⚓️ happy birthday to the Cool Cats

gm. breaking format again to write about the Cool Cats, who are turning 1 today.

they grow up so fast 🥲

WLTC ⚓️

my NFT journey began with Cool Cat #6229.

I heard about the Cool Cats from people on Twitter who were big into NBA Top Shot. at the time, I knew nothing else about them - not about Clon (the artist behind the project), not about NFT projects beyond Top Shot and ENS. I simply liked how they made me feel when I looked at them.

they were happy, colorful and (obviously) cool. I had to get one.

with my wallet already set up, I had enough laying around for roughly 2 floor Cats. “I can always buy another later,” I told myself.

narrator: he would not be able to buy another later

I choose instead a single higher tiered Cool Cat that I liked. it had a bathrobe on and heart glasses. everything about the Cool Cat screamed ‘day spa vibes’. I bought it for .045 ETH.

little did I know that this purchase would (no exaggeration) change my life. it would open up doors and unlock creativity that I didn’t know I had. even better, it introduced me to like-minded, positive people who (though I never have met any of them IRL) I felt like I’d known my whole life.

kindred spirits as they say.

over the course of the July 4th weekend last year, I watched my Cool Cat, double in price, then triple in price. Cool Cats eventually would start a trend of the “cute” PFP and inspire the space at large.

things were taking off for NFTs and I was now along for the ride - whether I liked it or not.

a naturally anxious persion, I felt as though the jig would be up at any moment. how could a JPG be worth this much money? eventually, I did something unforgivable…I sold Cool Cat #6229 and “took profits” as they say.

I did, however have enough to buy into the Gutter Cat Gang, another NFT I had heard about and was interested in.

now don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the Gutter Cat Gang. in fact, I still love their community quite a bit. but for me, they are no Cool Cats.

I immediately got completely different vibes from their community…ones that didn’t mesh with me as much as Cool Cats had.

everything about the Cool Cats, the team, the people in the community, and the partnerships were pulling me back into their gravity. in particular the partnership with TIME and the Tepnu puzzles really made me miss “having a laugh in the Discord” with my friends (shoutout Tom, a cofounder of Cool Cats that has inspired me).

that’s when everything clicked for me. it wasn’t about the money (though that certainly has helped), it really was about the community. a fire was lit in me thanks to the Cool Cats and I wanted to commit to them and the NFT space with my full effort.

I was about to bring a daughter into the world. how could I tell her to follow her dreams, if I never followed mine? I was surviving certainly…but I wasn’t living…yet.

for the second time, I had to get one. I sold my Gutter Cat and I celebrated my 30th birthday (yes, I’m an NFT boomer) by buying back into the Cool Cats. this time, I knew exactly the trait I was looking for. I wanted to be a lederhosen Cat.

For 3 ETH, I found the perfect one. the “forever cat” as some would say. #5658, Capt. Beerstein.

from there, it was ups and downs. Cool Cats would go up to as much as 15 ETH price floor for the rarer traits I had. then, it went down to as low as 3 ETH price floor for the more basic Cats. either way, I was there with them.

everything was telling me to stick with them, despite watching numerous projects outpace and overtake Cool Cats in terms of price. that’s because Cool Cats meant more to me. again, it wasn’t about the money anymore, it was about the community which persisted and thrived even in times of FUD.

I decided to start a newsletter in November of last year, and chose to brand it around my Cool Cat and the anchor on its admiral hat. I was all-in

now? for the first time in my adult life, I’m feeling inspired, passionate, and artistic. I love writing about NFTs and I love the Cats (ILTC).

NFTs and Cool Cats are now inextricably tied in my mind and also in my internet identity. I simply resonate with them at a deep level.

and that’s what ultimately seperates NFTs from traditional crypto assets. there’s real emotion and stories attached to these tokens. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about mine.

“I am my cat and my cat is me.”