Arielle Silver
  • Music
  • Yoga
  • Writing
  • Patreon
  • LIST
  • newalbum

List of 100 Things #22: Operation Save-The-Yard

3/2/2015

0 Comments

 
We have a funny/aggravating situation at my house that should be filed under "tiny problems", but that is a problem nonetheless. Our side of the street is all single-family homes, but diagonally across is an apartment building with an unusual tenant theme: all tenants must own pets. Most, of course, have dogs, though I know of a few cat- and bird-only tenants there. The building doesn't have a lawn, so multiple times every day we see the dog-tenants out walking their dogs. It's a parade of all shapes and sizes, and we sit at our dining room table watching them go by through the front window. Irish wolfhounds. Pugs. Labs - golden, black. A beautiful St. Bernard that I want to hug every time. There's also a dog we call "the rat dog" who lives in the house on the north-side of our property and rarely has an owner accompanying his walks. 

Our lawn is the first accessible one the dog walkers encounter upon leaving their building. They make a beeline from their front door to our yard, let their dogs do their business, continue on. Most owners carry bags. Some do not. The rat dog, lacking opposable thumbs, an owner, and kind neighborly manners, does not even try. On the occasion that he is accompanied by our neighbor, she too doesn't try. 

Our lawn is a minefield. You never know where an unsavory sample has been deposited. We have tried different tactics over the years in an attempt to convey the message to our neighbors that we do not appreciate stepping in their unpleasant surprises. We've moved deposits from our lawn to the sidewalk, written messages in sidewalk chalk, offered bags to walkers, complained to everyone. Still, walking across our lawn (or simply getting out of a car) has been a gamble. 

This weekend we embarked on a new level of Operation Save-The-Yard. We could put in a fence, but we're plant-lovers, so we dug up a foot-and-a-half strip of lawn along the sidewalk and a bit up the sides as well, added paver bricks, planted a succulent garden and a few lavender plants, and fenced it all with a flimsy little roll-out fence that we'll probably take down when the plants grow taller. We still have the side between our house and the rat-dog's to border in lantana hedges, but meanwhile it's fenced off as well. 

All yesterday we watched from the dining room as canine by canine walked past our yard with nary a glance. One lady remarked, "Where will our dogs go to the bathroom if they can't get to your yard?" Hmmmm, we replied, as if we'd never considered the inconvenience to the dog walkers. It was two days of good work in between rain (and hail!) showers. We're proud of our work, so pleased with the way it looks, and so far, no rat dog to be seen.

Poor south-side neighbors, though. Now theirs is the first available lawn...

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Subscribe to our mailing list

    * indicates required
    Email Format

    Archives

    May 2019
    April 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    July 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    November 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012

    Categories

    All
    1000 Tiny Torches
    40 Days Challenge
    Antioch Mfa In Creative Writing
    Big Sur
    Books
    Boston
    Burning Man
    Creative Flow
    Criticism
    Door To The Shore Run
    Election
    Failure
    Faith
    Family
    Fear
    Gratitude
    Grief
    Half Marathon
    Happiness
    Injury
    Inner Voices
    Kickstarter
    List Of 100 Things
    Los Angeles
    Love
    Lovember
    Love Them Apples
    Marathon
    MFA
    Music
    New Album
    Recording
    Rejection
    Running
    Shed
    Sick
    Social Activism
    Songwriting
    Stepparent
    Success
    Swimming
    The Written Run
    Throw Back Thursday
    Tour
    Type 1 Diabetes
    Valentine's Day
    Workshops
    Writing
    Yoga

Worlds

Music
Yoga
Writing

Contact

MUSIC: booking@ariellesilver.com 
PRESS: amanda@TrendPR.com
RETREATS: alexa@getgurud.com
BHAVANA FLOW YOGA: darby@bhavanaflowyoga.com
© COPYRIGHT 2015. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Music
  • Yoga
  • Writing
  • Patreon
  • LIST
  • newalbum