My, my.  The idea of this becoming a flowerly, gentile blog about the virtues of Valencia has morphed into this.  I don't know what's getting into me.  But there are those days when I simply have too much time on my hands.  Or when I am simply too obsessed with the state of our plaza that I have to take action.

This lady picks it up with a tissue and then hurls it into the treebox.  Of course, sometimes the wind blows...

I have made a deliberate effort not to write a blog about dog crap.  But let me tell you.  It is by far, the absolute worse thing about this city.  I wish I could just ignore it.  But I can't, because I am constantly looking down to avoid it. 

We live in a pedestrian only plaza, but we don't want our son playing soccer here because of the mine field that it is.  We live very near a long stretch of gardens that line Blasco Ibanez.  There are benches, fountains, gardens and piles and piles and piles of feces everywhere you step.  Luckily, there are children's parks with signs for no dogs - so that helps in the playgrounds at least - but not all of them.  But wow, what a waste of a green space that we could use daily.

Last week I lost it, and spent a morning printing out signs and stickers with catchy clean up your mess phrases.  I posted a few of them around the plaza but the rain washed most of them away, as it spread the messes around.   The thing that gets me is that some owners think they are being responsible by picking up the messes and throwing them in the tree boxes.  Excuse me?

Every day, I try to put things in perspective, but I keep coming back to this #1 annoyance.  How much will signs help?  How much will offering a bag to a dog owner do?  Would the mayoress Barbera grant me 30 minutes?  Could I inspire her to start a city wide campaign - or a huge program to fine the culprits?  Who cleaned up New York?  Would Mayor Koch volunteer his time to clean up Valencia?  If we purchased real estate now, would it appreciate if Valencia were caca-free? 

Do you have comments or suggestions?  Do you think I'm insane?  Are you a relative reading this who hasn't booked your tickets yet because you are offended?  Let me know!

Today, the tables turned, and my actions as a dog owner infuriated a couple passing by.   

First of all, if you are not a fellow dog owner, please do not feel obliged to read this portion of this blog.  I know it's not particularly appealing to most people and I do not want to offend anyone. I do however own a much loved, dear old dog that has been most accommodating in changing her world to join us here in Valencia.   And, we take her out several times a day to take care of her bodily needs.

Now, if you've read my former posts, you know how I feel about cleaning up after my dog.  But today, as I was walking the dog, and she had just tinkled, I overheard a couple pushing a stroller in front of me say, "What a pig – she didn't even clean it up!"

What?  I needed to clarify.  "She just peed," I said. 

"It doesn't matter.  It's disgusting." They wanted to move on.  At least the husband did. 

"Wait a minute – I can't stand it when people don't clean up after their dogs.  But my dog just made pee pee."  

The husband continued with the stroller.  He wanted nothing to do with the lowly likes of someone like me who lets their dog pee in the street.   But I needed to understand and communicate with this woman.  I too am a mother who is infuriated with the mess.  But this was "piss" as it is called is Spanish.  What was I supposed to have done? 

"I push my baby stroller over that mess and then I have to bring that stroller into my apartment. "

Hmm.  Good point.

"My baby picks things up from the ground and puts his mouth there. "

 Yikes I thought.  If we have a baby here, he or she will not be touching this sidewalk.     

"I understand that caca is disgusting and I pick that up and put it in a trash can, not the tree box or the corner like other people.  But urine, well, isn't that different?"

"It's all dirty and disgusting," she said.

 "Listen," I explained, "I really want to understand how you feel about this.  I mean, I am ready to start a campaign about this, but as a foreigner, I tread on delicate ground."

"Well, I too am a foreigner and I get mad about this.  People here keep their shoes on in a house here and I think that is disgusting."

 Hmm.  No accent.  We also take our shoes off.  The husband was calling.  He really didn't want this conversation to continue.  I'll admit it was awkward but I needed to face up to this.  I am the last person who wants to offend someone with my dog.   

She explained that my dog should tinkle in the tree box.  I didn't dare share that I didn't want my doggy's feet touching that tree box filled with poop because then that might come into my house.   

I excused myself.  I needed to pick Ben up from school.   She needed to do the same. 

I have some doggie daily constitution issues to think about. 

I certainly don't want my blog to be about dog poop but I tell ya, although I'm not writing about it, I'm thinking about it.  How can I not?  The streets are relatively clean in the morning, but it's just a matter of hours before, well, you know what happens.  I do talk about it with the locals as well, and they are in agreement with me on how awful it is to see doggy waste everywhere. 

Just last week, someone wrote a letter to the editor of 20minutos.es asking if Valencia was a toilet for dogs.  A quick translation of her letter is - hey - it's gross to pick it up - but it's more gross to step in it.  

A quick search on the Internet here tells me that I'm not the only one who is fed up.  In 1995, 20minutos.es reported that the city of Zaragoza, Spain has three people employed just to pick up caca.   They pick up about 70 pounds a day and it costs the city about $90,000 for the three employees.   Another article in the same paper states that Madrid only issued three tickets last year for not "scooping" although they calculate they cleaned up forty million dog "deposits". 

Well, that's my doggy rant for the month.  With this off my chest, I can get on to the more enjoyable aspects of Valencia!

You know, I'm not adjusting to this poo poo caca in the street thing.  I am so darn tired of having to watch where I step ALL the time.  And it also totally bums me out that I am so cacaphobic that I don't want Ben playing soccer in front of our apartment.  Actually, before we play any sport anywhere, I need to do a quick caca assessment to estimate the probabilities of poop on the the (soccer, football, baseball -etc) as well as the probability on our little tike who loves to somersault and dive after the ball. 

Not sure what to do with all this caca angst.  Start a scoop the poop campaign?  Perhaps.....

Cleaning up after your dog is NOT the national Spanish past time.  I have seen some individuals clean up (and I applaud them) and today I saw a woman gently place a tissue (and lightly step on it so it stuck) a top her German Shepherd's poo poo.  How gentile of her.  Hmm.

Ben's first new Spanish word was ca-ca.  We taught him right away to look for the land mines.  Now, we walk down the street with a three year old that yells, Ca-ca, Ca-ca, Ca-ca.  I really don't mind that people look at us.  It is a general warning. 

Our concern is that when we bring our blind jack Russell terrier here, she will be stepping in it right and left.  We will need to have one of those disinfectant baths outside our door just like they have on farms!

Maybe someday the Spaniards will begin to clean up after their dogs.  There isn't any more smoking that I can notice in public places - even some restaurants so change does come.  Gosh, I remember in 1985 during my first trip here, everyone smoked on the buses.  Come to think of it, when I was younger, didn't people smoke in movie theaters in the U.S.?