Pride Weekend

I was asked by a friend to convey this mini adventure we had over the weekend.  So, here goes.

   We take our small dog, Oscar, to a dog park in downtown Atlanta every so often.  More often than not, it is in concert with our run to a market we prefer to shop at that just happens to be very near the park.  So it’s a two-birds-with-a-stone enterprise.  We plan with careful deliberation…except for some reason, checking what social event may be going on that weekend downtown.

   The doggie park adventure went pretty well, not a lot of small dogs because unbeknownst to us it was Gay Pride Weekend at the Park. So they hiked up the price of parking (triple), along with posting signs at inappropriate places stating pets were not allowed due to city ordinance:  They provide the paragraph and sub paragraph number as validation; as if we’re carrying around a civil code book to check. I wonder how many timid souls were turned back (after paying the outrageous UNREFUNDABLE parking fee) because they didn't want to be ticketed for pet smuggling into a festival whose premise was standing up for who you are?

Ironic isn't it?

   Another not-so subtle change was a sign in the doggie park right next to the communal watering bowl “Do not use the drinking bowl for bathing.”  First off none of the dogs can read so I render a guess at what that sign really meant was “If your dog steps in the drinking bowl, please dump it out and put fresh water in.” If I were in charge of being polite I’d have gone in that direction.  Somehow the not so pleasant nature of that sign seemed accusatory, as if we would intentionally bring soap and towels to the park and lather up FeFe or Max because we had the opportunity.  I mean really, dogs do pretty much what they want when off the leash~Isn’t that the point of a doggie park in the first place? 

   So yeah, we just happened to have placed a plastic blue pool outside our garage this summer for Oscar to jump into after a walk; it became ritualistic for him to jump into it after a walk.  Was it any surprise when seeing a body of water that Oscar stepped into it? Often? Not to us.  Of course that two foot black letter on white background sign glared down at WE, the offending parents, citing us of criminal neglect. 

   I thought that eventually every complex society will ultimately find each of its citizens guilty of breaking one law or another. So I decided I preferred to be dragged away to jail for something as lame as allowing my dog to step into a drinking bowl. Put THAT on my Resume maybe?  Or found guilty of ignoring the signage saying pets were forbidden in the park…a park with money spent for doggie pens….that could only be reached by walking through the grounds.

Doggie Smuggler...makes me sound...I dunno...rebellious….good.