Thursday, August 11, 2005

Pet Story

"Dogs?" I ask my wife.

"No!" she replies.

"Why? Maxene just gave birth." Maxene is my brother's bulldog. "We can ask for one of the puppies. It's not as if they're ugly. Those bulldogs are adorable. Very playful. And they belong to a champion line. What's your issue with dogs?" I ask again.

"They stink!" she exclaims.

"Mommy's maltese doesn't." I counter.

"But that dog is kupal. She still doesn't know me even if I've been a member of the family for more than three years now. She still barks at me whenever I go to Mommy's. And besides, even if the dog doesn't stink, its shit surely does." She has a point.

"Cats?"

"Same. Their shit stinks. And what's worse, the shit's odor lingers for a long time. Long after you've washed it off wherever it is they shit at."

"They cover their shit with sand."

"Do you see any sand in any part of our house?" Again, she has a point.

"Okay, how about birds?"

"Iiwwwww! I hate birds! I'm scared of birds. Those things look so scary like those..."

I interrupt her. "Careful with your words. Leave the mascot of my alma mater alone."

She sneers.

"Then I guess snakes and other reptiles are out of the question?" Half-asking.

The mean stare answers it.

"Okay, how about fish?"

She considers. "Only if the aquarium is big enough and it would fit with the interior of our house. Plus, make sure you choose a nice species of fish."

The above dialogue is a bargaining discussion I had with my wife on having pets in our house.

So right now, I'm in the process of setting up our aquarium. I'm not really a fish person. Not like my brother who can tell the common names with the corresponding scientific names of the fish they sell at their pet shop. But I guess that would have to do since my wife has many issues with pets.

For now, I am her only walking, crawling, stinking and shitting pet in this house.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed reading your blog. If you're serious about raising fish you should read about the nitrogen cycle.

From a fellow Atenista of the 80's

A.R.Martinez said...

Thanks, dude. Nice to know a fellow Atenista from my decade visits my blog.

Regarding the aquarium set up, I'm in good hands with my brother who's an expert in things that are "fishy". =)

duke said...

if you can persuade the wifey, try having a cat. most of the time they are snobs, saves you the attention when you don't want it. the litter boxes are odor free. but she's right, the fish are the most harmless and they don't bother you at all. i thought you were from the parrot school.

A.R.Martinez said...

I also like cats. My mom used to adopt a lot of homeless "pusakals" (pusang kalye).

But the decision has been made. We already have darna, our arowana. =)