Am sitting at a picnic table at Grape Arbor Park and what a beautiful morning it is. A crisp Spring day, with a slight overcast and the need for just a light sweater. I am enjoying my Starbucks cup of oatmeal and large coffee while my daughter teaches a workout for her ‘Fit 4 Moms’ group for about an hour.

Where else but in Los Angeles would you find Palm trees and a grape arbor coexisting? I was here back in December when the arbor was bare. No leaves, just the bare branches hibernating and waiting for the warmer weather to coax them back into bloom. The Palm trees stood by, in their usual glory, bringing greenery to an otherwise sepia toned view. Today, various and lovely shades of green are everywhere. The arbor overhead offers shade and the clusters of grapes have already begun to grow.

The freeway is just far enough in the distance that one doesn’t hear the traffic. A serene lovely little park and I have it all to myself for about the next 30 minutes. The girls go off in one direction with my daughter directing them in exercises, stretches, etc., a short run, jog, walk into the neighborhood, the little one’s strapped safely in the strollers. They will be returning to finish up on the grass on their mats a few more exercises and then cool down.

Oh, I spoke too soon about having the park to myself. A man shows up at the basketball court and begins to play. He runs to one basket and shoots. Now if were me? I’d probably stay at one basket and repeatedly try my hand at sinking those free throws and layups. Not this guys. He retrieves the ball and then dribbles to the other end and shoots again. He repeats this for the rest of my time at the park. That’s a workout!

I see a vehicle pull in and a woman parks her minivan. She exits her car dressed in what one might think resembles leisure wear, at best? The shoes look like slippers so I’m not too sure if she isn’t wearing pajamas along with a coat. (At least it isn’t a bathrobe.) The next visitor to the park is a horse. No, that’s not right, it is the biggest DOG I have ever seen. She slides open the passenger door and out steps the animal. Yes, he was a beauty but, OMG. Can you say H-U-G-E?

He is a Great Dane, merle grey, and again, HUGE. He majestically strides about the grounds looking for the perfect place to relive himself. Sniffing here and there until finally settling on a tree that fits his needs. WOW, I can’t stop watching. This guy can really store up his liquids. No wonder the owner takes him to the park. I wouldn’t want to hose that down a number of times a day.

Oh, he isn’t finished. Now they explore the park for his next elimination. This isn’t going to be pretty. I notice that the woman is not carrying the usual ‘doggie size poop bags’. She has a couple of plastic shopping bags, like from the grocery store, and a rather large, ‘shovel’ shall we say? It is fascinating to watch this dog stroll around.

At last, he finds another good spot for his next ‘duty’. My first thoughts are, ‘man, the girls are never going to know that this huge dog just took a massive dump right there in the middle of the grass’. I wouldn’t want to put my exercise mat down anywhere near that spot. I watch as the woman congratulates him on his success and then proceeds to clean up the area. Yeah, that shovel does come in handy and I see the reason and need for the double bag usage. Also, I sort of understand why one would have dog of that size do his ‘business’ somewhere else. Glad she is a responsible person and cleans up after the dog. They parade around the park for a few more minutes and then return to the car. She slides the door open and he regally steps into the van and takes his spot. His head almost touches the top of the inside of the van. Wow, again, this is a BIG dog.

I hear the girls returning to the park, none the wiser that this massive beast has been a visitor and has made deposits around the park. Again, this has never crossed my mind when visiting the park. I will keep it in mind in the future for sure. Hmmmmm. Do I say something, warn them? I’m not sure what to do. On the advice of the Beatles: I choose to “Let It Be.” I watch them chose a spot for the last set of exercises. Whew, what a relief, their choice is nowhere near the dog’s areas. That’s a break.

The girls finish up, talk  for a bit and then begin to return to their cars. My daughter transfers little Anthony from the stroller to the car seat. Breaks down the stroller and then gets into the car. We are off to run errands now.

I’ll tell her about the dog later. They didn’t set up on any of the ‘duty’ spots this time but one of these days . . .