Goober
The Cat That Wasn't Mine
Every evening Daniel left a small gap in the curtain, just to see if he was there. A stray at a Galway door, a new collar every week, and a mystery that leads all the way down the street.
Written by Wagner Rosati Carvalho
The story
Some cats choose you. Some just borrow you.
When Daniel, a reserved designer in Galway, Ireland, welcomes a stray cat named Goober into his life, it sparks a journey of love and mystery.
Goober's regular visits bring joy and intrigue, revealing secrets from the past through the cat's ever-changing collars, and leading Daniel to an older woman, Mrs. Theresa, who found solace in Goober after losing her beloved cat.
Running beside it is an emigrant's story: leaving Brazil, starting over in Ireland twice, and the visa bureaucracy that can separate people from the animals they love.
A new collar every week.
Five collars, in the order Daniel saw them. Pick one. No spoilers past the gate.
Silver
A cat appears at Daniel’s glass door: patches of dark brown and black over soft white, like a little lion, with bright golden eyes. Around his neck, a shiny silver collar.
The people Goober chose
Goober
Fluffy-tailed, golden-eyed and selective about who touches him. Known to the whole neighbourhood, owned by nobody quite completely.
Daniel
A remote designer and introvert from Brazil. Black coffee, a bass guitar on the couch, and a door he starts leaving slightly open.
Meena and Colm
Forced away by a sudden visa hearing, they return to find their cat no longer remembers them the way they remember him.
Mrs. Theresa
A former University of Galway lecturer on art and cave paintings, elegant and lifelong vegan, living in a wooden house behind the greenery.
Where it unfolds
One street. Many windows.
Street musicians, misty rain, cobbled paths by the docks, the river at the Spanish Arch. Goober has a window on every corner of this Galway neighbourhood. Only one of them leaves the curtain open.
- The unexpected bonds between humans and animals
- The healing power of companionship
- Respecting and loving all animals
- The mysteries of caring for a stray
Goober on Instagram
Follow the everyday adventures of the cat that was nobody's and everybody's.
“To every Goober across the globe, the unexpected companions who wander into our lives.”
From the dedication · Choose to adopt, not shop
The author
Wagner Rosati Carvalho
A creative professional with a career across advertising, marketing and UX design, shaped by years of storytelling for leading agencies and brands.
Founder of Vegan Jobs Ireland and host of the Manada Podcast, Wagner advocates for animal rights. Through Goober, he bridges the gap between people and the animal world.
Leave the curtain open.
A heartwarming story about love, loss, belonging and the quiet magic of unexpected connections.
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