I was tagged by my new friend Catherine the other day. This means that I have to tell you 8 things about me and then tag 8 other people. It's a kind of chain mail meme that goes around every so often.
Here's my 8:
I'm 6 years old
Yeah, I know, it sounds young - but in tiger years, that's actually pretty old. I'm what other tigers refer to as wise and mature.
I was born in Sydney
This will be news to many people, because most people know me as 'that stunt tiger working in LA'. But, although I spend much of my time in LA, my home - and heart - is here in Sydney.
I ran the City to Surf in under an hour
Yeah, I beat everyone, but was not acknowledged. That's fair enough, because we tigers are generally very fast, and it just ain't fair to people to compare us on speed. And the silly thing is I could have run it faster, because I stopped to chat with fans along the way.
Writing is hard for me
One of the main frustrations of being a tiger is that I have no opposable thumbs. You'd be surprised at how much of a hindrance this is. Writing of course is hard, but so is just about anything - for example, I was trying to give my flat mate a massage the other day, but I could only apply deep paw pressure - I wasn't able to get into the muscle and relieve the strain.
I've broken just about every bone in my body
Over the last few years I've been in some big action films. And whilst they take every safety precaution imaginable, it is inevitable that you are going to get hurt along the way. That's part of the job. I've broken legs, paws, cheek bones, my jaw, and my tail has often got caught in machinery and even burnt.
But hey, I wouldn't have it any other way. I love my stunt tiger job, and the odd mishap here and there is nothing compared to the thrill of pulling off an impressive death-defying sequence.
That said, I have enough TiQ (Tiger Intelligence Quotient) to realise I won't be doing stunt work all my tiger life. That's why I've been getting into programming and technology of late. It's still a secret at this stage (so don't tell) but I'm planning to release an online web mail service specially for Tigers - it'll be called TMail, and should be available later this year.
I've met lots of celebrities
If you read the gossip mags you'd be forgiven for thinking that many of the actors, musicians and celebrities are awful, ego-filled people. But that's not the case. Most of them are kind-hearted, loving, friendly people who are just doing their part in this world. Every so often they get caught after a long, hard, exhausting day by a flurry of paparazzi and they just crack up. This is sad, because I know how much pressure they are under. And I hate to see how hurtful the media can be at times.
I'm just thankful I don't come under that kind of scrutiny, even though I'm getting recognised a lot more often these days.
I've studied most of the martial arts
Many of the movies have famous martial artists and choreographers on board to help with the action scenes. This is pure gold for a stunt tiger like me. And fortunately I've been able to learn from the best of them. Some of the work I did on the latest Rambo film (it was edited out in the final cut, sadly) was based on techniques I learned from Jackie Chan.
I'm quite shy
Yes, on screen I'm all action and bravery, but in real life I'm quiet, shy and unassuming. I'm happily single, but looking forward to meeting the lady tiger of my dreams one day. That's going to be difficult of course, because I generally don't get out much (being shy and all), but lately I've been plucking up the courage to venture out of my comfort zone. Just last week I made it along to a new group. The people were very kind.
I can't count very well
Everyone has their little issues. For some it is bad sense of direction, for others it is poor personal hygiene. For me, it is difficulty counting. But I'm working on it. Anyway, that's my 8 things.
I hope you liked learning about my adventures a bit more. Please leave a comment if you'd like any more details.
And now to tag 8 other people... I'm not sure who to tag. Would you like me to tag you? If so, please leave a comment and I'll put you on my list.
By the way, here's one of my favourite songs: