Get ready to be completely undone by a comic strip. I am talking real, weepy tears.
You are going to hate the kid in this.
I did.
Yep, just hated him…
Let me know your thoughts, when your eyes clear.
In other news, my latest Huffington Post article, Eight Comments That Make You a Horrible Person, is up and ruffling some feathers on Facebook, but I stand by it. If you have thoughts to share, please post them over on HuffPo. Again, can’t wait to hear your thoughts.
Quick reminder, Happiness as a Second Language is on sale for 99 cents until tomorrow. Don’t miss this chance to get your copy and give one to a friend.
Hope you’re having a happy week as of this hump day! It’s almost Friday…
People can learn a lot from animals 🙂 I’m a veterinary technician and one of the many things we struggle with counseling owners on is their pet’s life after amputation. Not that the animals don’t care, or won’t feel pain. But they focus on the improvement of their life and the absence of greater pain after a broken/shattered/diseased limb is removed. It’s all about perception, and animals are experts at readjusting theirs. I had a mother and daughter sitting in our lobby extremely emotional and reluctant to allow the necessary surgery for their cat. As luck would have it, we had a young cat in the shelter upstairs that was a recent amputee (don’t let your cats go outside!). So I sent them up to ‘calm down’. They came back with huge smiles on their faces. Whatever human notion they had about losing a limb was gone. Perception is an easily manipulated thing.
Definitely a surprise ending. 🙂
What a beautiful story! Our dog has carpal hyperextension in both front paws and the surgery would be far worse for her than the condition, so we just decided to let her live with it and if she was in pain, make the humane choice. It’s been over a year and she’s more active than ever — happy to chase a ball or go on a long walk, and most people can’t even tell that her front legs are a little funny. They really are amazing, adaptable creatures.
I loved your post at HP – almost everything you pointed out has been said to me at one time or another (I have an invisible illness called CFS, and major spinal problems, also invisible unless I’m too slow walking across the street in front of your car!). If I ever said any of them, I’m deeply sorry, and I have learned better.
You could also add so many things – but covered the basics very, very well: don’t say ‘He’s resting now’ or ‘this is so much better than being in pain’ to someone who’s beloved grandfather just died. I didn’t care at 13, and I don’t care now: I want my Papa Memo back! And I’m sure he would rather be here with his grandchildren; it brings tears even after 50 years.
The only tiny issue I have: I don’t know when ‘I’m so sorry’ became ‘I’m so sorry for your loss,’ but I’d like to slug the person who came up with that one – and the Law and Order writer who popularized it, but I haven’t LOST anyone. They died, not passed, and I know exactly where they are (in Heaven, I hope – but those are my beliefs) and where their body is.
The comic was great, too – I didn’t see it coming. I initially thought it was about the PUPPY.
Alicia, thank you so much for this lovely comment! There were so many “death” comments that I wanted to include that it could be its own separate column. I actually think I might do a sequel, because of how many I left off. I’m also amazed at the responses that disagree, particularly with #2 and #6 — people who think you should tell others that they’ve gained weight or that their children should be parented differently. Takes all kinds, I guess. Just doing my small part to try to make the world a slightly more humane place.
Here’s an answer to the weight question I would have posted if HP didn’t require registration – I’m already drowning in logins!
Do you really think anything you say to a person who is overweight is going to come as new information? “Really? Thanks you for that information. I had not noticed I’m fat.” Grow up. There isn’t a person on this planet who wouldn’t appreciate an instant return to an appropriate weight. And weight loss (or gain for those who need to put some on) is one of the least successful things human attempt over and over. It’s a billion dollar industry, with an extremely low success rate (less than 2% of people manage to maintain a long-term weight loss for two years) for a problem of epidemic proportions.
If person A maintains a normal weight by a normal life (her system works), and person B maintains a normal weight by focusing on it 100% of the time, because that’s what it takes, how can you insist that person B put in the effort? Maybe she has a life and other things need doing with her time.
There’s plenty of room for self-improvement in life; use it wisely.