I knew there were people like this out there....
 
My husband and I were picking up some fish from a friend who is moving
across the country soon Saturday afternoon.  While we were there, another
guy showed up for some fish.  He was a loud-mouthed know-it-all type, and
seemed to have an opinion on everything.  He informed us that everyone in
Arbor Springs, Michigan is dying of cancer because the water is polluted
among other things.  I happened to make a comment about my ferrets to the
lady of the house while her husband was bagging fish.  The obnoxious guy
said "Oh, you have ferrets?" He then started talking about ferrets.  I sort
of groaned inwardly and tried to be pleasant.  He told us about how he saw
one for the first time on the shoulder of a truck driver (I think they're
ideal pets for truck drivers :), then he said he thought they were real
cute.  But the thing that had me in fits was when he said, "But you gotta
watch them with babies.  They kill babies.  They eat their throats out and
crawl in their mouths and suffocate them." I blinked.  He was nuts.  He
said, "Oh, yeah, they've killed a whole lot of babies!" I can't believe this
guy told me to my face that my sweet little pets are baby-killing monsters.
Does he think that I would harbor man-eaters in my home?  I told him I
hardly thought of my ferrets as dangerous animals.  I didn't say anything
else.  How do you argue with someone who just *knows* that ferrets have
"killed a whole lot of babies?" If he had a chow-chow for a pet, I wouldn't
have said, "Oh, aren't you afraid it's going to rip the arms off of small
children?" And that would have been more true!  *pant pant* I guess I've
heard the same thing said about cats.  Fewer people really believe it,
though.
 
On a lighter note, Sebastian finally made it over the barrier to the first
floor FFZ this weekend.  I took him downstairs to see what he thought of the
new fish tank.  He really liked it.  About five minutes after I dropped him
back up stairs, he came racing down.  He zipped around the livingroom for a
good ten minutes, chuckling, dancing, we couldn't have caught him if we
tried.  Then I took him and set him back inside the barrier.  He was over it
in two tries.  I was so proud of him.  We had to improvise another barrier.
It's getting difficult for *me* to get over it now.  I wish I had as much
self confidence and motivation as a ferret.  Ferrets are never afraid to try
and fail for something they really want.  How inspiring!
 
-Catherine and
Sebastian "I did it!  I did it!" and
Mortimer *poof*
[Posted in FML issue 1445]