"Sticks and stones may break my bones, but a parrot using a word is what's damaged my mental health."
Now, for a story from a long time ago, I was working in a mall, near the pet shop. One of the janitors who worked a lot of night shifts taught the African Grey to say motherfucker. We know absolutely which one, because when he was working days, if the parrot saw him, he'd get all excited and repeatedly yell it at him. That janitor stopped working our gallery pretty much right away after that.
I daresay his mental health was already damaged beyond repair, if being reminded that he's lying to himself makes him quiver so.
(post is archived)