One afternoon I was sitting in the waiting room at my vet's office, waiting to pick up a prescription. A young punk-looking couple came in with a small cardboard carrier. This couple was dressed all in black - T-shirts, jeans, boots, and they were covered in piercings and colorful tattoos, with red/black/blond hair. The young man especially caught my eye. He had beautifully drawn and brilliantly inked tattoos extending up from his wrists and disappearing under his T-shirt sleeves, and he was both massive and solid. They sat next to me on the bench with the carrier on the young man's knee.
The carrier was so small I thought it must contain a pet rat but suddenly little mews and scratching noises came from the carrier and two little pink noses pressed through the air holes. The young man opened up the carrier and brought out two tiny perfect pure white kittens. The kittens were very young and they were wide-eyed and squirming, so he placed one on each knee, holding them firmly in his huge hands as he waited for the vet. What a great photo op - and there I sat with no camera. I was in agony!
The kittens had their examinations and the young couple had departed before I had my brilliant idea. I asked the receptionist for some paper and a pen and I wrote a message to the couple, as I was sure they would be returning for kitten shots, and neuter/spay procedures. I said something along the lines of "I have been bringing my cats to this vet practice for many years and they know me and can attest that I am not an axe-murderer or anything but I would really like to photograph you and your kittens." I left my contact information and crossed my fingers. A few weeks later the young woman phoned me and we made arrangements for me to visit them for a photo shoot.
The kittens had been christened Spirit and Opportunity after the Mars rovers, and I think they were 8-10 weeks old by the time I arrived on their doorstep. I did not stay too long because the couple were clearly uncomfortable and the kittens were bored stiff and fell asleep before my eyes. But I did get a couple of nice shots, although I cannot say which kitten was which because they were identical.
Many thanks to Andrew and Laura for helping me learn a valuable lesson - I now keep my camera with me at all times!
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| Awake! |
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| Nodding off |
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| Out like a light |
