5 Stories of Animals Who Walked into the Lives of People, Leaving the Humans to Wonder, 'What am I to This Creature?'

Animal Conversations?

Almost a clone of my old cat walked up to me in Hobart:-)

I listed to a recent 'Conversations' podcast yesterday about animals and people when I was writing my last post about recalling a cat that was a dead ringer of an old cat I had as a pet in the 80s/90s.

Tasmania and a Lonely [Looney?] Planet?

It's not like I felt that cat in Hobart was a reincarnation of my old cat, or even an angel or some such thing.

It was just to me a very bizarre coincidence (maybe somehow instigated by "The Universe", who knows?-) when I was photographing a gate I saw that had the surname of some old neighbours I grew up with as a kid.

Ironically, those same neighbours owned a dog and they tried to quell my fear of dogs as a young lad by getting me used to patting the dog to show me the dog wouldn't hurt me.

I became so confident the dog was my friend after a few weeks of spending time patting and talking to their dog that one day while at a birthday party/BBQ I went to show my mother how brave and not scared of dogs I was, by patting the dog.

Unfortunately for me someone had just placed a plate of sausages in front of the dog when I went to pat it and the dog jumped up and bit me clean though my bottom lip, and the party for me was over (and my trust in dogs) while I was taken off to the doctor to get a mouthful of stitches:-)

Probably what turned me into a cat person more than a dog person, I guess, looking back now?-)

Exploring Byzantium, the World of Ghost Empire

It was fun hearing Paul Carter talk about his pet monkey again, and I couldn't help wondering whatever happened to that movie that was going to be made about riding around Australia on a bio-fueled motorbike?

Run it by Chris Hemsworth and Taika Waititi I say, as they could make a funny movie out of your bike story Paul.

Paul Carter: When Taoism and Synchronicity Collide

I found an old photo taken of my cat sleeping on our old couch decades ago, and placed the photo in an old plastic frame and put it on my bookshelf in my computer room, as that was the position he was buried in, because a driver had run over his head by accident when he was sleeping on the road (dumb cat).

Gabriel (Peter)

Kedi

Hello Birdy

William McInnes

I like William McInnes with his animal stories, and I loved him in the 'Hello Birdy' TV series, as well as the movie 'Look Both Ways'.

I love reading and listening to people's bizarre and spooky animal encounters, even if in their mind it is some alien, angel or deceased love one sending them a message:-)

The Lord of the Rings and the Mind's Eye?

But WHO really knows, right?-)

Conversations: The animal that walked into my life — story collection