My Cat Holds No Grudges Against Neko Case

My cat has nearly 1,500 friends on MySpace.

I can't explain how this happened, but my cat Sitka P. Coldfoot has more friends on MySpace than I've had in my life. Among Sitka's MySpace friends are nearly 500 bands (including 82 from Iceland). I mean, he's definitely a cute kitty (and everyone who meets him loves him), but he's an indoor cat and I wonder sometimes how he made so many internet friends since his primary activity on the computer is walking across my laptop keyboard.

One of the things Sitka does love is listening to music on MySpace and he's discovered many great musicians there, including Neko Case. Sitka loves her country-flavored solo albums and her more pop-oriented work with the New Pornographers and converted me through repeated listening (Link for Gmail subscribers):


Well, Sitka is beside himself because he learned this week that Neko Case is releasing a new album on March 3rd called Middle Cyclone. Her record company Anti is making the first single "People Got a Lot of Nerve" available as a free download. What's more, between now and February 3rd, for every blog that posts "People Got a Lot of Nerve," Anti will donate 5 bucks to Best Friends Animal Society, an organization dedicated to reducing the number of unwanted pets to zero.

Obviously, this is a great cause. And for Sitka, a former shelter kitty, it's an issue near and dear to his heart. (And presumably, it's a cause Neko Case cares about.)

But there's just one thing -- when Sitka first joined MySpace, he sent a friend request to Neko Case. She turned him down. He sent another request with a note about how much he enjoyed her music; she turned him down again.

When I saw this offer, I was torn. On the one hand, Neko Case is great and groups like Best Friends Animal Society deserve whatever monetary support they can get. On the other hand, I don't understand why Neko Case would spurn the friendship of my cat. Maybe she doesn't deserve our support after all.

I couldn't decide, so I asked Sitka. He told me to go ahead and post her song; Sitka P. Coldfoot holds no grudges. Not even against Neko Case.

Download: People Got a Lot of Nerve by Neko Case.