A Preadolescent's Preference for a Sister

      The love-shys' tendencies to have spent countless hours daydream-
ing and fantasizing about being involved in mutually gratifying inter-
action with a female companion sometimes extended even to the idea
of prompting parents to procreate a baby sister. The following interview
quotation is both interesting and poignant:

     "Well, as I told you I was an only child. And I can remember when
     I was about eight I kept prodding my mother to get me a baby sister.
     I don't know; I guess I must have kept pestering her about it for
     five or six months or more. Anyway, one day my dad told me that
     she couldn't have anymore children, but that they were thinking
     about adopting one. My dad wanted another son, and he couldn't
     understand why I kept asking all the time for a baby sister. I guess
     he thought that if you're a boy you should want a brother. Well, I
     knew I definitely didn't want any damned brother. I wanted a baby
     sister.

     Well, one day my father came home with some papers about an
     adoption. Up to that point my mother hadn't said anything. But she
     suddenly became quite upset. And she and my father argued until
     late into the night about adopting. Anyway, my dad came into my
     room the next morning and told me that my mother definitely did
     not want to adopt a child, and that I would be better off anyway
     because they would have that much more to give to me.

     For a long time after that I was really disappointed. But after awhile
     I began to feel relieved. If my dad had gotten his way and adopted
     another boy I would have really been in trouble. I don't know what
     I would have ever done with a brother around! I hate boys!" (35-
     year old love-shy man.)