is a sensation which is shared by the feline community. i was wrong and i watched her dip her tail into the burning candle and immediately catch fire. the burst of light that the firecat created actually made it easier to see my dinner, although that was offset by the unpleasant aroma of burning hair. plus did feel at least partly responsible for failing to protect her from the fiery torture chamber which i had constructed. if you still think i'm a monster then you'll be happy to hear that karma was also in agreement. after i polished off my sandwich i reached out in the dark for my beverage and gulped down the contents - only to discover that the contents included a colony of ants who were swimming in the glass. i guess we both learned a valuable lesson that day, don't leave an exposed fizzy drink near an army of ants and don't, y'know, set yourself on fire.

here's the original