Furious, the woman storms away.

From Life is a Joke, 100 Life Lessons by John and Gordon Javna.

—35— Head Case

“Vilify, vilify, some of it will always stick.”

—Pierre Beaumarchais

On her way to work every day, a woman walks past a pet shop. One day there’s a parrot in the window. As she stops to admire the bird, it says, “Hey, lady! You’re ugly.” Stunned, the woman looks around, and the parrot says, “Yeah, I’m talking to you. Beat it, will you? You’re scaring the puppies!” Furious, the woman storms away.

The next day, as she passes the shop, the parrot says, “Wow! Lady, you are really ugly!” This continues for days, and finally the woman can’t stand it anymore. She marches into the pet shop and tells the owner that if that parrot calls her ugly one more time, she’ll have the man charged with harassment and sue him for every cent he’s got. “I’m so sorry, ma’am. I promise he’ll never do it again.”

The next day, as she passes the shop, the parrot says, “Hey, lady.” The woman stops in her tracks, turns, and stares intently at the bird. The parrot climbs onto its perch and starts swinging gently, then looks away from the woman and says, “You know.”