The Empire claimed the field in the Battle of Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back. They controlled the skirmish with superior forces, immense fire power, and lumbering AT-AT walkers. But what if their AT-ATs turned into purrfect, meowing felines? They would have curled up on the icy Star Wars planet for naps instead of attacking the rebels, and the universe wouldn’t be the same. This is the galaxy I imagine when I look at Laura’s sweet CAT-AT tattoo.
Kidding aside, this ink—like this X-wing corgi pilot tattoo— has a touching origin. Laura’s cat Kobe is the inspiration for the design. She’s had Kobe since he was a kitten, when he was a “little orange fuzzball” that jumped out of his carrier and crawled up her pant leg. Laura told Nerdist that Kobe helped her through hard times and pulled her out of a funk. “I don’t know if I would have kept going if I didn’t have this other tiny life that counted on me to take care of it. He saved me,” she said.
Excuse me while I wipe away these tears.
Three years ago, Laura came across art on Instagram by Mike Joos featuring a cat mashed with an AT-AT. She’s a lifelong Star Wars fan and knew she had to get the CAT-AT tattoo as a tribute to the galaxy far, far away and her feline companion. Tattooist Greg Counard at The Blue Gem Tattooing in Wisconsin brought the portrait of Kobe to life.
If you have nerdy ink on your skin or you’re a tattoo artist that applies pop culture, STEM, music, or other nerd-inspired ink (tl;dr: I want to see all of the tattoos) on a regular basis, then please hit me up because I’d like to highlight you in a future Inked Wednesday gallery. I’m especially interested if you have a sleeve or other large tattoo. You can get in touch with me via email at alratcliffe@yahoo.com. Send me photos of the tattoos you’d like me to feature (the higher resolution, the better) and don’t forget to let me know the name of your tattoo artist if you have it, as well the name of the shop he or she works out of. If you are the tattoo artist, give me links to your portfolios and/or Instagram accounts so I can share them with our readers.
Amy Ratcliffe is an Associate Editor for Nerdist. Follow her on Twitter and keep up with her Disney food adventures on Instagram.
Cuddle with more adorable pet stories!
- Look at a cute Overwatch pup cosplay.
- See a kitty in samurai armor.
- Watch Chris Evans reunite with his dog.
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Images: Laura F.
