Saturday, November 11, 2006
Dog Sitting-The Sequel
The pooch and I got an early start today. (And by early I mean I was up, dressed and ready to go an hour before I’m even normally shutting off my alarm on a work day....I forgot about that part when you have a dog. You do not get to sleep in. They have demands and things they need to do so early!)
We took our morning walk and this went well except for one thing. Because of the dog, I am now aware of another tiny, abandoned kitten on my block. The kitten meowed at us, causing the dog to go bat shit crazy with desire to eat it meet it and I called it to come over. Why? Because I’m an idiot, that’s why. What the hell am I going to do with another cat? I can’t have another cat. I’ve got too many as it is and I can’t be saving every baby animal on the planet. But damn...this things was so, so small. It was all black with just a little patch of white on its chin, eyes still blue and it was scared. It came within about one foot of me and then jump/hissed at us. It didn’t back away and kept meowing.
Nonetheless, I really didn’t feel like being bitten and clawed up so after trying to coax it out of the bushes for 10 minutes, I gave up. I feel really, really guilty about this and I really don’t know what I’ll do if it ever does let me pick it up. I’ll probably take it to the Humane Society or something because again, I just can’t have another cat. I can save it though. And I really wish people would spay or neuter their pets. It’s so irresonpsible not to do that and let them roam around freely outside. Grrrrrr that angers me greatly! Listen to Bob Barker, people!
Anyway, after our walk we hopped in the car and headed to the pet store where I got a training leash and a clicker. The dog seems to respond well to sound and frankly I’m tired of saying, “Hey!” or scuffing my shoes along the sidewalk to get his attention. A clicker will be much easier to use and I don’t have to look like I can’t walk.
In the pet store there was a rat display near the dog leashes and this dog was really, really interested in the rats. He kept standing on his tip toes trying to see in. I picked him up and let him put his nose against the glass so he could have a better view. I also started thinking about the rats I used to have and realized that I really miss having rats for pets. They are some of the most affectionate pets I’ve ever had. Plus, they are really funny! But I’m trying to behave myself these days and limit the amount of pets I have. I used to have a LOT of pets because I had this crazy idea that I had to save every last one of them. As you can see from the kitten incident above, I still have this in me...but I’ve gained more self control. Still hard though.
After the store we headed off to the beach. Now, I have lived on the beach for a year and a half now and I’ve seen countless dogs with their owners down there. I didn’t think it was a big deal. We got to the beach and the dog was running and running, kicking up the sand, happy as a dog can get. I decided to take my shoes off and roll up my pant legs to wade in the water. Apparently the dog only likes the beach, not the water. Regardless, we were having fun. When I came on to the beach I was very close to a lifeguard tower and we initially had set up there. I then decided to walk the dog along the beach so picked up my stuff and headed off. As we walked, we approached another life guard tower. I stopped about 50 feet from it to snap photos of the dog enjoying himself in the sand and sun. As I was taking a photo, the lifeguard from the second tower approached me and stated that dogs are not allowed on the beach.
Huh?
I asked, “Since when?”
LG: “Since........forever.”
Me: “Forever? Really! Forever!”
LG: “.....”
Me: “.....”
Me: “I see dogs on the beach all the time!”
LG: “....”
Me: “Is this your first day? Seriously, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen dogs out here.”
LG: “That may be so but it’s illegal.”
Whatever. Does he have nothing better to do? Humans make a much bigger mess than dogs do and as long as the dog is on a leash, who cares? Seriously! Am I the only one who realizes how absurd it is to state that nature cannot mingle with nature? A dog, animal, that nature created, is not allowed on the beach, that nature created. It’s not like this is a condo or courtyard...it’s the fricken beach! That’s like saying, “I’m sorry but we cannot allow any bears in the woods.”
So I picked up my stuff and started heading back towards the beach entrance I came from. You may recall that I had already passed one lifeguard tower when I came on to the beach and before walking down the beach to reach the second lifeguard tower. I must have spent a good 15 minutes in the area of the first lifeguard tower and the chick never said a damn thing to me. BUT OH! Now? Now that I’m a criminal, suddenly she’s all up in my ass. She makes a show of talking on her radio and eyeballing me as I walked toward the entrance I had used. She went so far as to walk around the lifeguard tower to follow my every move. So, being the grown up that I am, I walked even slower. I took my sweet ass time about the whole thing, staring right back at her. I even took the time to stop and put my shoes back on....slowly...just because she acted like she was working for the government and here I was, this highly dangerous criminal in her midst! Give it a rest, lady. You make $10,000 a year for sitting in a chair all day.
(Disclaimer: Yes, I am fully aware that lifeguards save lives when people get in over their heads....pun intended...and that is respectable....but this lady needs to remember she is a lifeguard, NOT a police officer.)
Decided to go home for a little bit after that because it was hot and the dog needed to cool off. We got home and took a nap before heading out yet again later in the day. This dog seems to like riding in cars so I took him for a drive so he could see the sites. It was cool enough by that time that I could roll the window down for him and let him poke his head out. He loved it.
Needed to eat but was not going to leave the dog in the car while I went to the store so I went through a drive thru instead. Then we took a mini-mini road trip while I ate and the dog took it all in; the surroundings that is. Plus, I realized that my car gets incredible gas mileage on the freeway. Holy crap does it ever! In city, stop and go, bs traffic? Not so much but out on the freeways? I’m floored!
It was getting late so decided to turn around and come back. Before doing that I wanted to stop and getting something to drink so I pulled off the freeway some place north that I’ve never been before. Have you ever driven around in an area you don’t know and when you get out and deal with the people in whatever way you do, you get the creeps? I was only 1/4 mile from the freeway and had only intended to get something to drink real quick but standing in line at the 7-11 I stopped at and watching the people there....eeeeeeeesh! I was standing in line behind two, FAT rednecks and while I’ve dealt with rednecks in the past, I got a....well, there just is no other word for it...creepy vibe. I could not wait to get out of there. And I will NOT go back to that area if I don’t have to because.....shudder!
Got the drink, scrambled back in to the car and took off towards the freeway. I did not lose that creepy feeling until I actually got on to the freeway. Some people may come to their own conclusions about why I may have felt weird but I know, from past experience, that my instincts always tell me when people are bad and I have learned to listen to them. If I get a creepy feeling for no reason whatsoever, it’s because something is not right in Whoville.
Anyway, we are home now and the pooch is resting after a long day of adventures. I’m pretty tired myself but I just realized that I left my damn Hershey’s dessert that I got from the drive through in the driver door console. Son of a bitch. I really don’t feel like walking all the way back down to my car....but I know it will melt and make a mess all over the place if I don’t.
SIGH! Looks like the dog gets yet another walk.
Moments before the dog was 86ed from the beach
