Spring is in the air and other places too!
By Laurel E. Anderson - April 2005
Ah, spring is in the air and on the ground too for that matter. The smell of decaying and forgotten vegetation sprinkled with garbage that has traveled the winter highway instead of stopping in at the closest trash can give early spring a bad rap, esthetically speaking. Not to mention the land minds and what is affectionately referred to in our family as ‘pudding pops,’ often left behind by our furry and four-legged friends and their owners.
I believe in the old adage by dog guru Barbara Woodhouse who said, “There are no bad dogs, just bad owners” and when it comes to owners, there seems to be something about winter that suggests anonymity for some when it comes to stooping and scooping and those of us with boulevards or neighbourhood parks close by must walk softly and carry a big stick-to scrape our new spring shoes if we happen to unexpectedly hit a bull’s-eye.
As a dog owner myself, I’ve tried to give fellow dog owners the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes you’re caught short a bag and then you might find yourself knocking on a neighbour’s door, asking for a spare (I’ve done this). But in other cases, the guilty party simply looks both ways before scurrying away. If they’re on my street and I’m sitting in the front window, I’m usually on my feet and to the door offering a bag to help out. Unfortunately, my offer is not always accepted and more often, it’s ignored and the offending party suddenly feels that they have invisible powers and they just look right through me as they walk by.
I’m not going to beat around the bush here. This rots my socks! If everyone decides to stop scooping, we are in for some major problems. Never mind the obvious problems of health and shoe safety, eventually dogs will be banned from yet another area-parks and sidewalks. And don’t kid yourself, it could happen. No more taking Rover for a big run in the field before work and man’s best friend will have to stay behind on trips to the park. So let’s all do our part and keep the greens clean.
Another telltale sign of spring is all of the foreign objects that suddenly appear on the front walk and in shrubs and trees. I could almost have a red tag sale in my front yard based on these items alone. Last week a I found several Christmas decorations-some still intact, a windshield wiper fluid bottle that still had some fluid in it, lots of newspaper, the neighbour’s daughter’s artwork, someone else’s homework form last fall, lots of pop cans and a few unidentifiable objects that I would sell as surprise bags like they do at the corner store.
Don’t get me wrong here. There are lots of good things about spring too! Riding bikes, planting flowers and one extra hour of sunlight on either side of the day once we set the clocks ahead and of course, the best one, patio season. Whether in your own backyard or at a pub or restaurant, outside play season is upon us so enjoy! Just mind the pudding pops and keep an eye out for hidden treasures along the way!
Happy Spring!