July 28, 2013
The last mile around Lake Harriet
was grueling. I remembered it as being a cinch, more often than not I chose to
take another loop and enjoy the mirror of the water, a thousand well-behaved
dogs and their attentive owners, stretching the other end of the leash. My
ankle swelled and pinched in the crease, right leg became uncomfortable and
stiff under the strain of misuse. Bound and determined not to have to succumb
to the Big Black Boot wear and tear on my tender muscle, just below, and to the
left, of the knee.
I annoyed the hell out of
the waiter, first asking the difference between the black bean burger and the
veggie burger. Can never remember which one was mushy and globby in the center.
He insisted he prefers the black bean yet he was in error. The outside was
crispy but inside jelled into the bun with each bite. Our coffee malt was
delish, though. The take-home container was Styrofoam. I thought twice about
requesting another option but could not bring myself to walk out carrying the white
non-biodegradeable material. Styrofoam never goes away. He rolled his eyes in
exasperation and told me I could burn it, sure, then it would permeate the air,
good. The fat, most likely underpaid waiter didn’t have much to say to me after
handing over a triangle of tin foil for my doggie bag. Sigh, it is hard to try
to educate people about saving the planet from our ignorance and poor judgment.
I am tired of that conversation.
Walking Ty around the
neighborhood tonight to meet some of the other dogs and lookalike owners was
pleasurable. We met Judge, the basset, Harry an American Pit Bull, Spot, a
mixed breed (“tipped-over can” in Portuguese) and quite a few cats. Ty never
spotted the bunny, hunched down in the newly cut grass which must have masked its
scent. I swear I could detect relief on its little face. Or maybe it was a
sneer of superiority.
No comments:
Post a Comment