A little while back, I took a trip to Colorado, to visit one of my siblings. Actually, all of the Chang siblings decided to meet up there. I don't quite remember who first suggested that we all get together, but I found myself on a plane headed out there. We had a good time, and as is common when the three of us get together, shenanigans were afoot and much laughter was had.
Looking back, though, there were quite a few laughs had around my sister's new cat, Tanuki. First of all, I should explain the name, since I was partially responsible for naming her. Given her size, the cat's tail was surprisingly big and bushy. My sister wanted to give her a name befitting of her tail, so she asked for suggestions. Me being me, I suggested Tanooki, Bushy, and Becky. The first one comes from Super Mario Bros. 3, where there is a tanooki suit that Mario can wear. Bushy should be self-explanatory (heck, I used the same word to describe the tail). And Becky ... well, that comes from the Sir Mix-a-Lot classic, "Baby Got Back." Disappointingly enough, she decided to go with Tanooki instead of Becky.
Now, those of you with sharp eyes will have noticed that the cat's name is "Tanuki" even though her namesake spelled it "Tanooki." Apparently, my sister's husband didn't like the double "o" in the original name, and someone else happened to say, "oh like Tanuki as a name." Next thing you know, the kitty was named Tanuki. Now, in that person's defense, that is how the Wikipedia article spells it. Still, I have Mario Bros. 3 on my side. That's one of the single best video games of an entire generation, and it's a freaking classic. Mario 3! I can still tell you how to beat some of those levels, and I guarantee you you don't have to go very far to find someone else who can do the same. Wikipedia or not, this was darn near blasphemy.
Anyhow, Tanuki was running around the whole time we were there, including when we were asleep. As I discovered, kittens are generally a) super curious, and b) nocturnal. This did not bode well for the two of us trying to sleep in the living room. I mostly escaped unscathed, but my brother complained that at one point, the kitten literally walked all over his sleeping body. Let's just say that I wasn't getting up quite as early as I normally do back home.
Of course, I wasn't immune from the nocturnal shenanigans, either. Have you ever seen a kitten play with any toy that moves around? They jump around trying to catch it. Even if it's a toy that is fairly static, if they fumble it a couple of times, they can get agitated. I personally saw Tanuki do this a few times, and she jumped and turned a full circle in the air several times try to "catch" a rubber mouse. It was pretty funny to watch, and I had a good laugh. It was not as funny, however, when she did this in the middle of the night and landed on me. Let me reiterate: the cat pounced on me in my sleep. Sure, she did it accidentally, but she pounced on me nonetheless. The kitty was lucky I was half-asleep, or we would've had words, I tell you.
The funniest thing, though, was that she got used to us pretty quickly, so she got attached. I was reading on the couch at one point, and Tanuki was getting pretty tired. She wasn't as crazy-active as normal, and she approached me to see what I was up to. Next thing I knew, however, she had somehow curled herself up between my legs and fallen asleep. It was pretty cute, but I then felt bad about jostling her too much. Luckily, the book I was reading took a while to finish, but it was still funny to be quasi-trapped by a tiny kitten. My sister even tells me that when I left, Tanuki was sniffing the same spot on the couch, looking for me. I think I can understand the people who say they have four-legged babies instead of two-legged ones just a little bit better now.
I think I may just have to visit again, to see what that kind of trouble the cat and I can get up to again. Oh, and I suppose seeing my siblings was pretty fun, too (more on that in later posts).
Looking back, though, there were quite a few laughs had around my sister's new cat, Tanuki. First of all, I should explain the name, since I was partially responsible for naming her. Given her size, the cat's tail was surprisingly big and bushy. My sister wanted to give her a name befitting of her tail, so she asked for suggestions. Me being me, I suggested Tanooki, Bushy, and Becky. The first one comes from Super Mario Bros. 3, where there is a tanooki suit that Mario can wear. Bushy should be self-explanatory (heck, I used the same word to describe the tail). And Becky ... well, that comes from the Sir Mix-a-Lot classic, "Baby Got Back." Disappointingly enough, she decided to go with Tanooki instead of Becky.
Now, those of you with sharp eyes will have noticed that the cat's name is "Tanuki" even though her namesake spelled it "Tanooki." Apparently, my sister's husband didn't like the double "o" in the original name, and someone else happened to say, "oh like Tanuki as a name." Next thing you know, the kitty was named Tanuki. Now, in that person's defense, that is how the Wikipedia article spells it. Still, I have Mario Bros. 3 on my side. That's one of the single best video games of an entire generation, and it's a freaking classic. Mario 3! I can still tell you how to beat some of those levels, and I guarantee you you don't have to go very far to find someone else who can do the same. Wikipedia or not, this was darn near blasphemy.
Anyhow, Tanuki was running around the whole time we were there, including when we were asleep. As I discovered, kittens are generally a) super curious, and b) nocturnal. This did not bode well for the two of us trying to sleep in the living room. I mostly escaped unscathed, but my brother complained that at one point, the kitten literally walked all over his sleeping body. Let's just say that I wasn't getting up quite as early as I normally do back home.
Of course, I wasn't immune from the nocturnal shenanigans, either. Have you ever seen a kitten play with any toy that moves around? They jump around trying to catch it. Even if it's a toy that is fairly static, if they fumble it a couple of times, they can get agitated. I personally saw Tanuki do this a few times, and she jumped and turned a full circle in the air several times try to "catch" a rubber mouse. It was pretty funny to watch, and I had a good laugh. It was not as funny, however, when she did this in the middle of the night and landed on me. Let me reiterate: the cat pounced on me in my sleep. Sure, she did it accidentally, but she pounced on me nonetheless. The kitty was lucky I was half-asleep, or we would've had words, I tell you.
The funniest thing, though, was that she got used to us pretty quickly, so she got attached. I was reading on the couch at one point, and Tanuki was getting pretty tired. She wasn't as crazy-active as normal, and she approached me to see what I was up to. Next thing I knew, however, she had somehow curled herself up between my legs and fallen asleep. It was pretty cute, but I then felt bad about jostling her too much. Luckily, the book I was reading took a while to finish, but it was still funny to be quasi-trapped by a tiny kitten. My sister even tells me that when I left, Tanuki was sniffing the same spot on the couch, looking for me. I think I can understand the people who say they have four-legged babies instead of two-legged ones just a little bit better now.
I think I may just have to visit again, to see what that kind of trouble the cat and I can get up to again. Oh, and I suppose seeing my siblings was pretty fun, too (more on that in later posts).
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