Monday, December 3, 2007

Winter is coming


nanka with winter coat, originally uploaded by phaird.

There was a real energy at the park this week. All the dogs were really going crazy. It may be that they knew that the first snow was about to fall in a few hours or the chill in the air just made them want to run but something was up. Some were thriving off of the energy while others were staying close to home (the parent). Even my dog Toby was looking for me the whole day. He would run off then run back and jump up on me to let me know we were okay.

It is a beautiful moment when humans and animals can feel that energy. Even those people I talked with said they could feel the energy the dogs were giving off. Much like wanting to know what our dogs are thinking, this was a moment where we got a little peak.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hey there -- I haven't made it to the park recently. It's awfully cold on Sunday mornings. Sometimes I can't even get Hunter to leave the house.

Concerning the permanent Dog Park issue, my only comment is about the best place for one, and that would be where it is right now. It's a large, open area shielded from the street, with access to water (essential, especially during summertime), woods (important for dogs, like Hunter, who get overwhelmed and need a break), and enough space to allow for different groupings of dogs to separate out when personalities don't mesh well. You've seen how the puppy/small dogs will naturally migrate to an empty corner, how there's a space open for flinging a ball, how the big boisterous dogs hang out around the water,...

There's not another place like it in Acton, unless they're going to mow down some forested area and dig a pond. Even then, the moment they flatten the land the recreation commission will be clammoring to put up a soccer field on it.

Have you been to NARA park? It's up Rt. 27 in North Acton. It's a planned recreation area, with a beach, an ampitheater, a big sledding bank, fields for softball, soccer, kite flying,... The pond is stocked so kids can fish, there are spectacular birds to observe, and there's a paved path (about 1 mile) around the whole thing. But dogs have to be leashed there. Hunter and Twinkie used to love the place. I'd stand at the top of the theater/sledding hill and fling tennis balls down the hill. You can't do that while holding the dog on a leash.

I understand the issue and agree that there should be places people can be without worrying about getting jumped on by a dog, but why does it have to always be the best place?

As a taxpayer, I pay the town $30 a year to license my two dogs. They take nothing from the town, except the occasional plastic bag. My kids on the other town, aren't licensed, pay no fees, and cost the town $6K a year to educate. Really, which residents should a town like Acton be cowtowing to?

Just my thoughts. Worth the paper they're not written on...