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Mary's avatar

Great Free for All Friday articles today !! Thank you, Bill !

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SPW's avatar

Good stuff today Bill. Thanks.

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Darrell's avatar

Thoughts as I sit here reading yet another balanced newsletter with a cup of coffee and furry buddy:

Putin calls the shots with the US and diplomacy. The administration acquiesces.

— KGB 101

ICE now has a propaganda division. Yes, you can wear a balaclavas. Now hiring! Data not included.

Blame the children for they know not what they do.

— the Book of Miller, chapter 6, verse 7

Affordability, the new hoax?

From time to time people tell me “relax, it’s just a dog” or “it’s a lot of money just for a dog.” They don’t understand the distance traveled, the time invested or the costs incurred by “just a dog.” Some of my proudest moments happened with “just a dog.”

Many hours passed being my only company “just a dog”, but not for a single moment I felt despised. Some of my saddest moments were for “just a dog,” and on those gray days, the gentle touch of “just a dog” gave me the comfort and reason to spend the day.

If you also think “it’s just a dog,” then you’ll probably understand phrases like “just a friend,” “just a sunrise,” or “just a promise.” “Only a dog” brings into my life the very essence of friendship, trust and pure and unbridled joy. “Only a dog” brings the compassion and patience that make me a better person.

For “just a dog,” I’m getting up early, going for long walks and looking forward to the future. So for me, and for people like me, it is not “just a dog,” but an embodiment of all the hopes and dreams of the future, the memories of the past and the absolute joy of the moment. “Only a dog” brings good in me and diverts my thoughts away from me and the daily worries.

I hope one day you can understand that it’s not “just a dog”, but what gives me humanity and prevents me from being “just a human”. So the next time you hear the phrase “just a dog,” you just smile because you “just don’t understand.”

— Richard Biby

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