Cats' association with Norse mythology extended beyond Freyja. The god Thor, known for his strength and thunderous power, once lost a fight against a common house cat ... or so he thought. Thor was traveling with Loki through a strange land called Utgard (Outer Realm). The two gods found themselves reluctant guests of a powerful giant who called himself Utgard-Loki. This giant challenged Thor to complete three simple tasks to prove his power. Thor had to wrestle an old woman, drink a cup of beer down to the dregs, and simply pick the house cat up off the floor. To Thor's horror, no matter how hard he tried, he could not accomplish any of these simple tasks. When he tried to lift the cat, the cat's supple, flexible body just stretched while its paws stayed firmly on the floor. Utgard-Loki later admitted to the humbled god that all of this had been a deep illusion. The old woman whom Thor could not defeat was Old Age, the ale horn he could not drain was the Sea, and the house cat was none other than the Midgard Serpent, whose coils wrap around the earth. Perhaps Thor never looked at a cat the same way again.
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