pixelated.me

"would you mind taking our dogs for a walk?" 
asked delightful british neighbor

that's a deceptively simple request. After all her dogs are very nice dogs, and i do like walking, but really what she was asking was,

"i'm on set all day tomorrow  and my dogs need to be walked twice, cause otherwise they might go stir crazy and possibly shit in my flat, I've got the first shift covered but not the second, so would mind taking them out at around 8pm and following them around until they both shit, then picking up the shit and hunting for one of those elusive Condesa public trash cans to dispose of it properly?"

It changes the nature of the favor doesn't it, and least for me. The truth is i love...well maybe just like, dogs. I'm certain i like them, but having lived in NYC and seen the delightful ritual that is the plastic bag crap scoop up i am convinced that to clean up dog shit, to not mind doing so must be very much like changing diapers. No parent i know of likes doing it, most of them find it a bit gross, but they all do it because they love their child, and i think those people walking around carrying their dogs shit in plastic baggies love their dogs, and their dogs love them, and its a beautiful symbiotic relationship.

But i do not love the neighbors two dogs. I have in fact only met them on two occasions. The truth is i'd be much more inclined to pick up my neighbors shit than their dogs, them at least i know.