Dogs

Take your cigs and get off the dang sidewalk!

| cheriarmour

I’m not one of those people who think that all cigarette smokers should burn in hell for all eternity.  Like all of us, they too have a weakness, and nicotine is a bad mamma jamma to escape from.  However.  Let me complain about some of you cigarette smokers for a second.  (Not all of yous, most are very lovely folks).

I actually feel bad when I see you guys huddled next to a freezing cold building.  I’m sure that sucks.  But I appreciate you abiding by the law and going to the designated area so I don’t have to breathe it in.  How-friggin-ever.  There are a few of you that I need to talk to.

Those of you who huddle in large masses in front of the coffee shops with your judgey eyes and your cigs, creating a Hiroshima-sized mushroom of smoke.  Those of you who walk down the middle, the middle, the MIDDLE of the sidewalk and ::Kim Richards puff:: puff away and only turn to blow smoke right in my face, after trailing it into my lungs for a quarter of a mile.  And finally, the guy who was jogging down Blount Street today with a Black & Mild  whilst trying to holla as I wrapped up my run.  Please get it together.  Get. It. Together.

I don’t judge you for smoking.  I understand.  You smoke, and I would spend my last $3 on nail polish if it came down to it.  We all have our things.  But please respect the fact that some of us are not interested in sharing your smoke.  If you’re smoking on the sidewalk, have some decency and cig it down by your thigh so at least I know you have some respect for the other people using the shared space.  If you’re smoking outside of a building, move away from the door so that folks inside the establishment aren’t all, “EW what is that smell!”.  And finally.  Finally. Finally.  If you’re in a place where people are running.  Running by themselves, running with their dogs, or most of all, running with their kids (stroller), just nix the cig until you get to a good spot where you won’t be harming anyone.

Keep yo dog on a leash!

| cheriarmour

Runners, what are we afraid of?  Bad weather, calf cramps, muggers, our GPS watches dying, and dogs.

And I hate to be annoying and preach, but some of you guys need a stern talking-to.

I am the biggest dog person in the world.  One of my favorite things to do is to go on Petfinder.com, and look in the local areas for rescues.  I would love to adopt a dog now, but I want to do right by the dog, and I don’t have a yard, and my apartment space isn’t big enough to house a dog.  

However, there is one instance where my dog love falls a little short.

I was running the other morning, and I ran directly into a Mastiff mix.  If you’re not familiar with the breed, they’re huge.  If I’m not mistaken, they were originally bred to guard South African farms from lions and things, so they’re a pretty formidable dog.  So anyhoo, I run directly into this dog, wandering around on no leash.  So I stopped, hung out for a second, and tried to figure out where this dog belonged, and I was overjoyed that the dog, who quite possibly outweighed me, didn’t eat me.

All joking aside, we have something called leash laws in this country, and it’s inconsiderate not to adhere to them.  I’ve heard countless stories of runners being bitten, mauled, and in more than a few cases, killed.  In the worse cases, a dog has killed a child who was not physically strong enough to fight it off.  “Oh but my dog is so nice!  He/she would never, so I don’t need to leash him/her.” That’s idiotic.  Dogs are like humans beings in that sometimes they have bad days.  Sometimes things set them off.  Sometimes they don’t like the way someone smells, or the way a shirt looks on someone.  And unfortunately for anyone who’s around when they have a bad day, some breeds are ridiculously powerful.  They may not intend to rip a patch of skin off of someone, but the fact is that they’re powerful, muscular, and can do a lot of damage, even when they don’t intend to rough someone up.  So leave them on the leash, especially on sidewalks, outside of bars, at parks, and anywhere where folks may be walking by.

(As a total side note, runners, if you happen upon a dog you’d really like to pet, ask the owner if it’s okay for you to pet their dog! It is rude to just reach down and shove your stinky paw in a strange dog’s face!  I am on your side, but you have to act right around people’s pets.)

That’s enough of my rant.  I’m being totally serious though, that dog I met the other day was big enough to ride.  Yeesh!

Our family dog isn't quite as big as the Mastiff mix I happened upon. Mini is a rescue that my mom picked up about 8 years ago. Genuinely the sweetest dog you have ever met. At about 12 pounds, she's sweet, protective, and the worst thing she does is sit on my mother's fancy couches when we're not watching. <3
Our family dog isn’t quite as big as the Mastiff mix I happened upon. Mini is a rescue that my mom picked up about 8 years ago. Genuinely the sweetest dog you have ever met. At about 12 pounds, she’s sweet, protective, and the worst thing she does is sit on my mother’s fancy couches when we’re not watching. ❤