Shocked the Tears Right Out of Me

This evening I was remided once again of why I am grateful to have cats in my life.

As you know, Ricardo had his visa interview with the American Consulate today. I'm struggling not to be negative, but it's safe to say it didn't go so well. Apparently the guy who did the interview was, ahem, a total asshole. He said that Ricardo, "had no real ties with Brasil and had proven by moving to Mozambique that he should be considered a flight risk." Thankfully the guy didn't go so far as to flat-out deny the tourist visa, but now Ricardo has the burden of proving that he has no intention to relocate to the US like he did to Africa, and that his life here in Mozambique is "stable and convincing enough" that he has sufficient reason to return.

So now we are in a mad dash to get together all the bank statements, work contracts, residency permits, rent contracts and income tax declarations that have Ricardo's name on them and prove that he has been here for 2.5 years and is the Director of a legitimate business with ample assets and reasons to come back to Mozambique. Once B. and I compile, scan and e-mail these documents to Rico, he will go back to the Consulate for a follow-up interview and the final verdict regarding his visa.

Needless to say this news got me down a bit. I'm really, really trying to stay positive and not think hateful things about the visa issuance policies of my country but it's been hard. During a phone conversation with Rico a few minutes ago I let myself break down and cry a bit. A lot, actually. I felt frustrated and resentful that Ricardo might not be able to join me on this wonderful trip we've planned, that he might not be able to meet my dad and see the things I love about New Mexico, that I might not have a chance to matar as saudades in the middle of our geographical separation. Not to mention the fact that we've already purchased all of our tickets.

As I was crying and feeling generally miserable, Pria, the black kitten in the photo above, was rolling around belly-up on the new striped rug I got in Nelspruit a couple weeks ago. As she wiggled, I caught site of something that made my jaw drop. Something that made me forget my tears and fall completely silent on the phone, leaving Ricardo going, "Ali? Patroa? Alôôô?" Something so totally bizarre I could only start laughing once I regained my voice.

What was it?

Pria, our sweet little girl cat, HAS A PENIS!!!

Seriously. A little pink worm-like thing came poking out beneath her tail and hiney-hole as (s)he romped around on the rug, directly below what I now recognize to be a semi-developed feline sack-o-balls.

When I finally recovered from the shock, all I could say to Ricardo was, "Pria is a boy."

"A what?"

"A boy cat. She's got a penis."

"But she had girl-parts when we brought her home!" he said, rightly confused. "Parceiro even used to nurse on her 'down there'."

"I know." Parceiro did have a terrible habit of suckling on 'her' parts, but thankfully he stopped about a month ago and I'd just assumed that Pria's genitals were still slightly protruded as a result. I mean, I even read up on this on the internet and it was all seemingly normal. Little did I realize that Pria's swollen crotch was really a sack-in-waiting.

"So will we change her name to Prio now that she's a boy?" Rico asked, laughing.

"No, I don't think I can possibly think of her as anything but Pria, my girl cat, my sweet little gatinha." And it's true. I've raised this kitten as a female. All of her nicknames are girl-related. I look at her and can't possibly imagine that she's actually male!

"Yeah," Rico agreed, "she just seems like a girl. I mean she even acts like a girl." He laughed again and asked. "So what do we do now?"

"I guess we treat Pria like a girl cat stuck in a boy cat's body. I mean, this stuff happens to people, why can't it happen with cats, too?"

"Great, so now we have a transgendered cat."

"Yeah, I guess so."

We laughed some more, went over the list of documents Rico needs tomorrow to take to the Consulate, and eventually hung up the phone.

I suppose the moral of the story is not to make assumptions. We'd assumed all along that Pria was a girl, and now we find she has a wormy cat penis just like her brother. I think Rico and I had also assumed all along that his approval for a tourist visa to the US was guaranteed, and now we are realizing this may not be the case.

So please continue to think positive thoughts for Ricardo's visa. I certainly will be as I lay down tonight with my transgendered cat and her brother, them purring and me meditating, imagining how wonderful it will be to see Rico next month..