Let the dog in!

Having a three-year-old who needs Lots of Running Around means that we go to the park a lot. Almost daily, sometimes, twice daily. The most often visited is the Waterfront Park, or the Grocery Store Park as one of our little friends calls it. It is across the street from a grocery store, so like a mini Sundance Film Festival, you can strike deals in the parking lot. “Yes, we can go to the park, but then we are going to the store/post office/insert your errand of choice.”

My daughter and I ventured there just yesterday when there was a break in the rain. We well-prepared Western Washington moms usually bring towels to wipe down the slides and swings, so our child’s rump can be drier as she rolls around in the dirt and chews on pine cones and wood chips. By the way, why is there no general public towel cabinet at these parks, like the grocery sack/doggie bags you see around at dog parks? Everyone could use a towel when needed and then hang it back up in the cabinet to dry for the next person. A community wipe-down program, if you will. Then, if your spouse generously cleans out your filthy car and neglects to put back the dog/park towel, you are not stuck watching a tiny, wet wad of Kleenex disintegrate as you wipe down the swing seat, your red, damp fingers trembling in the cold breeze…. But I digress.

While we can ward off the wetness with our towel or someone else’s, we cannot ward off the crows. These guys haunt the parks, all the parks. They wait patiently until a toddler drops his little bag of snacks, so thoughtfully packed by mom, and then swoop in and fly off with the entire bag. Yesterday, I saw one grab an individual-sized cracker bag, rip the side open, grab the bottom and shake it to see if anything would fall out. Poor crow, empty. I’ve even seen them dig through tote bags looking for food. I’ve read that they can even figure out how to eat from spray cans of whipped cream. We must never let these crows befriend the Yosemite black bears. Between the bears jumping on car roofs to pop open doors and the crows nimbly opening small packages, they would be able to get into every enclosed space on this island, including your home safe and that bike lock you lost the key for.

For now, at the park, forget about the slides. My daughter has begun having more fun screaming at the top of her lungs, flapping her arms, shaking her head with her tongue hanging out, and chasing off crows. No doubt the little ape likes mimicking the countless moms she has seen doing the exact same thing. Hey, we need our exercise, too.

(this post is also located at http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/bainbridgebreezes/archives/110004.asp)

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