Portrait of a wicked outlaw team.
I am a pretty law abiding citizen. I am the f***ing Sunshine Czar, after all. Sunshine Czars DO NOT break laws.
But pretty much, to walk dogs in my progressive, hippie lovin', environmentally groovy surfer town, I become a wicked outlaw.
I won't tell you where I'm walking the dogs in this picture because it's illegal. It would have been the same amount of illegal to have them off their leashes, except it was bobcat and coyote witching hour and my dogs are are tiny little wildlife hors'dourves and I kept 'em close so as to avoid certain death by fangs of nature. And Timmy always has to stay on a rope all the time now due to the fact he can't see and he could pretty much be on a walk on the moon as far as he is concerned.
And you've read all my bitching about Lighthouse Field up and down and sideways. For years. Our deadline is creeping closer out there. If you're new here, it's a really long story. Much about it here. It's just my local 33 acre oceanside field and adjoining beach where we've walked our dogs Forever.
Let's see. Where else in Sunshiney Santa Cruz, California can't you have dogs?
Most State Parks. We have all this GORGEOUS land here but no dogs allowed. Bikes ok, hikes ok, horses ok, but no dogs. On or off a leash.
Downtown. Don't try to take your dog to our quaint Pacific Garden Mall and stroll. There are tons of colorful street kids with those wacky giant hairdos and homeless people and the Umbrella Guy, but no dogs.
Most beaches. There's a few, but not many. And we have A LOT of beaches here-like, it's a Beach Town. But not for dogs. There is one awesome huge beach on my way to the barn that I can take them to and so I commute there almost every day now. It's Beach, walking distance from my house, that's part of the whole Lighthouse Field debacle and will become contraband in March.
I keep running into people who ask me how's it going on our property search? And I have to tell them, it blows. There's a serious lack that developed in the financial department. I really never thought we'd still be here in our quaint beach bungalow, all hemmed in with nowhere to run. Thought we would have been ranch owners by now and owning some nice big fields. Instead, just keep tying the dogs up and either walking around the neighborhood or risk more financial vacumnicity with big fat tickets for using some of this nice land nearby to just walk around on with my dogs.
5 comments:
When I was there with Emma, we went to the Lighthouse field, lots of dogs and not one single leash. So we let her run wild like the rest of them. Of course, it was raining horizontally, so not the greatest conditions for the Ticket Man. I never thought about this lack of freedom for dogs in SC until that visit... SLC (and Utah) is looking mighty dog friendly, in comparison. We have these canyons that ban dogs (except for special people who can get permits for the dogs, but can't let them leave their property, or they have to work for the ski patrol). But except for those canyons and the National Parks, we can take our dog almost anywhere and she can run like a wild thing. How can I take this desert dog back to CA??? I may be stuck in Utah, now, until she is old enough to not care so much about mountain biking and trail running and backcountry skiing...
I hope you find a way to get your ranch, Laura!! Those pups need to run.
Laurel
I was too polite to say anything about the Sunshine Czar thing -- after all, you do have a sign up in your barn about Generosity and Gustavo is an official Visit the Old People Dog, now.
But, this morning's post was a little bit of a downer, don't you think? As in maybe the OPPOSITE of Sunshiney.
Well, it's sort of a relief to have the real Team Small Dog back. Though that was a perfectly lovely e-mail you sent out soliciting misery and loss from SMART club members. It made me think of two or three of my own miseries and losses which I thought I was over, and I suppose it was medicinal to pick their scabs and be reminded of how miserable and loss-filled life is, but I wasn't sure how recent they had to be, and whether some of them counted. I don't suppose the last three dead sucker fish in our freshwater tank? I just don't know what's killing them, but I feel awful about it. I still miss Linda, my old Labrador Retriever. Could I get a gift bag?
Did you see the Dog Walking Activists coverage in the Sentinel on Sunday? I think it might be an evil plot to distract us from losing Lighthouse Field and Its Beach. Like the rumors that there may be a dog park in Capitola some day. Human Beings are meant to have dogs sniffing around their trash and generally being camp followers. What's wrong with the human beings in Santa Cruz? Now I'm really depressed. Thanks Team Sunshiney Small Dog!
Those dog walking activists were a San Jose singles group that did a mingle meet and greet type protest by walking on West Cliff Drive, bless their shiney little hearts. It started with pastries and ended with beer. That is way more newspaper friendly than the City selling out Lighthouse Field AND the dogs were all wearing leashes and feather boas.
The beach I've been going to is Seascape. Not even in Santa Cruz. Just Santa Cruz County. No tickets there unless you step foot onto Manresa. We just turn around before then.
For sure we'll continue risking tickets in Lighthouse Field. Which would suck if I ended up with 3 of them in one pop. But I am really good at running carrying Timmy, and the rest of the team is highly trained in being small and fast so we just plan on hightailing it outta there. I have the criminal mind. I'm premeditated.
Rainy?? It has been absolutely beautiful frigging SPRING sunny weather here all week. I'm in a t-shirt today for the first time in months. Ha, take that.
I lived in Campbell for 20 years, where they don't allow dogs even on leashes on the walkways in any parks. Not one. I had to leave town to be able to walk my dogs unless I cheated (which of course I'd NEVER do, no NEVER), and neighbors were none too friendly, either; I was astonished at the times people swore at me, literally, because my dog was sniffing their shrubbery or touching their lawn with his paws. (E.g., "Your f***ing dog better not s**t on my lawn".)
-ellen
Oh. Ranty. Rainy vs Sunshiney. OK, I need a break from the computer monitor.
-ellen
Post a Comment