Tails and Truths: You won’t believe…

So, my blog the other day set me off on a tangent even I am having a hard time believing.

I guess winning that frog basket got me to thinking – crazy thinking – with not a dose of reality!

I started to think that instead or in addition to the frogs I have been adding to my house and my garden, perhaps I should consider getting a real frog in memory of my brother.

I know – you are thinking I am nuts – and perhaps, I am… But, this thought sent me on a goose chase (or actually a frog chase) to the local pet places in the area. NO, not Petland, NEVER Petland – not anywhere that sells dogs, EVER!

I went to Petco. The first Petco only had some kind of Red Belly toads – didn’t do it for me. In fact, initially, all I was considering was one of those swimming frogs- African Pygmy frogs (something like that). I thought I could just have a little fish bowl and leave it at that.

But, when my search took me to the Algonquin Petco…that all changed because there they had Australian White Tree Frogs. Now, its likely you have never seen one of these little frogs but if you had – you would totally understand why even the least likely to ever get a frog would fall for one.

They are what cute cartoon characters are made of. Absolutely precious and they make you smile.

I found a guy in the store and asked a million questions. He was so nice and knew so much about the frogs. I must have sounded like a complete idiot. I finally felt compelled to tell him that I did own 4 dogs and 3 cats and that I wasn’t completely incompetent when it came to pet ownership!

Knowing that no good decision comes on a whim, I held back and decided I would think about it. This took everything I had.

I called Susan expecting her to tell me I was nuts, but instead; she thought it was a good idea. I told Bill what I was thinking and instead of saying it was crazy he said we should name the frog Jiminey Cricket.

To which I replied, “You mean Jiminey who eats crickets.”

That is the hardest part for me – the live feedings… Not only does it make me question my moral compass – crickets creep me out!

The next morning my friend Ellen called and said I was flipping nuts! Finally someone trying to knock some sense into me. However, my mind was already made up – I was getting the frog…and naming him, “Jiminey Who Eats Crickets.”

On the way to Petco I kept hoping for some sign that this really was the right thing to do…and that is when Ellen called. Thinking for sure she would tell me to turn around, I answered and her first words were, “Get the frog!”

She had decided that for Mother’s Day she would like a Beta fish… Her dog had passed away a few months ago and while she has cats – she is lonely and a fish seemed an easy way to fill the void. But, we know it won’t - just like we know that Jiminey isn’t going to fill the void of my brother.

But, we try, right? Because it feels like the right thing. Some small attempt to make something wrong feel better. Something to take the pain away and to give us something else to focus on.

I went into Petco and once again had a wonderful new guy who helped me to pick out my frog and got me a cart so we could start filling it with the numerous supplies I would need for Jiminey.

Let me tell you, getting a dog would be easier!

Speaking of dogs… getting a frog was quite a change for me. I had so many concerns that really don’t pertain to a tree frog. I was worried about socialization, if he would be lonely, how much I should play with him.

To which the numerous frog sites all laughed at me. Frogs are frogs they said… They don’t get lonely: they only get hungry and tired.

I am not saying that I agree with that but the truth is that frogs are not dogs. It doesn’t matter how many hours I am home a day. It doesn’t matter if I play with the frog (In fact, you aren’t supposed to handle them much because of our skin infecting them). It doesn’t matter if I have a fenced in yard.

As long as I bought all of this stuff and fed him these disgusting live creatures – he would be happy (or should I just say healthy?)

The guy who helped me was so patient – besides all of my questions – I wanted the tank to be aesthetically pleasing. You know like the one on the box of the aquarium I bought. Silly me – I thought it came with all the cool plants and backgrounds. It only came with 4 glass walls!

I picked out plants – one live since my intention is to create a completely live terrarium – I am in a garden club – I should at least be able to provide Jiminey something real and not plastic!

But, I started small with the plants. The important thing was Jiminey - not my would be garden of Eden.

Soon, after paying the bill for the frog that will fill the void, I was leaving Petco when the cashier, another nice and knowledgeable guy, inquired about my email address. I explained that I did puppy mill rescue… and then I remembered I was supposed to ask if the frog was captively bred and not stolen from Australian rain forests.

He said they were – that Petco only sells captive bred reptiles. To which my mind instantly pictured some froggy mill… all of these frogs kept in close quarters only breeding more frogs… How could I?

That and if not in a froggy mill – then stolen out of captivity and contributing to the decreased population of tree frogs in the world.

Gosh, I was a bad person – a hypocrite on some level. BUT I had done my due diligence – I had searched Petfinder for a tree frog to adopt and the closest one was in Canada. Even for me, that was a little ridiculous.

After diminishing my own ethics, Jiminey and I left the store on a mission to set-up the coolest tree frog habitat ever.

And, I think it is. The design would have Martha Stewart drooling and Jiminey seems to have settled in. Though, he hasn’t left one of the tree limbs since he hopped in.

The biggest thing about keeping a tree frog is maintaining a humid environment which means keeping it wet. And, later in the day that is when the true irony hit me.

See, when I was little and I would have to go wake my brother up – he would yell at me and demand that I go get him water – every morning for as long as I can remember. It was always about the water…

And now, this frog that I got in memory of my brother – it, too, needs water every morning!

Who would believe…

And, now above all else – not only do I think Jiminey will help to ease the void of losing my brother – I know my brother is smiling down at me and laughing his ass off.

Anything to make him happy!