I hereby nominate Cran’s current avatar as the cutest darn thing ever.
That’s a real cutie, for sure. I love rats.
Redwolf
et moi aussi.
It looks like it could star in its own line of Hallmark cards! Cute, cute, cute!
Well, from the photo, it’s obviously a talking rat.
Would anyone care to fill in the quote that goes with the picture?
Best wishes,
Jerry
“Go ahead! Toss me that Generation! I promise I won’t nibble on the fipple!”
She was singing, actually.
And she’s a rat, not a mouse. She doesn’t have a “proper” name, other than “rat.”
Just for the record, I knew she was a rat… I was just trying to do a [poor] play on “Of Mice and Men”. 
(With men being changed to people, in honor of Cran not liking to label people with genders, of course )
It’s probably good that you explained that. You might be overestimating our cleverness! 
No, I’m probably overestimating my own. 
Countin the days until White Willard goes away for another of Cran’s aviator tangents.
I HATE RATS!!!
They don’t hate you. Show a little love.
I even bet rats are Republican.
Wasn’t Willard the boy’s name and Ben the rat’s name? It’s been a long time since the movie and I could be mixed up.
I’m not thrilled with rats either. But I’m less thrilled when people come into the pet store I work at and buy “pinkies” (baby rats and/or mice) as “feeders” - aka snake food. Same with the customers buying crickets to feed to their lizards and goldfish for their turtles or whatever. I know in the wild animals eat other animals, and my dog and cat have caught birds and eaten them, but this just gives me the creeps.
Almost every snake species in captivity can be trained to eat pre-killed rodents. I’ve never had snakes, but many of my friends do and they feed only pre-killed. It’s cheaper, more convienient, and is less dangerous to the snake. Perhaps suggest this to the customers who feed their snakes live food.
The store does sell frozen pinkies but lots of times the customers in line will say to the customer who is buying the frozen ones that their snake won’t eat anything unless it moves. (Said in a tone that suggests that their way of doing things is the only right way)
I’m just a cashier making minimum wage and the feeders are a big seller for the store - if I tried to talk people out of buying the live ones then they might not buy anything there and I’d get in trouble and be out of a job. When I win the lottery I will say and do what I really think but until then we need $$$$ - not enough people buy used books at my husband’s store for us to survive on his income alone (but I keep trying to retire every couple of years 
)
Sometimes principle is more important than money. You’re wealthier than you think you are and you could live on a lot less than you currently do.
/me takes off Mother Teresa hat
I understand, though.
Yet another innocent thread turned into an ethics debate.
Which reminds me, apparently sharks don’t like chicken. I saw it on Animal Planet. Maybe someone can invent a chicken flavored ointment that divers and swimmers can wear to prevent shark attacks.
Oh Cran. A single 20-something can never understand the lifestyle choices a married 50 year old has to make. The only things left to cut out are cable TV, my daughter’s ballet and summer camp, my cell phone, and my Internet service. I haven’t been to the dentist in almost 2 years due to the expense. We dropped our health insurance because it costs over $6000 a year. We live in a small house two blocks off a major street in a neighborhood that’s headed downhill and haven’t looked for a nicer place because the mortage payment for anyplace else would be at least triple. I could live without the cable, but my daughter and husband wouldn’t like it, and they could live without the Internet but I’d go stark raving mad. My daughter enjoys ballet so we scrimp and save to come up with the $60 a month for her lessons. Half the camp cost is usually paid by the church. And the cell phone is almost a necessity anymore. We didn’t go on a family vacation last year since I wasn’t working because I had quit my job. My big trip was driving about 150 miles to see a concert and staying one night in a budget motel. This year my husband is splurging to take our daughter to a family reunion back east - but I can’t go because I won’t have any paid vacation time from this job yet, and if I’m not working we can’t afford my plane ticket. Yes, we bought a new van - with half the money given to us by my mother-in-law, which really makes me feel useless. The other vehicle was as old as our daughter - a 1991 Blazer. The cost is also why we’re getting the Blazer repaired after the wreck instead of buying another car.
So don’t get all sactimonious on me here. Remember the saying about “don’t judge anyone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes.” You want people to be supportive of your lifestyle - don’t criticize others. I know it’s a failing of the young, that young people think they know it all. When you get out of college and have to find a job, you’ll find that beggars can’t be choosers. If you want to be a decent member of society you will take whatever job you have to to pay the bills. And then keep entering sweepstakes and buying the odd lottery ticket to try to get out of the “rat” race!
(Fly - does the rat race remark constitute getting this back on track? )
Well said Charlene.
The youth of today eh?
Slan,
D.
“Hey you kids, get off my lawn!!!”