Wednesday, January 06, 2010

Entry #14

Cat of Arc on Being a Bird
by Catherine Vibert


Hi, Cat of Arc here. I’m an entity from another dimension. When I am motivated by a crusade du jour, I possess people in order to say what I have to say. In this case, I inhabit the author in the byline. She really had nothing to do with this and will wake up remembering nothing.

Since I’m an entity, I have the ability to see things from many perspectives. As a cat, I have to say that birds have always fascinated me. I am enamored with the little flying dinosaurs and could watch them for hours. Endless entertainment.

But here’s a nice perk, as an entity I’ve had the opportunity to inhabit birds of all kinds. Each is so very different. I recommend taking up witchcraft so you can give it a whirl.

When I’m in a body of any kind, I fully enjoy the use of the senses. Raw meat is a favorite. And being a buzzard? My God! I’m really into eyes. I like to poke my long beak hook right into the middle and suck out the liquid. Just thinking about it makes me drool.

The other birds are always trashing them but buzzards are truly elevated beings. Sentinels that eat the dead and let the living live. It just kills me to think of the bad rap they get.

Well, if you’ll excuse me I feel the need to be a bird for a bit. Fly around. Stretch my wings.

Cat of Arc, signing out.

43 comments:

Sarah Laurenson said...

Love the voice. And the description. Reminds me of Diane Duane and her description of sharks and how useful they are, though much maligned.

Craig said...

A highly original take and an original way of putting it across to the reader.

Aniket Thakkar said...

LoL! I can't believe you seriously went ahead and did it!

All hail, Cat of Arc! :D

We all are big fans (apart from the drinking of eye juices part).

Fly away... dear Cat. Fly away!

PJD said...

Aniket said it better than I ever could. We were on the same wavelength here, even to the point of beginning our thoughts with LOL.

I love the bit about the bad rap. Does that mean that buzzards are bad raptors?

emeraldcite said...

Clever!

Bernita said...

Hee, thought the "eye juices part" were the best lines!

Rachel Green said...

Love the voice!

Chris Eldin said...

Loads of energy and fun in this one!!! Love your take on the prompt. I am left wishing there was more...

Kartik said...

wow! A really unique take ... "little flying dinosaurs"!

Lena said...

I love your Cat of Arc. Should I mention that it is unique take on the prompt :)

catvibe said...

Oh great, I see Cat of Arc has been using me again. Well, I'm sure she thanks you, even if her possessions wreak havoc. (Seriously, thanks everyone!)

wrath999 said...

Great imagination and an enjoyable read

Tara said...

Loved this take. Loved it.

Nevine Sultan said...

Cat, I just left a comment on your blog about this piece, but I wanted to come here and say that the strongest part of this piece of fine writing is the voice. It was strong, present, balanced, and just compelling. And this, despite the simplicity. Beautifully expressed!

Nevine

Jared said...

stepped right out onto that limb and it held strong! very engaging.

JaneyV said...

Terrific fun Cat - it's a pity that you don't remember writing it!
I've often wondered what it would be like to take over the body of a bird. Maybe witchcraft is the way to go.

SzélsőFa said...

and as a reader here I am thankful for Catherine for letting the entity speak through her. a fun take on the photo!

Terri said...

Cat of Arc - Love it!
Kind of like a "'scuse me for the interruption..."
Very original :-)

Amias (ljm and liquidplastic) said...

I love this creative possession, and such a fun piece to read .. original indeed!

DILLIGAF said...

mmmmm?...are you currently possessing one of my cats?

That was a very clever interpretation of the pic was that!

Thoroughly enjoyed it and my top 5 just became a top 7....

oh eck...stop being so good you lot!!!!

laughingwolf said...

ah yes, but would you wanna be a fly, cat? :O lol

Aimee Laine said...

Wouldn't it be cool to be able to anything you want? Even just to try it? :)

kashers said...

The liquid eye description made me drool too. Almost makes me want to try one... or two! Yum yum.

Great idea, execution perfect.

Lee Hughes said...

Loved the line: "The other birds are always trashing them but buzzards are truly elevated beings."

I've now decided that when I grow up I want to be an entity too!

Preeti said...

Ouch... the eye juices part made me squirm. But i LOVED the idea. SO ORIGINAL. Simply beautiful.
Cat of Arc. Hahahaha...

very very nice. loved the flow of the narrative. almost felt like a real cat was doing the narration... uncanny!!!

:-)

Laurel said...

I LOVE this tone! I would absolutely keep reading if this particular entity wants to narrate a book. Please say he/she/it does.

chong y l said...

Cat: I enjoyed lapping it up...but a sinister thought came after: what if they also put cat to join joanOFarc at the stake/steak? ( I'd better become an invisible entity for thinking aloud...LOL!)

Anonymous said...

Thanks everyone, I am truly loving your comments AND your stories.

Des, that would never happen. You see Joan actually believed she was human, she forgot the dimension from which she came. However, Cat of Arc might be seen with the slinking off with a steak.

catvibe said...

Oh, BTW, Laurel, I think it's a very good idea! I'm seriously considering it. Just THINK of the possibilities!

Anonymous said...

you had me at "buzzard"

Laurel said...

Cat:: YAY! Keep me posted.

Anonymous said...

precise and neatly done!

the walking man said...

The eyes have it! When it comes to carrion everyone first fear is having the eyes plucked while the heart still beats.

I like this simple straight forward voice Cat. Just the facts.

Anonymous said...

Thoroughly enjoyable to read and what an original take on the theme!

J. Randick

Anonymous said...

Nice casual tone and description. Most of the flashes (and there are many) have a dark, sinister, edge to them. But not here. --JR

Karen said...

Great voice here, and I really like the different take - just pure enjoyment at being him/her/itself. The point of view, too, strikes me as totally appropriate for this creature - a little detached consideration and he's off to peck again! I like!

McKoala said...

Wow, there are some very sharp self-referential pieces in this collection - this being one of them. Clever and crafty!

Stacy said...

This would explain a lot about my life when I had cats.

Deb Smythe said...

LOL! That was a fun one.

Anonymous said...

Dear Entrants #1-105,

I have read your pieces so that I can fairly participate in the Readers' Choice vote. (I read all of them through last week, before I started commenting.) I will be coming back around to offer my keep/tweak comment, but I didn't want anyone to snark.

Cheers,
Aerin (#236)

BTW, it's perfectly fine if you still want to snark, but this way you can choose a more appropriate subject, like the merits of Mafia Wars or whether Katie Holmes should demand a divorce

Kathleen A. Ryan said...

Catherine,
Love the presentation, the voice, word choices - what a fun story. So glad Jason's photo inspired you to write this piece.

raine said...

Ok, I loved the dry tone of this, lol. And yes, they do get a bad rap. :)
Great voice, this character could take on a life of its own...

Anonymous said...

Ha ha! Great voice in this!

I love that you took a humorous look at the photo. Highly original entry here.

Best of luck in the contest tonight!!

~ Corra