Ben Heller Week 6- The Importance of Pets in My Life

 

Ben Heller

2/28/2022

I’ve always had a soft spot for animals. Ever since I was little I’ve liked to learn about and meet different animals. Naturally, when I got the opportunity to adopt a furry friend, I was ecstatic. My first dog’s name is Nikki. We picked her up from the tri-county rescue a few weeks after we moved to Florida, when I was in Kindergarten. Even though I was only the age of 6, I could remember all the times we’d asked my parents in New York and they said no. 

I remember our lackluster apartment, the same size as my living room today, with a white-painted closet-looking kitchen that could only house three people at a time. The cramped longtable that we somehow managed to fit into when we had guests over. At that time, when we were living in New York, our parents would help us babysit a friend’s dog during some weekends and we fell in love. His name was Peanut. He was a rowdy little runt who used to sleep on the foot of my parents’ bed and go for walks on the cold rough pavement. He first introduced me to the effects a pet can have on a person. My brothers and I always looked forward to the weekends we would spend with Peanut. For us he was the holy grail. He was the exception to the rule. Even though we didn’t technically have a pet (except for the countless fishes we murdered), it made the home feel homier. Back to Nikki. Nikki is a puggle (pug-beagle mix) who is now the ripe-old age of 13. Over the years as I’ve gotten a little older and a lot stronger and taller, she has gotten smaller and frailer and older. Still, Nikki feels like my best friend in the world because I’ve known her the longest. They say dogs and their people have the same personality. For Nikki and I, that couldn’t be truer. She’s the peanut butter to my jelly. The charoset to my matzah. Even though she now doesn’t exactly have bladder control, and can’t exactly see or hear very well, she’s still my little baby. I learned how to take responsibility for another living thing. If that isn’t cool, I don’t know what is. There’s something so great about having a canine companion that if you don’t already have one, I’d suggest you get one, and fast.

Do you have a pet/s?





Comments

  1. Michael HakimMar 1, 2022, 9:52:00 AM

    I love animals! I have had so many pets throughout my life, and am now extremely occupied by my new puppy! Animals are the best companions.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousMar 5, 2022, 1:50:00 PM

    I have two dogs. The oldest one is named Lily, and the other one is Hudson. I also remember the early days with my older dog. She was such a cute, strong, and energetic dog, now she is a lot slower and heavier. I still love her though. I can tell you that dogs are definitely a man's best friend.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ben Nikpour - Week 10: Oscar Viewers are Dropping

Image
     Before a few days ago, I did not know much about the Oscars. I knew it was an award show, but besides that, I was basically clueless. It wasn’t until the Will Smith and Chris Rock situation that I spent the time to look into what the Oscars are.       For some background, the Oscars, properly known as the Academy Awards, are awarded to artists in the film industry. The first show was in May of 1929. At its peak, in 1998, the Oscars brought in over 55 million viewers; that same year was the release of one of the biggest movies of all time: Titanic. Since then, viewers have been dropping. In 2020, the Oscars had their lowest amount of viewers with only 24 million people watching the event. In 2021, the Oscars broke their 2020 record of lowest viewers by only bringing in less than 11 million people. This year the Oscars brought in close to 17 million viewers which is an improvement but not by much. Award shows like the Grammys, Emmys, Golden Globes, ...
Read more

Noah Bard Week 1 - The Misunderstanding of our Modern-Day Gladiators

Image
   When I hear the word gladiator, I Immediately think of the Colosseum and humans being eaten by lions. However, times have changed, and so has the term gladiator. I’m talking about the sport of MMA, and more specifically, UFC fighters. Besides the few million crazed fight fans out there like myself, the current consensus about MMA is that it’s stupid. At face value, it’s a very sensible conclusion to make. Why in the world would anybody want to risk their lives on national television, or in that case at all? Well, here’s why.      Every day before that bell rings, these men and women are mastering the art of fighting. It takes much more than just supernatural athleticism; it ultimately comes down to the fighter's mental fortitude. Every slight move in the eyes, feet, and hands of your opponent must be taken into account to win. It’s a common stereotype to think that fighters aren’t very smart and not only because of what they do for a living, but oftentimes it...
Read more

Ariella Green Week 7: The Airport

Image
  Ariella Green Week 7: The Airport      Don’t ya hate going to the airport?       I absolutely can not stand going to the airport. As I’m sure most of you know, I am very organized and like to plan out everything. When things don’t go according to the plan, it stresses me out.       Thursday morning, I assumed I would have an easy experience flying from PBI to JFK on JetBlue airlines. Little did I know, there would be many little bumps along the way that I had to deal with while trying to catch my flight.       First, we arrive at the airport at around 10:30 for our 11:45 flight. I personally believe that you should always give yourself enough time at the airport, so you don’t have to rush at the gate or if you want to make a purchase. We also had to face the challenge of finding somewhere to park, which is nearly impossible sometimes. After searching for a while, we found...
Read more