2016-01-28 – We live on a corner. It’s a quiet neighborhood, but we live across from a school and a park. The park blocks the through-streets, so we do get some traffic. And we do get some traffic from the school. But it’s not a constant thing.

If it were a constant thing, maybe our dog Lefty would learn to ignore it. But it’s sporadic. And Lefty is on top of it.

We also get some foot traffic. Again, it’s not constant. There’s a fair population of Orthodox Jews who live nearby and they walk to and from the synagogue on the Sabbath and holidays. And, of course, there’s foot traffic from the school. Sporadic, not constant. And there’s the mail carrier.

Lefty becomes enraged. He runs around the house and barks. As if his barking ever made the slight bit of difference. It doesn’t. The traffic flows in its sporadic way. The walkers walk. Lefty never gets used to it. He never says, “rat’s re ruse.” (“What’s the use” in dog talk.)

I know people like this.

You probably do, too. The whole political life of this country has become the life of a pampered dog. Rage over the slightest disturbance of our placid life. And no action other than jumping up and down on the couch, pulse racing, drool falling from our lips.

Lefty is a dog.