Nature of Dog

Life with a dog is not so bad, especially when the creature is the sweetest greyhound in the world, and he's only on loan. IMHO, these are the BEST dogs! (loaners, I mean; greyhounds are outstanding too.) The dog requires that you leave the false security of four walls--whether it's the house or the car--and be outdoors--in all kinds of weather. I've greeted so many neighbors while I was walking around with Jesse's Owens sniffing planet earth, I even imagined myself as gregarious. Life's philosophical questions find answers outdoors. For example, I've discovered what animal magnetism means. If a dog is in proximity to another member of the animal kingdom, his senses lock on to the critter, and no amount of human cajoling or whining will break his focus until his curiosity is satisfied.

Our neighborhood association had its monthly meeting. Semi-social resident that I am, I prefer to read the e-mail newsletter that condenses the whole event and shows up promptly in my inbox after each meeting. (Actually, I'm afraid I will volunteer for something my loud mouth suggests, so I avoid meetings where the sole purpose is to discuss problems.)
From this well-edited epistle, I learned that the biggest obstacle facing the 'hood is dog elimination. It appears to be a bigger problem than the graffiti on our entrance sign, which the police patrol had cleaned up the same day it was spotted. And by the way, we can all breathe easy, the offender was only a jilted adolescent, not a g-a-n-g.
Whoa!
Do I live in such a utopia that the natural processes of dogs and the disinclination of their walkers to clean it up and simultaneously recycle plastic bags is the most pressing issue on my fellow homeowners' minds? No matter the broken-hearted lover driven to deface subdivison brick! Could it be the same star-crossed midnight driver who left tire tracks on the swim club lawn? H-m-m. Me thinks the writing is--er, was on the wall. I'm secretly ticked that no mention was made of the extensive varieties of weeds I've been cultivating where grass is usually grown. I anticipate blooms. Who knew such a perfect community existed (?) and here I am!

Dogs remind me of children--little ones, of ages somewhere between toddler and pre-teen.
Deliriously happy to see me no matter what I look like, tail wagging in circles unsafe for china shops, content to do as I do or say, and charming enough to change my mind.