SkyMall Kitties

Reading the SkyMall catalogue used to be an in-flight ritual for me. I knew much of the imagery almost by heart. Every time I got on a plane, I paged through it to make sure certain products are still present (hello, Garden Yeti; hello, inflatable tray-table pillow; hello, foam massage wedge). I always noticed the pet products, which divide into dog and cat categories. I took note that the dogs were shown in slightly pathetic situations (bed ramp for arthritic old dog) and, in contrast, the cats had litter boxes disguised as houseplants or space capsules and perched on human toilets, smart enough to be trained to do such a thing.

I wrote the SkyMall Kitties song in flight, mentioning as many specific pet items as possible, and recorded it once I got home, adding images of the products mentioned in the song to construct the video. I showed it first at a meeting of the Cat Appreciation Society. (Because we swear an oath not to discuss anything that goes on at the CAS, however, I cannot elaborate further.) After the meeting, I put the video on YouTube—I intended it as entertainment, and it seemed to belong there. It had a lively viral life for about a month, received over one hundred thousand views, and was included in the first International Cat Video Festival at the Walker Art Center in 2012.

You can download this song on Bandcamp