Would You Rather?

UPDATED POST:

Whaddya know?! You responded! I'm impressed. Turns out people really do read my blog, after all. Ha! Well, I suppose it's only fair that I post my answer now since: a) I told you I would, and b) you kept up your end of the deal. So now, you have to listen to...errr...read...my stream-of-consciousness type rambling [insert sinister laugh]. Ah, well. It is my blog, after all.

I admit, I was almost swayed by some of your answers. But ultimately I decided:

I would rather be a dog.

See, I'm a dog person down to my very core. I don't know, maybe it's because I had the same dog from age 5 to age 17 and completely experienced the whole "man's best friend" thing. Or maybe....yeah, I really like being adored, and dogs do that. But would I prefer to be the one doing the adoring? Hmmm... 

Maybe it's because I myself am very loyal to those I love. And they're so fun-loving and fancy free. Who cares if they have slobber all over their faces if they're having a great time? They run around exploring all day long, jump in rivers whenever they want, and do cool things like herd cattle. Dogs are always portayed as the dummies, but think about it: loyalty, heroism, self-sacrifice, the love and adoration of children...dogs are no dummies. Although, I am also an introvert, and "me time" is a pretty sacred thing (that I don't get much of these days), so I'll admit, the whole "I-don't-really-feel-like-dealing-with-you-people-today-so-I'm-just-gonna-find-a-quiet-comfy-spot-in-the-sunshine-and-pretend-like-you-aren't-here" thing is enormously appealing.

But you know, the whole condescending split-personality thing is really the clincher for me. I'm not much of one for using people, and in my experience, that's what cats do. They love you when they want something. There's no give and take. Well, unless you count the dead squirrels and things they leave on your doormat as "presents." I'm not cool with that, either.

So, dog it is. But a big one. I really can't stand those yippy little things. Ooooh, what about big cats? I would totally be a tiger. Hmmm....but no. Still with the attitude. Except with them it's got the added "mess with me and I'll eat you" bit, which again, I'm just not cool with.

Yay for dogs!

**********************************************************

ORIGINAL POST:

Are there any Dr. Seuss fans out there reading this? I love Dr. Seuss. Really, who doesn't love him? I also wonder why I can't think of some hair-brained idea like writing books about complete nonsense and selling millions of copies so I can stay home with my children for as long as I want and never have to worry about money to feed them with, thankyouverymuch.

Sigh. Until then, how about a little game?? I love games. And...in another attempt to get some audience participation going on this blog, I've decided we'll play it here. Well, I will. You can play too, if you want. You know, if you're fun.

My kids have a Dr. Seuss book titled, Would You Rather Be A Bullfrog? It's definitely one of my favorites. Here's an excerpt:

Tell me!
Would you rather be a Dog...or be a Cat?
It's time for you to think about important things like that.
Would you rather be a Bullfrog...or be a Butterfly?
Which one would you rather be? 
Come on, now.
Tell me why.
(c) 1975 Dr. Seuss & Random House Books 

I love how many messages can be found in any one book, and for people of all ages, too. I've read this one to my toddlers, and used it with older elementary school children as a morning "Brainwarmer" to get them thinking and writing. The book is basically a compilation of "would you rather?" questions, and I would just pose them to my students and challenge them to justify their answers in journals. See? Higher-level thinking questions first rattle out of the box. Brilliant teaching, I know.

Now it's your turn. I'll pose the question, and you answer it. And by the way, this works best if you, you know, answer. Just to be fair, I'll give my answer too...but not until you do (and tell me why!). Here goes nothing! We'll start easy.

**********************************************************

Would you rather be a dog, or be a cat?

**********************************************************