--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was very into animals and nature, and…" description: "\"I was very into animals and nature, and really obsessed with cats and monkeys. I used to play in the woods, wander off into the woods for hours. I'd br..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png" --- # I was very into animals and nature, and really obsessed… ![“I was very into animals and nature, and really obsessed with cats and monkeys. I used to play in the woods, wander off into the woods for hours. I'd bring a clipboard and think that I was doing some work out there, following the trails of raccoons or collecting bird feathers.” quote by Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png) > “I was very into animals and nature, and really obsessed with cats and monkeys. I used to play in the woods, wander off into the woods for hours. I'd bring a clipboard and think that I was doing some work out there, following the trails of raccoons or collecting bird feathers.” [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker describes a childhood fascination with wildlife, turning play into a self‑styled research adventure. **In simple terms:** Childhood love of animals turned into imaginative exploration. Key Takeaway Embrace curiosity and playfulness. Themes nature curiosity imagination play self‑directed learning Mood joyful reflective Type personal narrative humorous When to use this quote - exploring forests - collecting natural items - pretend fieldwork Key Concepts Childhood development nature connection creative play Questions to Reflect On - How did this play shape your adult interests? - What value does imagination bring to learning? A Different Perspective May overlook safety or social norms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Animals And Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals-and-nature/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Cats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Monkeys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monkeys/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [My best source of grounding are animals and nature. Animals live more in the moment and don't worry so much! And nature is proof…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-bauer-van-straten/my-best-source-of-grounding-are-animals-and-nature-animals-live-more/) [Kristin Bauer van Straten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-bauer-van-straten/) > [I think I have a lot of empathy for animals and nature in general. Those things just make me comfortable. I grew up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neko-case/i-think-i-have-a-lot-of-empathy-for-animals-and-nature-in-general/) [Neko Case](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neko-case/) > [Cats and monkeys; monkeys and cats; all human life is there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/cats-and-monkeys-monkeys-and-cats-all-human-life-is-there/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [I don't have time for lie-on-the-beach vacations. I'm a zoo person. There's one in New Jersey where animals actually come up to your car.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/missy-elliot/i-don-t-have-time-for-lie-on-the-beach-vacations-i-m-a-zoo-person/) [Missy Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/missy-elliot/) > [ \[monkeys\] are used only when no other species and no alternatice approach can provide the answers to questions about such conditions as Alzhemers, stroke,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-blakemore/monkeys-are-used-only-when-no-other-species-and-no-alternatice/) [Colin Blakemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-blakemore/) > [“These are feathers. Not the quill-pen feathers that make up the wings of today’s birds but simpler ones that look more like strands of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-brusatte/these-are-feathers-not-the-quill-pen-feathers-that-make-up-the-wings/) [Steve Brusatte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-brusatte/) > [Of all created things the source is one, Simple, single as love; remember The cell and seed of life, the sphere That is, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-raine/of-all-created-things-the-source-is-one-simple-single-as-love/) [Kathleen Raine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-raine/) > [In every man there is a hidden child which is called the urge to create and he prefers as play things and serious things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-morgenstern/in-every-man-there-is-a-hidden-child-which-is-called-the-urge-to/) [Christian Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-morgenstern/) > [“He has a great smile, a cat's smile. He should cough out yellow Tweety Bird feathers, the way he smiles at me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/he-has-a-great-smile-a-cat-s-smile-he-should-cough-out-yellow-tweety/) [Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/) > [“soft. Her hand was so soft, like cat fur, like bird feathers, like...everything soft he could think of. Her thumb caressing the corner of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-dee/soft-her-hand-was-so-soft-like-cat-fur-like-bird-feathers-like/) [Bonnie Dee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-dee/) > [On the contrary, there is a considerable body of evidence that these fossil traces, known as 'dino-fuzz', have nothing to do with bird feathers...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-feduccia/on-the-contrary-there-is-a-considerable-body-of-evidence-that-these/) Alan Feduccia > [“Leave yourself alone, trying to fix your subconscious with programs and acts of will is tantamount to trying to start a car with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-armond-powell/leave-yourself-alone-trying-to-fix-your-subconscious-with-programs/) [Gerard Armond Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-armond-powell/) > [“I became totally absorbed into this forest existence. It was an unparalleled period when aloneness was a way of life; a perfect opportunity, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goodall/i-became-totally-absorbed-into-this-forest-existence-it-was-an/) [Jane Goodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goodall/) > [Being a mountain boy, I have always understood the importance of trees, animals and nature for a human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jubin-nautiyal/being-a-mountain-boy-i-have-always-understood-the-importance-of-trees/) [Jubin Nautiyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jubin-nautiyal/) > [I just find that humans are predictable and stupid and animals and nature are a lot more magical to me. I'm just interested in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-lytle/i-just-find-that-humans-are-predictable-and-stupid-and-animals-and/) Jason Lytle ## More by Tig Notaro > [Reminding myself that I have a tailbone keeps me in check.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/reminding-myself-that-i-have-a-tailbone-keeps-me-in-check/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I think my brain just has a natural way of going to what would be the most insane thing, the least likely option.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-think-my-brain-just-has-a-natural-way-of-going-to-what-would-be-the/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [Before I had a double mastectomy, I was already pretty flat-chested, and I made so many jokes over the years about how small my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/before-i-had-a-double-mastectomy-i-was-already-pretty-flat-chested/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [Even losing my mother, I wanted my mother. That's who you want instinctually when you're having a hard time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/even-losing-my-mother-i-wanted-my-mother-that-s-who-you-want/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I think every person and place is interesting, and there's an interesting story behind every door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-think-every-person-and-place-is-interesting-and-there-s-an/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [A lot of times, people will have after-parties or try and host an event for comedians, and they misunderstand us. They think it should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/a-lot-of-times-people-will-have-after-parties-or-try-and-host-an/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I'm fascinated by caddy Buddhists popping up all over Hollywood and people that take themselves too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-m-fascinated-by-caddy-buddhists-popping-up-all-over-hollywood-and/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I love devastating movies, documentaries and hummingbirds (yes, in that order).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-love-devastating-movies-documentaries-and-hummingbirds-yes-in-that/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I definitely still like writing one-liners, but I also think that I've changed a lot in that I've allowed myself freedom to grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-definitely-still-like-writing-one-liners-but-i-also-think-that-i-ve/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I'm the luckiest unlucky person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-m-the-luckiest-unlucky-person/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I didn't know whether I'd be attractive to anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-didn-t-know-whether-i-d-be-attractive-to-anybody/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [The hardest lesson to learn always is to just have faith in that you will always have something to say or a story to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/the-hardest-lesson-to-learn-always-is-to-just-have-faith-in-that-you/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [My age makes all my wrinkles and gray hair make sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/my-age-makes-all-my-wrinkles-and-gray-hair-make-sense/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [It's almost embarrassing how much support I have. I mean, I always tell people I feel like I'm perfectly set up to have cancer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/it-s-almost-embarrassing-how-much-support-i-have-i-mean-i-always-tell/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [I am just at tragedy right now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-am-just-at-tragedy-right-now/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) [Explore all 125 Tig Notaro quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) ## More Animals quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) Mak\_786 > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It’s a small thing to help one animal, but to that one animal it’s a big thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/it-s-a-small-thing-to-help-one-animal-but-to-that-one-animal-it-s-a/) [Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“All these creatures spend their time explaining, realizing happily that they agree with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/all-these-creatures-spend-their-time-explaining-realizing-happily/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [We're not very dangerous animals; we don't have a horn like a rhino or quills like a porcupine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/we-re-not-very-dangerous-animals-we-don-t-have-a-horn-like-a-rhino-or/) [Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/) > [We need, in a special way, to work twice as hard to help people understand that animals are fellow creatures, that we must protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/we-need-in-a-special-way-to-work-twice-as-hard-to-help-people/) [Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/) > [“Plenty of animals had pets, but few were more devoted than the mouse, who owned a baby corn snake—“A rescue snake, she’d be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/plenty-of-animals-had-pets-but-few-were-more-devoted-than-the-mouse/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [No creature can attain a higher grade of nature without ceasing to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananda-coomaraswamy/no-creature-can-attain-a-higher-grade-of-nature-without-ceasing-to/) [Ananda Coomaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananda-coomaraswamy/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) [Browse all 6,813 Animals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was very into animals and nature, and really obsessed with cats and monkeys. I used to play in the woods, wander off into the woods for hours. I'd bring a clipboard and think that I was doing some work out there, following the trails of raccoons or collecting bird feathers.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tig Notaro" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-really-obsessed-with-cats-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animals" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-really-obsessed-with-cats-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/tig-notaro-3660_animals_i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-r_2804514.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was very into animals and nature, and really obsessed with cats and monkeys. I used to play in the woods…” — Tig Notaro", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Tig Notaro", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was very into animals and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-really-obsessed-with-cats-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-was-very-into-animals-and-nature-and-really-obsessed-with-cats-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```