Here’s your Friday internet sack of miscellanea – the cat edition. Don’t scoff. I NEED THIS.
30 Renowned Authors Inspired By Cats: I don’t usually post Buzzfeed articles because quite often 8 million people have seen them already, but this one was too good. It’s got charming little stories, photos and quotes from the author’s works, all surrounding their favorite feline muses. It’s nice to know that even a notorious brute like Hemingway could be softened by the cuddles of his six-toed “love sponge” Snowball. I am pretty sure the Herman Hesse photo (at left) is my favorite. Actually, they’re all my favorite.
Written Kitten: This site rewards you with a cute kitty photo for every 100/200/500 or 1000 words that you write (you can adjust the numbers at the bottom of the screen.) We tested it and it works. If they made a similar site that rewarded you with kitty videos, I’d be even more chuffed, but I’d probably write a lot less, too. Shrug.
Pussy Riot and Riot Grrl, Considered: As the Pussy Riot fracas dies down in the media and everyone moves on to the next socially conscious and edgy cause du jour, let us not forget these amazing women and the legacy their protest and imprisonment have left for the rest of us. This thoughtful article from the L.A. Times traces the riot grrl and punk movements that may have inspired Pussy Riot. In a beautiful moment of circularity, the author points out that Pussy Riot has come to inspire these groups in turn and spurred many of us who are fortunate enough to live in democracies into thinking and acting with consciousness and compassion.
Penny Dreadful Podcasts: This found item is not cat-related but it still rules. The Chicago Centre for Literature and Photography (CCLaP) usually presents a yearly themed anthology of short works by U.S. writers, but this year they’re trying something completely new, and presenting these works in the format of episodic Penny Dreadfuls via podcast. A Penny Dreadful was a type of lewd, serialized fiction sold for a penny per issue in 19th century Britain. The “Podcast Dreadfuls” are dark and weird and end each week with a cliffhanger. You can listen to them all here.