How Ratfoot Got Her Name

I found this post on the now defunct PodBlog...I thought some readers of Ratfoot might enjoy it.

Yesterday I left the office after a rousing 2 hour game of Motherlode, walking to the 1/9 via 28th Street. I was on 28th between 6th and 7th, aka the plant-store block, as the store owners were taking in the plants for the night. I'd just had some excitement on 5th and 27th, as that block was totally filled with police vehicles due to this situation. It was about 5:30 and it was raining slightly.

I felt like something was walking next to me, so I looked around for the cat who lives in one of the plant stores. This summer, the cat's entire body (except for its head and paws) was shaved, and I wanted to see if the hair had grown back properly and if it was still as cute as it was last spring. But sadly, I couldn't find the cat. My suspicion was right, however, as I did feel something brush against my left foot. It felt just like a cat. Unfortunately, as you may all have guessed, it was not a cuddly feline, it was A HUGE RAT THAT WAS TOUCHING MY FOOT. About 8 inches long with a similarly long tail, the rat had grayish brown fur. After colliding with my foot it ran off into the street.

I didn't scream or jump or do any of the typical "girl" responses. Instead, I almost passed out. I thought about amputation, but ruled it out as the rat hadn't actually touched my skin. I'd have to burn my clothes though, and do something terrible to my favorite shoes. All this made me want to die. But I comforted myself knowing that I could write about it today on the PodBlog and that made me feel a lot better. Javert called me Rat Foot all night yesterday. I probably shouldn't have posted that tidbit here.