Povey Prattle

Arlington Park  - The Meadow, 6:45 a.m. May 11th 2019 At the north eastern corner of Arlington Park, not far from the parking lot,  is an open area which I call The Meadow. On Friday afternoon at about 4:00 a twenty something woman was walking across the meadow with two small dogs, both off leash. One of the dogs came racing towards Zion.   There are two "free range" dog areas in the park, one for small dogs, the other for large dogs.  In other areas dogs are required to be leashed. This makes sense inasmuch as you might well think that your dog/s are friendly and harmless, but you cannot be sure about the other dogs which they might encounter. SO  I said (in a quiet and low toned voice) "Ma'am your dogs should be leashed.  (Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut!). She replied "I will not take instructions from you". I responded with "I am not giving you instructions ,  I am simply reminding you of the City regulatio...

Arlington Park Sarasota,  9th May 2019, 4:15 p.m. He was totally wasted.  "He" being a fifty something man, shirtless, black pants (trousers), cast on his right arm -  prostrate on the ground near the water fountain. He was on his mobile 'phone, blabbering incoherently, unable to rise to his feet. As Zion and I walked by I asked if I should call an ambulance. "They're on their way" he mumbled. I walked on, then turned back.  It was clear that the emergency services were not  on the way, so I called 911. I lost the call but the dispatcher called me back within a minute.  I gave her the details. Within four minutes a County fire truck, a County ambulance, and three City police vehicles arrived -   ( three Police vehicles? - well they never know what they could encounter - back-up is important). These men (and they were all males) treated the wasted man with grace and respect.  They got him to his feet, walked him to the ambul...

The National Association Of Letter Carriers  (NALC) is sponsoring its annual Food Drive this Saturday, May 11th. This is the largest one day Food Drive in the United States. I am always disappointed at the low level of response.  Surely it is not too difficult to leave a bag of non perishable foods by your mail box,  and thus make a small effort to help Stamp Out Hunger. I always leave bags of Breakfast Cereals  ( Children don't long for Rice and Beans for Breakfast!) in the hope that some dear children will have a reasonably good start to the day. Of course this is not the height of generosity on my part (I spent more on dinner out with friend yesterday) , but I suppose that it is better than nothing.

Each morning Zion and I get harassed and dive-bombed by this (Mocking?) Bird near the archway entrance to Bayfront Park.  There must be a nest nearby. Poor Z. get so confused.  He hears a whoosh over his head, but by the time he looks around the has bird flown away. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Since about 30% of Face Book postings are about cats, and 20% about food here is my dinner pic. Th is was at The Rosemary on N. Orang e last night, May 7th.  Fillet mignon large shrimp, baked potato and asparagus, ( preceded by a crisp green salad, and followed by Key Lime Pie), and one bottle of wine for every two guests, all for $30. It's a fund raising dinner for the West Coast Black Theatre Troupe (the wine having been donated to the Rosemary to support the cause). Truly delicious food, and all for a good cause. Every Monday and Tuesday in May, reservations required.   And yes, it's at T...

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky Johannes Brahms Evelyn Maud Finch  (birth name) a.k.a. my Mum Now abideth in memory Peter, Johannes and Evelyn.   But the greatest of these is Mum.

At Arlington Park today. Zion and I encountered L. (aged about two) as he was taking a tour of the park in his baby buggie, As Z. and I grew near to L. and his Mom the wee lad cried out " Doggie , doggie" . Then the boy and the dog had a love fest! Of course this brought tears to my eyes. When I said goodbye, young L. cried out "Thank You". What a charmer! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- That's not all.   As we'd entered the Park we'd met a Sarasota Police Officer **  who had been on foot patrol in the Park.  She too had had a love fest with Zion. He truly is a "dog for all seasons".  It makes me so happy that my beloved Z. brings pleasure to so many people. ** Arlington Park is generally  a safe place, but rumour has it that a sad, bad,  and pathetic man exposes his private parts there.  So the foot patrols by the Sarasota P.D.  will deter this horrid and perverted...

The following is from a friend of mine, a talented woman who lives in P...., MA.  I respect her greatly.  She is doing her work  (and she does it well) and she has to put up with this shit. Grrh   I am so damn angry.  "I’ve been busting my ass for this  group all weekend, working 12+ hour days, only to be referred to as the colored girl. Despite the fact that I’m wearing a name tag with my full fucking name. Ugh!"

I bought an ink cartridge for my printer today.     I could have used a demolition crew to tear apart the utterly wasteful packaging. There must surely be a more environmental and consumer   friendly way of packing the cartridges.   And why is printer ink so expensive?  $27 is an outrageous price. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- I walk a lot in Bayfront Park and Arlington Park , and gladly share the pathways with cyclists. Some (not many) issue an oral warning when they are about to pass me. Next to none have considered an old fashioned and low tech device to warn walkers that they are about to pass. They are probably too expensive!