These two are the cats of Park Slope Copy Center. They are known as Stinky and Boom-Boom, or Mr. Charlie and The Sister. There was once a competition to name the two, but the customers stuck to what they've always known them as: The Copy Cats.
“They've been here before me,” employee Afiya Early told me, “And I've been here for seven years.” The origin of the Copy Cats was unknown to this longtime employee; it is possible that these shop cats simply appeared one day and will disappear just the same when their time comes.
I arrived at the shop after an abrupt sun-shower-storm and found the Copy Cats immediately. The two were cuddled together in their kitty bed, already sleeping 15 minutes before the shop was to close. Apparently the Copy Cats lounge like this all of the time; it’s a laziness that has come with age. You can often find the siblings napping on warm photocopy machines. One customer even spread news about finding a photocopy of the brother cat’s belly while trying to use one of the machines: "The copy was just lying in the hopper when I went to use the machine. ... I displayed it on my kitchen wall for years as a beautiful piece of found art."
It was speculated whether the cat managed to press the "copy" button himself, but we suspect he lured a human into helping him with the deed. After all, these cats have had their pictures taken for postcards and calendars sold by the store in the past. Maybe they’re simply continuing that legacy, one photocopy at a time.
A Black Balloon Publication ©