Copyright © 1999 Walt Zientek

When we got married, a female cat, Boots Maroon, came with the package. I
was already outnumbered. I quicky got Joshua, the Golden and perfect Zen
was achieved. A harmonious balance filled our lives and all was calm with the
world. I should have left well enough alone.

Shortly after buying our home, we recued Buster, the cat. (This males's first
name was Ball). His presence caused a cosmic disruption in the gender balance
of our family and before you knew it, our daughter Cory was born and then our
daughter Jaime. And then we lost Boots. For an instant, harmony returned. Then
we rescued another cat, a female named Cody FullaBaloney and the world tipped
again.

Since then, life has been an eternal struggle to find that Cosmic gender
balance. It doesn't seem to be in the fates to ever re-occur. Male cats named
Jesse and Zoey have come and gone. Cleo stopped by for a short time. Perfect
Zachary was here and he and I stood alone against the girls. Crazy Cody and
Molly Beans own the place now.

So Caleb, Gibson and I seem destined to never command the decisive voting
power we need. The majority must rule.

But I guess there is always hope. The girls are nearly twenty and twenty two
and awfully pretty. Their boyfriends don't seem THAT bad. Perhaps that perfect
balance will return.

Male or female dogs? It isn't a matter of sex. It's a matter of Zen.