No story of my life would be complete without some reference to the animal life I’ve had in my experience. At the age of 17, I decided it was time to get a puppy.

I was responsible enough to raise a dog right?

That’s what I thought. 

I had become obsessed with Rottweilers and thought they were the cutest dogs on the planet, and without any thought or planning, made a decision that I would have one. When I decide that I want something, I don’t sit around for long waiting for it to fall in my lap. I like instant gratification, and I go after what I want immediately.  

I started searching the classifieds and found a litter of Rottweiler puppies in Forest Lawn, Calgary. This area of the city is notorious for crime and doesn’t tend to house the most responsible citizens of society. The house that this litter of puppies called home was no exception, and they were not well cared for. They were Rottweiler and Black Lab cross puppies, and unfortunately, the ones that actually looked like Rottweilers were all spoken for. There was only one left, and he looked like a Black Lab, but there was no way in hell I was going to leave him behind. 

Chevy became my best friend and my travel companion for the next several years.

He was loyal, a total snuggle bear, and the best dog anyone could have asked for. Everyone who met him loved him, and he was my first experience with raising my very own dog. Although I had no idea what I was doing, had zero training, and wasn’t very responsible, my love for him allowed him to have a wonderful life. 

Along the journey with Chevy, I also decided that I really liked parrots. 

Again, with no research or planning, I simply decided that I was going to have a parrot. My boyfriend was on board with the idea and thought we should get one, so we started visiting pet stores to decide what kind of parrot we would like to get.

One day, we were in Calgary at a major pet store, and they were short-staffed. At that time, birds were in these open cages and you could pick them up and handle them all you wanted. There wasn’t any supervision, and there was a beautiful green parrot who was easily handled and super friendly. We picked him up and were taken with his personality immediately. 

I told my boyfriend that I wanted him, and then we looked at the price tag.  He was over $1,000, and there was no way either of us could have afforded that at the time. I decided to leave and started making my way out of the store. As I opened the door to walk out, I was surprised by my boyfriend who was right behind me, pushing me out the door and telling me to hurry up. What I didn’t know was that he had stuck the damn bird up his sleeve and was walking out of the store with him. 

Peter the Parrot came home with us that day, stolen.

I was so ashamed that my boyfriend had stolen him, and yet so in love. I was so worried about getting caught that there was no way I was taking him back to the store.  He became part of the family. 

One day, we were sitting on the couch, rolling up some joints and getting ready to smoke one when Peter came hopping on over to the table. He picked up one of the joints in his beak and looked at us with a glance of knowing. It was as if he was asking us for something. Sparking up a joint and giggling at Peter’s antics, we then noticed that the bird kept putting himself in the path of the smoke and standing in it. Turns out Peter was a pothead! 

Animals are such special and unique creatures, and I had never been without at least one in my experience.

Peter learned to say hello and to whistle at anyone who walked in our front door.  He was extremely active and had a happy life until I decided he was too much to care for, and too high maintenance. With a heavy heart, I found a good home for him and said goodbye. Along the way, I have said goodbye to many animals, but Peter is one that will always hold a special place in my heart.