In the Paper

Well, it seems that I am now a published newspaper writer.

I emailed a letter to the editor last Sunday, and it was published in Saturday's paper. The purpose of the letter was to complain about disgusting "pet people" that don't clean up after their animals, and was prompted after a particularly nasty incident at Patricia Beach last weekend.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get started on my next big exclusive.

If the link stops working, here's the letter that I wrote:

I’m beginning to think that “pet people” (as my family and I call them) are, by and large, a terribly inconsiderate and pretentious bunch. More often than not, I’m noticing people taking absolutely no responsibility for controlling or cleaning up after their pets.

A neighbor a couple of doors down frequently lets his little mopdog out to defecate on other people’s lawns. Another neighbor allows her three cats to roam about as they please, littering in neighborhood flowerbeds and gardens – even after being confronted by an avid gardener across the street who is constantly having to remove feces from her vegetable garden. And on two separate weekend trips to nearby Patricia beach, I was aghast to see people – numerous people – walking their dogs right past the “No Pets Allowed” signs and letting them run wild on the beach, annoying other people and defecating all over the place.

Honestly, now. If you want to live in your pet’s filth on your property, that’s your business. But to force other people to pick their way around piles of your doggy’s doo simply because you refuse to take responsibility for what comes out of your animal, well, that’s just incomprehensibly rude.