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BY DAN SURGAN When thinking of Mercury most think: Venus reminds some of beauty; Earth represents life. Mars is the red planet and Jupiter is the Big Man. Saturn has those big beautiful rings. When anyone says Uranus, most giggle, and when thinking of Neptune most think blue. But when looking at Pluto, what comes to mind? Pluto is the solar system's little brother who has been picked on by bullies calling him too small to belong to such a cool crowd like the planets of the solar system, and too different because he's orbiting on a different axis than the other guys. The truth is that Pluto just wanted some attention so he decided to be a little different. And those bullies we call scientists try to keep the poor little guy down by telling every one he's not really a planet but a dwarf planet. If Pluto were a teenager, this insult would be the equivalent of kicking him out of the biggest party of the year and then spitting in his face on the way out. Now Pluto is cold and all alone. Not even Charon, Pluto's biggest satellite, wants to talk to him now that he's the laughing stock of the solar system. After 76 years as the ninth planet, Pluto hopes his fellow dwarf planets Xena, the biggest dwarf, and Ceres, who was also labeled as a planet for a brief time, will like him and that the bullies will leave him alone now that he hangs with a smaller crowd. The people of Earth will remember Pluto as not just Mickey Mouse's faithful dog but also as the small, icy, blue planet that was once worthy of being put on place mats, hung in dioramas, and even scientifically cool enough to be visited by Ms. Frizzle and her students on the Magic School Bus. Goodbye for now, Pluto. And, if it means anything to you, you will always be a planet to me