With reference to my Pulitzer-awaiting "pick up your dog shit" blog post from last week, a professional landscaper wrote in to share their thoughts. The identity of this person shall go unrevealed.

But here is what they had to say:

Thanks for the article!

Running over dog shit w/ a mower is bad enough but speaking as a landscaper myself, nothing is worse than hitting a pile of dog shit (or if you're in Ballard maybe human shit!) w/ your weedeater & having it spray all over your face. I've had customers who have piles of dog shit in their lawn & also little kids who play on the lawn. Never have figured that one out.

BTW, I also love dogs, grew up w/ them & always have had one. It's just about not being so self absorbed in your pet ideology & having some consideration for other people.

Hear, hear!

Semi-related anecdote:

On my walk back from lunch yesterday, I saw a guy out for a stroll with his two dogs. One was a big dog, and one was a tiny dog. Their owner was walking them up Union Street, between 11th and 12th. There are some lovely trees along that sidewalk. The guy was just grinning and happy as can be with his two dogs, the big one and the tiny one, and as I watched, the big dog took a massive dump under one of the trees, which is just in a square plot of dirt within the sidewalk.

I thought for sure the guy would take out a plastic bag and get rid of the poop in pedestrians' way, considering a lot of people walk down this sidewalk and it's a well-trod piece of packed ground where the dog shit. Did the guy clean up the dog shit? No. Did I confront him? No. Why? Because I live in Seattle, and passive-aggression is pastime here, and I fight with dog-lovers enough as it is.

Anyway, if you're walking up Union Street, be careful! It was a doozy.