I get e-mails all the time that have some kind of inspirational message or a long, drawn-out joke, that I typically skim over and then delete. One kind of e-mail, however, always captures my attention, and that is the type that has funny pictures of animals. For some reason, those never get old for me.
I remember one e-mail that I received of a dog and a cat in what appeared to be a romantic embrace with a caption that read something like forbidden love. Both animals had these surprised expressions on their faces as if they had just been caught red-handed, and I actually saved that one to use a desktop background picture on my computer.
Another e-mail with funny pictures of animals was one where a Chihuahua was chasing after a Doberman, which I guess had the terrible misfortune of setting foot into the Chihuahua's yard. The Doberman was running with its head down and tail between its legs, and the little Chihuahua was hot on his tail, obviously barking like crazy.
Funny pictures of animals can sometimes be taken from television shows. I once saw a picture of a monkey washing a cat. The cat was in a big metal basin, and the monkey was scrubbing it with a big brush. I know that I saw that on David Letterman's show.
My father will sometimes send me funny pictures of animals where a bird had befriended a cat, or a cat is watching over a little mouse. Those are the ones that always make me nervous, because you never know if or when the cat's predatory instinct will kick in, and then it's bye-bye bird or mouse. I would like to think that that never happens, and they remain friends for life.
One of the more memorable e-mails I received of funny pictures of animals was a series of photos where a baby elephant had lost its mother, and was basically adopted by a sheep. It was funny, but also cute to see this big, massive elephant following a sheep around, mimicking its movements and snuggling up with it.
I think my favorite is one where you can see a dog sitting at a table playing cards. He is wearing a human's shirt, and the dog's owner is obviously behind him and out of view of the camera, because you can see a pair of human hands dealing the cards. It is made to look like the dog is dealing the cards, and he has a cigar coming out of the side of his mouth.
Funny pictures of animals are always a lot of fun for me, and I never tire of looking at them. I do wonder why sometimes I can't bear to read a lengthy e-mail from one of my aunts, but can look at multiple photos of a dog riding a skateboard. I guess it's because most of us have pets, and nearly every pet has done something in its life that made you wish you had a camera.