Cross Your Fingers

This is Bernie. I want him to be my new best friend. I just finished my adoption application, so everyone keep your fingers crossed. Isn't he totally cute? I'm think the three biggest factors against me are my stupid work hours; the fact that I've never owned a pet and am trying to jump straight into owning a monster; and the fact that I don't drive the biggest car. But he seems so perfect! He's crate-trained, he's good with kids and other animals, he's friendly (I mean, look at that doggie grin!), and he has depth perception problems. He sounds like the dog version of me (except I'm kinda mean, hate many different types of animals, and don't spend much time in a crate). It's also been brought to my attention that I may have unrealistic expectations when it comes to pet ownership. Everyone keeps bringing up the large quantities of poop, the fact that dogs aren't going to do exactly what you want all the time (I kinda like being obeyed), and the fact that he's huge. And I understand these concerns, as it would make me sad to get my gentle giant dog, only to find that I have no clue what to do with him. But I'm reading my dog books, and you gotta start somewhere, right? And why start small when you can start big?