I haven’t talked enough about dragons, I don’t think. So, it’s time to start.
We’ll ease into dragon-talk with me mentioning the movie How to Train Your Dragon. I was a teeny bit afraid when I started writing the book I’m currently working on that it might draw comparisons to the movie (and book–the movie is based on a book, I discovered), but in fact, there’s very little in common between that and my work. I had to finish my book, then watch the movie to be sure. Bullet dodged! Which is usual around Writer Land. It is so VERY unlikely that any two writers would actually come up with the same book given even the same basic idea; and frankly, my current book doesn’t even have the same basic idea.
But the “phew!” moment aside, there were also about a thousand “AWWWWW!” moments. And not because the movie is cute and sweet, but because Toothless the Night Fury Dragon looks Just. Like. My cat.
Toothless
vs.
Kali
What, you don’t see the resemblance??
I can’t help you if you don’t see it. Maybe living with Kali is required. She has a variety of facial expressions, and I swear, Toothless uses every single one of them.
Kali has had an interesting name-life. She started out as Callie. Then she was adopted by my best friend’s mother, who called her Kitty. When said BFF’s mother realized she really couldn’t handle a cat, we stepped in, and my stepdaughter named the cat Kalissa. Which was, frankly, too long of a name, so we started calling her Kali (spelled like the goddess, but pronounced like Callie), and only after that did we find out her first name had been Callie. It was fate. That cat wanted her own name.
At some point along the line, as the only girl cat in a house of boys, she started to (ahem) demand to be referred to as a princess. You know, in that way that people do with their cats. I mean, we can’t be the only ones, can we? The only people on earth who talk for their cats?
Mostly, it was demanding food and pets on the grounds that “I’m a princess.” Later, Kali proved herself to be a Spanish princess (“Soy princessa”). She continued to distinguish herself in the household by a) getting diabetes and requiring an insulin shot twice a day and b) learning how to beg for treats by sitting up on her hind legs and raising one delicate forepaw in the air, like Augustus addressing the Roman army. None of our other cats have tricks, unless you count “can’t walk across the headboard of the bed without slipping down and falling on the humans’ faces” or “eats plastic” or “yowls aimlessly until you turn the lamp on for him (so he can sleep under it).”
And then we saw the movie and realized Kali was a Night Fury.
It was brought home today how complex Kali’s name has become. “Would Princessa Kalissa Night-Fury Dragon Toothless like a treat?” my husband cooed at her. Then he looked up at me, with this sad sort of expression that was something like, “What on earth did I just say???”
Well, he can’t UNsay it.
Just glad it wasn’t me.