Clean Up on Aisle 3

Here's the lowdown on the poop pick-up "party" that took place yesterday at Dog Park--at least while I was there. I spent two hours meandering  the Park, scanning the ground for poop. It was a surprisingly meditative activity. I hummed little songs to myself as I wended my way, trying to keep my plastic garbage bags from blowing away and my baseball cap from blowing off. (Erica, left, had more luck with her hat than I did.) People who were smart brought buckets instead of bags. I thought I was pretty clever by putting a piece of broken iron pipe in my bag to hold it down. Instead the pipe kept ponking me in the leg. Very annoying. 

Also present (between 10 and noon): Dario (Ellie), Erica (Joey and Coco), Kathy (Willie), Bill (Lulu),  Margo (Sidney and Jack), and a couple of other people whose names I don't know. (Sorry!)  Almost everyone I met commented on how they were amazed at the little zing of joy they felt every time they found a crusty old load of crap to put in their bags. (Though Dario's first find was a fresh donation from Ellie herself.) The morning's work was like a perverse Easter egg hunt. (Though Erica and I did find an actual egg—the empty shell anyway. So delicate and pretty. See?) 

                                         

Folks also said that they were surprised that there was not more poop to pick up. Unless someone preempted us and did a major sweep before we got there, it's probably safe to conclude that people generally are doing a much more consistent and thorough pick-up on a daily basis. 

I will say, however, that even after several sweeps of the area next to the south parking lot, as I walked toward the dumpster to throw away my last bag, I nearly stepped in a fresh pile of poop! Gee, thanks! 

Here's some photographic evidence of a good morning's work: 

In addition to poop, I also found and threw away these objects: 

• a shattered Shiner Bock bottle
  
• several sliced soda and beer cans
  
• one perfectly denuded tennis ball
  
• plastic tubing
  
• candy wrappers
  
• rusty wire screen
  
• a piece of iron pipe
  
• a rusted pulley wheel
  
• broken bits of rubber and plastic

I have participated in clean-ups in other parks and in other cities. The fact that I did not find a used condom among the trash is a testament to our clean living at Dog Park. Thanks for keeping things clean on more than one level, folks! --z