A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell.

He painted a sign advertising the 20 pups. And set about nailing it

to a post on the edge of his yard.

As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his

overalls. He looked down

into the eyes of a little boy. "Mister," he said, "I want to buy one

of your puppies."

"Well," said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat of the back of his

neck, "These puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of

money."

The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his

pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the

farmer. "I've got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?"

"Sure," said the farmer. And with that he let out a whistle

"Here,Dolly!" he called. Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran

Dolly followed by four little balls of fur.

The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His

eyes danced with delight. As the dogs made their way to the fence, the

little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse. Slowly

another little ball appeared, this one noticeably smaller.

Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner, the little

pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up....

"I want that one," the little boy said, pointing to the runt. The

farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want

that puppy. He will never be able to run and

play with you like these other dogs would."

With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down,

and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so he revealed

a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to

a specially made shoe.

Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see sir, I don't run too

well myself, and he will need someone who understands."

I like this story, because it's real, you know? Runts make the best dogs. They are more loving than the rest, because they were deprived of love because of all the rest of the puppies. This may not have made me cry, but it made me think about how we judge people according to their abilities.

Gee Erik, that was a real "tear jerker".

But I suppose that cynicism comes with age.

Keep in mind that this story centers around physical disabilities and not MENTAL ones.

I knew this girl once. A beautiful thing was she, with natural blonde hair, a figure that could have gotten her a photoshoot for many glamor magazines and a sweet personality that made her a pleasure to know and to be around.

She had only one shortcoming. Something in her made her take up with shady characters. I think that she wanted to sort of "save them" from whatever, and so consequently she took up with some that were pretty flawed and oh so possessive once they decided that she was their "girl".

To make a long story short, the last one that she took up with lasted about 10 years. She had children by him and she always had to work because he could never seem to last in any job over a year or 18 months at the most. She was warned about him and how his first wife died under mysterious circumstances but she ignored these "nosy people" because she was sooo in love, and he needed her so badly. Somehow, his needs fulfilled hers in some strange way that seems characteristic of young people.

Later, after the 2nd or 3rd child she finally got fed up with him. Of course, few knew it because she never discussed her problems because she was so afraid that someone would tell her that they told her so. Next, she comes up dead under mysterious circumstances.

At his trial it was revealed how mysterious the circumstances really were, especially the $750,000 life insurance policy on her that was less than 6 months old. Well, he is doing life without parole now. Her children have no mother (or father) and each of them are being raised by a separate relative.

I guess this sad story has a moral of sorts. Sometimes it is healthier for you to be careful what type of sick pup that you pick up with. Herpes is forever, AIDS is still uncurable and worst of all, you may end up sicker than the pup...or dead of his disease, mental or otherwise.

You should consider yourself lucky if all that he does is grow up and bite you on the ass hard enough to leave permanent scars.

A-1

Tears of compassion and understanding. Thanks for sharing...

A-1,

That true story you shared is very traumatizing. She was just a naive girl like most girls are and she never deserved her own death. Poor girl, hope she is up in Heaven, because she seemed to be a good person with good intentions. May God Bless and hold her soul forever in His Glorious Kingdom, amen.

Lots of love and God Bless Y'all!

...thanks for the kind words and understanding.

It is so typical of these sick assholes today to damage women in whatever way that they can. Of course, O.J. didn't kill his wife.

Jeff Gillooley ruined Tanya's life and ice skating career. If that wasn't enough he put a tape of her naked and screwing him out for public viewing after the divorce.

Then there is the story of the drug dealers that turn in their ex-wives, wives or lovers and get a reduced sentence while the poor woman serves the mandatory 20 - 25 year sentence.

This bullshit was the idea of that bastard Senator Bob Barr from Georgia. It is supposed to be a "get tough on drugs" law. What it is, is a stupid idiot legislator trying to gain political favor. Senator Bob Barr and every other legislator who voted this law in that tied Judges' hands is an asshole abuser of women that they never even met.

Pamela Anderson's scummy asshole band boy ex-husband decided that the world needed to see her giving him a blow job...the no-talent son-of-a-bitch should be shot.

...and the list goes on and on. No, unfortunately, the ideals of the Taliband of Afghanistan are alive and (well??) in the American male.

Just remember everyone, especially you, Maria, that not all men are honorable. If, IF, you are to be any help to anybody you must do it from a postion of superiority and strength, not of love, vulnerability and subserviance.

Think of it like this. Suppose that someone is drowning. You just don't jump in with them. YOU get a pole, rope or something and stand on shore and throw it to them so that you might have firm footing from which to save them. If you jump in with them their survival instinct will make them climb up on you to keep their head above water. You will most likely drown first.

If you must fall in love find a peer, an equal. Do not find a person down on their luck or a loser. If you do, most likely, you will end up like them or worse.

Being a hero always means putting yourself in danger.

Sorry about the rant...

A-1

Excellent choice of words! And at the same time I would like to add IMHO honesty is the best trait one can find in another person -- no matter how you deal with them.

Whatever happened to honesty? I can barely find people these days who tell the truth about anything outside of my own family and a couple close friends. It almost seems like the norm is to accept bullshit and live with it until someone proves otherwise.

It doesn't matter what level a person is at economically or socially. If they can live an honest life "win the respect of Women and children" that person has accomplished the greatest feat.

How can one tell if someone is telling the truth? Some know right away, some -- like me -- get a gut feeling after two exposures -- and some people will never know.

BTW, Women are some of the biggest bullshitters that I ever run into. So, it works both ways.

- Jim

Yes!

You are certainly right. Although I see much more of it in men than I do in women, but maybe it is just the circles in which I circulate.

Take for example, that low-life that married Robert Blake. Turns out that she had scammed men for years all the way from Florida to Colorado to California.

Now she is dead. Not that anybody deserves to be shot down like a mad dog, but she was the closest to deserving that one might come in my book.

Last night I saw O.J. Simpson in a movie called "The Cassandra Crossing" He was a mediocre actor, but he was getting better. Now he will never be offered a part again.

The same with Robert Blake. Guilty or not it makes no difference, somebody is dead and the survivors life is ruined. Whether or not they deserve to have their lives ruined becomes an extraneous detail. In these cases ruined lives and death run hand in hand.

I do not think that honesty is enough to save relationships if the parties are too far apart on the social ladder. Take Princess DI for example. She married a king. Or at least a heir apparent. Then she experienced his unfaithfulness. She cracked under the pressure and they split. Or maybe Charles just couldn't stand what they had became. Who knows? I claim that if she had been the one in line for the throne that things would have been much, much different. It is the class thing at work, you see.

Sometimes women of lower social status than their mates will put up with more. It waxes and wanes according to personalities. Human relationships are a very complicated thing. It is a wonder that any of them ever work out.

Honesty is a BIG factor, but certainly not the only factor. People constantly try their limits and take their mates outside of their comfort zones. They do it out of anger, resentment or whatever, but it is never a good idea to do it. Certainly, empathy is a valuable thing in a relationship but if it is one-sided then the relationship is doomed.

One should be kind and back off if they notice that their mate is uncomfortable with something if they value the relationship.To take all the time and not give is almost as exhausting as giving in all of the time.

In the end it is always best to find an equal. Financially, socially, intelligence-wise, academically and in all other areas. Hooking up with a physically beautiful person is not doing anyone justice unless there is a lot of other things that balance out. "Trophy" mates are de-humanized. To be considered a trophy is belittling. On the other hand it is sometimes hard for somebody who is "too" beautiful to find prospective partners.

Sometimes being in a relationship makes one subject to much flurtation for various reasons. The biggest one, I think, is that it makes them more human and attainable.

Regardless, an unattractive person will put up with more in a relationship once that they are in it because they percieve that they cannot enter into them as easy as an attractive person.

Balance, balance, balance. It is what life is all about. Our worst enemy, more often than not, is always OURSELVES.

A-1

Aloha,

Princess Diana was not of low class, before she was princess, she was Lady Diana Spencer. Also, Charles never loved her in the first place. He only married her because she was a virgin and could give him heirs to the throne. He loved that H0 Camilla Parker-Bowles. That "low class" woman could not bare children and was probably not a virgin, so he was not allowed to marry her. That is their story.

I feel so sorry for her that for years she actually believed he cared about her. He never did. He stole so many years from her life, since they married in 1980 when she was only 19 years old. That is way too young to get married. It's so sad, she never met her TRUE love until a few years before her untimely death in Paris, France. May her soul rest in peace and God Bless her.

It's a blessing that Prince William is like his mother and not like his scum of a father. Prince William will most likely marry for love and not for status. I hope he marries someone like his mother, she was the sweetest thing ever.

...I didn't mean to imply that Lady Di was of low class.

Just that she was not in line for the throne. SO, I guess that this is one of those things that I cannot make better now no matter what I say.

I guess that it is not a new thing, though. Anne Bolyn, (sp?) I mean Anne of the 1000 days as the story was called, was killed for not having a male heir.

Life is almost too cruel at times, you know, even in death.

A-1