My real first love was a kitten I named Aurelio. We met at my uncle's farm in the mountains of Colombia. I was only four years old. With Aurelio I initiated a non-stop frenzy of lovers. I used to bring home frogs (who never turned into princes), lizards, kittens, street dogs and injured birds hoping for my mom to accept any animal as the household pet.
It wasn't until I turned seventeen that a four-legged animal was accepted as part of the family. If Aurelio was my first love Lino, my Labrador was the love of my life. I switched the "princess" bed for a bunk bed so that Lino could sleep in my bed-room. I had the upper level, Lino the bottom. Shortly after Lino's arrival, my brother and I found a tiny kitten roaming around our building. She was all bones and whiskers. She became Lino's younger sister. We named her Misifú. My mom loves Misifú more than my brother and me. I don't blame her.
My love for animals has dictated many aspects of my life. I've been an on-and-off vegetarian for most of my life, I stretch cat-style every morning, I wag my tail when I'm excited, and I also love to wear animal prints while outside in the wild (i.e. friends' backyards, NYC streets, PATH trains, etc.), you know, for camouflage purposes.
I found this fabulous faux fur vest on Bib & Tuck (wonderful site where you exchange clothing with very fashionable girls), and have been wearing it pretty much every day. As certain Guayabagram suggested last night, I wore the vest with flower-print pants and a leather jacket while obscenely devouring Nutella crepes. Today my belly hurts.
Real Nice Thing in Life #12: The Aurelios and Linos that brighten our lives, teaching us what unconditional love is; to camouflage yourself in animal prints and bright colors hoping that the rest of the wild world is color blind; Nutella.
