TUCSON, ARIZONA -- What was first intended to be a friendly kiss of a cactus in the Arizona desert turned into a very nasty situation!

Not satisfied with placing his lips on the thorns and skin of a large golden barrel cactus, Steve "Colorado Guy" Garufi stupidly wrapped his arms around the cactus that scratched his arms, damaged his shirt and hooked him against the cactus for almost 30 seconds. Only after pulling hard enough off was Steve able to release himself from the cactus, but not before causing rips and snags in his shirt. (See adjacent photos)

"Kissing the cactus really wasn't that bad because the thorns had hooks going inward," explained Steve, "But when my shirt got stuck to the thorns I panicked with my arms and it got kind of ugly, I'll admit." he added.

Joel Smith, a Tucson resident and advocate for Arizona's desert ecosystem, was hiking with Steve and witnessed the entire event.

"I have no idea why you would want to do that." said Joel, as he stood next to a 5-foot tall saguaro (left photo), "I grazed myself against a cholla a few months ago and spent all day getting prickles out of me."

"You might want to think again before doing that." he added.

Steve's History of Kissing Cacti; Reactions From Friends And Foes

Steve has an extensive history of kissing cacti and his antics have been profiled on CactusLovers.com, a popular web site for cactus and succulent information. Still, this is the first disturbing incident where Steve has given a "bear hug" to a large cactus.

"I just don't know about you sometimes, Steve." stated Kansas Kelly, a close friend, "Sometimes I wonder, 'What exactly is going on in your head when you do things like this?'"

Dianna in Texas (known as Yellow Rose of Texas on the Friendship Board), had a more compassionate response. "I wish I could have been there to help, but I would have needed to get over my combination of tears of laughter and identifying with the pain and agony of the incident."

This is definitely not the first time Steve has gotten in trouble with a cactus. As seen in the right photo, he once needed a friend to pull out hundreds of small spines from his lower face when he kissed a prickly pear cactus near Lake Isabella, California.

"The matter with the prickly pear thorns was rough." admitted Steve, "I'm not sure I would do that again, but who knows?"

Steve has never explained in much detail why he occasionally kisses cacti, although in a video clip he alluded to the fact that not having a girlfriend might be a factor. (You can see that video clip of Steve kissing a cacti in Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs here.)

Shana B. in San Diego, California, offered her input about what some of the deeper issues might be driving Steve's strange behavior.

"I think you have an abusive relationship with your cactuses and you've just got to let it go." said Shana, "They've got support groups for people like you."