Although this is a classic Elvis song, I don't think that the problem I'm going to write about is really what Elvis meant by "clean up your own backyard."
Here's what happened this morning...
I bought a new pair of Vibrams this weekend. Man, are they cute...purple and gray...they make my feet feel very girly. I took them out for a spin this morning and inevitably, because they are a new pair of shoes, there was a little bit of rubbing and chafing. I got about 10 minutes out with the pup and I decided that to go any further was going to do severe damage (and I had just come off a good week of rest). I could have turned around right there, but wanted to go a little bit longer, so I decided to take off my Vibrams. I am a "barefoot" runner, after all. So, here I am, running barefoot and as I'm jumping over rocks and such, I noticed something.
There was a TON of dog poop stains on the sidewalk. And, not only stains, but also places where a dog went, but the owner couldn't get all of the poop off the sidewalk. Residue poop...that's the worst.
WHEN DID IT BECOME OK FOR A DOG TO POOP ON THE SIDEWALK?
Did these owners train their dogs that they could squat wherever they wanted to? Austin is a total grass pooper - he won't go unless he's on the green stuff. Especially today, as I was staring down at the ground even more so, I noticed that this poop residue wasn't just here and there, it was EVERYWHERE.
At the same time, when did people lose the common decency to pick up after your dog? When did it become ok to watch your dog poop & silently stroll away, leaving me to step in that mess later? To me, people have become lazy and inconsiderate. Elvis was right in saying that we need to clean up our own backyards. Take the five seconds, FIVE SECONDS, to pick up after your dog. We're all here to walk on the sidewalks and enjoy spending time outside. But when I have to stare at the ugliness that is a pile of poop, my mood sours and I get upset with humanity. Do the simple things. Clean up.
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