The Ann Arbor Public School administrators, in their infinite wisdom, are considering whether or not dogs should be allowed on school property*.

Boy oh boy, do I have mixed feelings about this. Overall, I think YES! In my neighborhood, if you want to get from Carbeck Street (my street) to Duncan Street, you either walk through the school yard or go “around the universe” (a mile or so) to get to the other side. On the other hand, dogs have been a problem at the schools forever. I will never forget the morning that Mrs. W. [1st-grade teacher] called me to ask if I knew who owned the [insert dog breed here] that pooped in the schoolyard that morning. I did not know the owner! I didn’t even recognize the breed! What are you talking about? You’re calling meeeee about this? What?

Once upon a time, a former Haisley principal PADLOCKED THE WOODS! Why? Because dogs go in there and poop. IT IS A DAMN WOODS, FER KEEREIST! ALL KINDS OF AMINALS POOP IN THERE! That was long enough ago that I actually knew somebody on the Haisley PTO that I could email and they managed to get the damn woods un-padlocked again. The funny thing about that is that I fergit how many years ago, a tree fell on the fence into the woods and there would be no point in having a padlock on the woods at all now. It’s wide open to people, dogs, raccoons, skunks, rabbits, rabbits, rabbits, whatever, and has been for years.

Okay. Once again folks. I suppose there are dogs that are problems but more often than not, it is the OWNER who is the problem. For not controlling their dog. Again. I like dogs. But when I am out walking, I am solving the problems of the universe [not that anyone else cares] and I do NOT want your dog to run up to me and jump up on me. I don’t care how “friendly” he/she is. When I am in that space, I am not interested in interacting with your dog.

We’ll see what happens in the school district but I am conflicted. That loverly blurry dog in the photooo (from the Sherman Archives) is my dog Tigger. She is blurry because she always ran like the wind. Dan and I were a bit slower. You may have had a childhood dog or two or three or whatever but you didn’t have Tigger. I am kind of a one-dog person and Tigger was it. She got me over a horrific fear of dogs in very short order. We tied her up at our house in Sault Ste. Siberia but, at the moomincabin, she was allowed to run free. I don’t think she was necessarily the best behaved dog, at least not in her early years but she mellowed out quite well later on. Oh, strange people on the beach? “I’ll just slowly walk up to those strangers with a “smile” on my face and my tail wagging like crazy and maybe they will pet me!” And yes, those strangers usually did. Oh, what a nice doggie. Tigger loved it. My parents put her down when I was 19 and Tigger was 13.

*Disclaimer: We have a new Superwoman in the district this year and even though she was the district’s second choice, I am cautiously optimistic that she will work out better than the Walled-in Office Gal we had the last time.

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