From the Pink Pony Club to the Lazy Cat Lounge, Animals Are Taking Over
My daughter was invited to join her friends at a new hot spot in my town, The Lazy Cat Lounge & Cafe. What a cute name, I thought. Then I started singing about dancing at the “Pink Pony Club.”
But why do a group of 13-year-old girls want to hang out at a cafe? Is this what teenagers are doing now?
A quick Google search revealed that this little joint is more than a downtown coffee shop. It’s actually home to real, live cats. The whole point is for folks to come and visit with the cats. Much to my surprise, cat cafes are nothing new. They reportedly originated in the 1990s in cities throughout Asia as a way for city dwellers to enjoy the companionship of pets without owning them.
While brilliant in concept, especially for animal lovers who don’t have the space or the lifestyle to welcome a furry friend into their homes, is it really worth paying $20 for a 50-minute visit with random cats.
Scribing those words makes me feel like such an old-fashioned prude, and I’m afraid of getting cancelled. But I’m also reminded of a time just a few months back when I was dining alone at a restaurant. Halfway through my meal, two women and a Great Dane were seated at the table beside me. I had to force myself not to look because I didn’t trust that my face would hide my feelings about the circumstance. Though incredibly well-behaved and certainly more tolerable than the loud-mouthed father of a family of five who sat to my left, I couldn’t get past someone taking their dog to dinner at a restaurant. I think it’s crazy when my husband wants to bring our dog to a friend’s house.
Though I was raised with dogs, they were our pets, not our sidekicks who came with us to the gas station or to visit with family. And while I am fairly certain my father loves his dogs more than his own children, none of my four-legged siblings have ever been to my house. We have two cats and two dogs, and if it were up to my husband, our dogs would be with us in the grocery store, but taking the dogs for car rides has never been my thing.
Despite my personal reservations about bringing pets into public places, I’m forking over $20 so that my daughter can take a trip to the Lazy Cat Lounge & Cafe with her friends and visit with cats. While I might not be a fan of pets in public places, I do love to support local businesses, and I have to admit Brandi Jong, Owner of the new lounge sounds really cool.
Jong has long volunteered at animal shelters, and she and her family share their home with six rescue cats. The cafe also has a gift store featuring an array of products from local creators and designers. She’s an artist, an animal lover, and a self-proclaimed history nerd. I’m inclined to book myself time at the cafe just to visit with her.