bark bigger than bite

Posted by admin | January 23, 2018

Last night I was accosted by a neighbor dog that was running loose in the neighborhood. I was finishing up shoveling the two inches of snow off my driveway and was putting out some salt when the dog came up to me. It was a red heeler and was barking its head off. It even charged at me every time I turned my back on him.

I wasn't scared of the little shit. It weighed forty pounds and I outweighed it by... well, let's just say by a lot. I was super annoyed, though. I was minding my own business and this dog was trying to get in mine. I waited at the end of my driveway for the owner to come out of their house across the street.

This wasn't the first time the dog was just set loose in the neighborhood. I've seen the dog going behind my backyard fence and the owner soon following. I don't like people going behind the fence because it drives Zailey and Milo nuts. It is bad enough if they walk the sidewalk going down the short side of the fence as the dogs usually just run to see what is going on and by the time they figure out someone is there, it is too late for them to bark. People and dogs going behind the fence are another matter. There is even an incline, so they don't walk as fast back there. It gives the dogs plenty of time to figure out what is going on and give their warning calls.

So, there has been a history of this dog being let loose. It is aggressive and noisy. As I said, I waited for the owner to come get the dog. She peeked her head out the door and called for the dog. I yelled across the street to her that she needed to keep the dog on a leash. All she said was, "Thank you." Judging from that response, I doubt this will be the end of the story. I may give one more bark and then I'm going to bite. Unfortunately, my bark is bigger than my bite.

I'm a big proponent of leaving people alone if they leave me alone. Once they do wrong by me, then watch out. The one political stance that I've taken to Facebook to fight for is related to bigotry and hate. Otherwise, I try to keep my opinions off social media. In part this is because I am trying to market myself and if I take a political stance, I am probably going to piss off over half of my marketable audience.

Last night, I was watching Grace and Frankie as Martin Sheen's character used his award speech to speak out against bigotry and hate (in this case, for the LGBT community). The award was for best newcomer in a local play or something like that. He was using his small bit of limelite for good. At first, I applauded him for doing so. And then I realized it was a fantasy world. In the real world, it wouldn't have worked. No matter how good intentioned, you are pissing off people that don't believe in your point of view. Humans are just too passionate.

The thing is, I'm human. I'm going to be passionate about certain things. I won't be able to shut up about everything. I can only try to be as marketable as I can be. Bark!