Megan Cablk

(Thank you to Emily Gasperec for this idea!)

I still vividly remember the day I walked into a family friends house only to find a small monkey staring back at me. They had (unbeknownst to us) recently gotten their exotic pet license and adopted him. Now, I am not a particularly big fan of exotic pets — the pets are usually illegally traded, entire populations can be destroyed, families are not always equipped to give the animals the care they need, and some can pose some human health risks as well. But, even though I will never own anything more interesting than a dog, there are some random animals that I wish I could have as a pet, some more reasonable than others.

Raccoon

This one has many mixed reactions whenever I bring it up, but I think raccoons get a bad wrap. I’ve fallen down a hole on TikTok of people who own somewhat domesticated raccoons as pets, and I want to be one of them. Many of the videos show the raccoons eating eggs or vegetables with their littles hands, others show them cuddling up with their owners and even having play time. To me, they seem a lot like cats, minding their own business for the most part, but they’ll hang around once they gain your trust. I truly don’t know what it is about raccoons, but — much to the chagrin of my mom — they are easily my top fantasy pet. A definitely appealing alternative to a raccoon that has similar characteristics is a red panda. 

Toucan

Toucans are an interesting choice for me since I’ve never really had the desire to have a pet bird, but I think my obsession with The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room song from Disney World (not the show that goes with it, just the song) has made this interesting for me. I think toucans are easily the prettiest of the tropical exotic birds; I love the contrast of their dark bodies with their colorful beaks. On the contrary, I also think they are the funniest looking bird ever because they are so disproportionate with their aggressively long beaks. This combination makes this pet very appealing to me and it would be a great conversation starter to have a toucan perched on my shoulder. Part of the toucan earning a spot on this list also comes from a Tik Tok I saw of a toucan, so we can clearly tell what I am doing with my free time.

Otters

I’m sure everyone has seen the fact about otters holding hands when they sleep so that they won’t drift away from each other, and even though this is a basic thing to love, that very fact gets them on my dream pet list. I feel like otters would be very similar to dogs, just the semi-aquatic version, so in my mind I can justify being able to handle them. The biggest potential issue I see with this is the smell of the raw fish, shellfish, and other aquatic creatures that they would need to eat to have a balanced and nutritious diet, but I think they are cute enough to get over it.

Armadillo

Out of all of these, I think I would best be able to handle an armadillo. I did have a pet turtle for most of my elementary school years, so I think the experience would be pretty similar, just with some habitat and diet changes. Like raccoons, armadillos have the small hand appeal going for them and a sick ball-forming party trick to show off to my awe-inspired family and friends. Of my selections, the armadillos has the lowest external energy and attention needed, which makes it more manageable in my mind.

To reiterate my previous points, I am well aware that I would not be able to give any of these animals the proper care they deserve — even if you could have them as pets. These animals should be left alone in their native habitats, or if necessary, brought to ethical and respectable wildlife reserves that will be able to take care of them. Owning an exotic pet is potentially very detrimental to the animal, the environment, and the family itself. However, in my wildest dreams, I would love to have any of these animals be my constant companion. 

Like most people over the last few months, I have been watching a lot of content. I have scrolled endlessly through all of the platforms available to me (and since our family got rid of our cable network, we now have many platforms) and seen a large portion of the TV shows, movies, documentaries, and comedy sketches available to me. Here are three TV shows that I think are incredibly underrated and deserved to be watched by everyone: 

Hunters: Amazon Prime (Warnings: violence, language, some sexual themes) 

I don’t like to play favorites, but Hunters is my favorite TV show ever. This show consumed me. It’s dark, gritty, fast-paced, and heartfelt, and I have yet to find a TV show that I have been able to tear through so quickly. 

Hunters follows a young Jewish boy named Jonah (played by Logan Lerman from the horrible Percy Jackson movies — but don’t worry, he redeems himself) in 1977 New York City. After witnessing the murder of his grandmother in her own house, he unravels his grandmother’s dark past in the Holocaust, and discovers a band of Nazi hunters operating under his nose, of which his grandmother was a member. Inspired by true events revolving Operation Paperclip (but, keep in mind, an entirely fictitious TV show), Jonah dives into this world led by the leader of the group and pseudo-father figure, Meyer (Al Pacino), but does not know who to trust. 

There is not much more I can say without giving away the intricacies of the show, but there are twists and turns that I couldn’t even imagine, and I tend to pride myself on my ability to predict the outcomes of shows or books. From the first episode, the creators play on themes of morality, blurring the edges of what is good and bad, exploring if revenge is a sin in and of itself. This show will hurt both your head and your heart, but it is absolutely worth the pain. 

Some of the reviews of this show lean towards the negative side because many think the show is going to be a historically accurate retelling of Operation Paperclip and other stories of the first generation of Holocaust survivors, but it is important to rememeber that this is not the case and the show can be appreciated as its own, near-history, work of art. The show is definitely gory and bloody, and depicts many illegal activities performed by average citizens, so it is not for the faint of heart or for those looking for a history lesson.

Derry Girls: Netflix (Warnings: language)

If you couldn’t tell from my favorite show above, I tend to lean towards darker, more action-packed TV shows and movies; the second-hand embarrassment and sometimes unrealistic depiction of real life that comes from comedies or “coming of age” type shows does not really appeal to me. So, I had low expectations of Derry Girls going in, as it fits both of these stereotypes that I tend to avoid, but I found myself really enjoying this show.

Derry Girls follows five high school students through Northern Ireland in the 1990s, in the midst of the conflicts in Northern Ireland. Fighting both external division with the conflicts and the internal division of growing up, the friends try to navigate a slew of exaggerated teen experiences like finding jobs, going on class trips, and attending their first school dance.

This show is dotted with what is best described as GenZ humor that separates itself from typical comedies, and I frequently found myself actually thinking the jokes are funny, which is rare for me. But, the humor is not isolating; my journalism advisor has also watched the show and he enjoys it thoroughly. Even as the characters frequently poke fun at each other, there are plenty of heartfelt moments weaved through that shows you how much the friends really care about each other. 

Don’t F*** With Cats: Netflix  (Warnings: violence, language)

Coming back around to the darker side of my watching habits, Don’t F*** With Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer, is a Netflix docuseries that explores the world of Internet sleuths and their relationship with real-life crime fighting. 

After the posting of a shocking online video, a group of Internet sleuths came together to try to figure out who is responsible for posting the video. When the group becomes convinced that the video-maker is also responsible for an unsolved murder, the group fights with authorities to prove the legitimacy of their claims to get this murderer off the streets.

Much like Hunters, this documentary is not for the faint of heart, but it is worth it if you are interested in shows like Criminal Minds or other fake/true crime shows. The documentary is very well produced and researched, using interesting graphics and other visual techniques to show how the virtual and real world are colliding throughout this investigation. For documentary skeptics, the docuseries evokes similar feelings to a long episode of Criminal Minds or another show like it, and it is sometimes very difficult to conceptualize that this bizarre story actually happened in real life.