28 May 2010

R: There's a pet store near where I live that I've been to a few times despite knowing what an awful place it is. I can't help it. Puppies in the window lure me in, and the masochist in me compels me to visit the misery in the bark of the store where the other puppies are kept in dirty cages. Usually I just stare at them mournfully while they try to gnaw themselves free, but this time one of the employees actually asked me if I wanted to play with a pup. This was unusual since the employees are apathetic at best and hostile most of the time. They clearly don't care about other people much less animals.

I agreed to play with a puppy against my better judgement...It was the saddest experience ever. He didn't want to play with me. Every time I set him down in the pen he just ran to the corners trying to find a way out. He didn't wag his tail or even bark. He smelled like he hadn't been given a bath in a while, and he squirmed with anxiety even when I picked him up. B had a hard time getting a picture of him because he wouldn't keep still. The most he would do was lick my face: "Come on, take me home, get me out of here. Look, I will lick your face."

In the end, I gave him back to the store with a broken-heart. He cost a ton of money, and even the prospect of saving him from such an awful, despicable place couldn't convince me to patronize that store. I'll never go back again. There's a special place in hell for those people.

C: Picking up some birthday beer at Reservoir Wine & Spirits in Cleveland Circle.