Dog Daze

O.K. I confess! This will be a rant. I appreciate my neighbors' love for their dogs, but don't have the desire to complicate my life any further. I don't need one more thing to feed, care for, take to the doctor, or compensate for destruction.

I'm the neighbor who doesn't greet the dogs when I greet their owners. I don't pet them or scratch their heads. The English Bulldog, "Elvis" is my favorite, possibly because so many others don't like him. I appreciate his obstinate nature and the fact that he doesn't care if I scratch his head. Or not. When I look at him, I think he could have been named "Churchill" just as well. He's perfect for Mike.

That said, when my family asks when we'll get a dog, my reply is that I'll do it when I'm the only one living in the house. That may sound negative, but if you can hear the humor, it's not all that bad. I'll get a dog because I love to go for walks.

There's a time and a place for dogs. I've long been tired of folks who bring them to kids' soccer games and practices. They're against the rules on the sports fields and schools in this county. I'm OK with most rules because I think they were made by reasonable, well-meaning people. At South Run, I've seen dogs run onto the field in the midst of play. It adds a bit of chaos.

The real dog "stunner" occurred on Saturday in Annapolis, at the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Quarterfinal, Navy vs. Johns Hopkins. Let's say there were 20,000 people there. Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium holds about 40K. They even have "sky boxes" now. I'm floored by the three 60-70 year olds, dressed as if they had stepped from a Ralph Lauren advertisement, who entered section 106 and pushed to the center of a row (general admission seats) with their large dog. Can you imagine? The rest of us get our water bottles confiscated at the gate, and they bring in a dog weighing at least 80 lbs?

Puh-leeze. He was not a assisting the blind or infirm. He had no banner or jacket. He was merely accompanying the entitled.

OK, he was pretty well behaved. He only tried to get away once, and then came close to nibbling the shoe of another sports fan. I suppose we should be glad that he didn't try to chase the lacrosse ball.