Fun for Cats and Dogs

Hello internet.

I saw a dog this morning, and I was once again struck by just how ridiculous they are. I grew up with dogs, and always found they are best for three things: wrestling, tricking and cuddling when you are sad. The dog ran in that inefficient bouncing doggish way, unlike the smooth lope of a wolf I have heard so much about in generic fantasy novels. It's ears flopped about comically, tongue flapping about. Everyone else has seen this too.

Stupid as they are, there is a certain innocent joy to a dog running around that warmed me somewhat. They seem to take pleasure in the simply fact of life with all its exuberance. Maybe we can learn something from dogs. Maybe I was just projecting, and its stupid self was not really feeling anything in the sense we feel at all.

It is always tempting to contrast cats and dogs, probably because they are so familiar to people in many societies. We all know about domesticated cats and dogs: no other animals have their presence in our popular consciousness. It is a cliché, but cats seem to take pleasure in the suffering of others. At least that's the impression I get from their arrogant little faces. Maybe that's why we like to see them brought down a peg or three by watching videos of them falling off things on Youtube (I just got the urge to search for such videos, I bet anyone reading just did as well).

I think I would rather have the fun dogs are having than that of cats. I would rather enjoy my own life than enjoy watching other people fail. Unless those other people are cats.

Caleb