Dogs

I have two of the best dogs on the planet. Yes I am bias in my views. I recognize that to some people my dogs are ill-behaved and crazy. But I love them. They get a long walk every morning. I follow the rules, I have them on leashes and I pick up their poop. They love their walk and I love to walk with them. But, some people don't. The first time we walked our dogs in our neighborhood, one of the dog marked a rose bush - well the owner of said rose bush came running out and yelled at us. How dare we let our dog near his house. (Please note there is no sidewalk where we live and there is a lot of wildlife). We nicknamed this man "the grinch" and make sure we walk in the middle of the street when we pass his house. So, today I actually saw him for the first time since the yelling incident (which was at least 2 years ago). I had my daughter in a carrier strapped to my front and both dogs on leashes. He was trimming his roses. There were three little boys on bikes riding up and down the street. He scowled at them. Then he saw me and just stopped and watched me walk by. No hello, no "f you", nothing. Just his had on his hip with his rose clippers. I felt I was seeing a Stephen King character in the flesh. He finally went back to pruning after we turned the corner - I could hear the clippers. And yes - I made sure he wasn't coming after me. My husband and I have often mused at leaving him a present -- no, not a poop on fire in a bag present - but a nice gift. Grumpy people like that can sometimes be very lonely and therefore ornery. Maybe he just needs someone to love.

But back to the days stroll...

As we walked we came across a Rottweiler, very nice dog. But, he was off his leash, hanging with his owners in the front of his house. He startled us by jumping out of a bush - and his owners promptly called him back. Damn near gave me a heart attack. That is a big problem in our literal "neck of the woods" - people don't mind the leash laws, nor do they care if their dogs wonder around. Could this be why the grinch hates dogs?

I've brought a bunch of strays home - called their owners and had them picked up. Thank goodness I've done that because one of our dogs got out when we were in San Diego and a good Samaritan called us. Karma points are good things to build up. During the heavy rains and thunderstorms we had this year - dogs were getting out all the time. This is why our dogs stay in the house when we're not home...