![\"Good](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/Good-citizen-e1389376795469.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\nRecently we have been putting Dash the Wonder Dog through his paces at obedience school. \u00a0This past weekend he graduated from the Intermediate level and next week begins a six-week journey to become a\u00a0<\/span>Canine Good Citizen<\/strong>.\u00a0Actually, the training is more for me. \u00a0I am learning that consistency and discipline are not exactly my strong suits. \u00a0More on that later.<\/span><\/p>\n Today I want to write about the brilliant idea I had during Dash’s training – Obedience School for People! \u00a0Don’t laugh – think about how much less annoying life would be if everybody had to attain their Good Citizen certificate. \u00a0One of the major complaints we hear, either in person or on TV, \u00a0is \u00a0how rude and inconsiderate people are these days. \u00a0“Honkers” in traffic, people with full carts in the Express Check-out line, someone in front of you at Starbucks ordering Cappacinos for their entire office. \u00a0But imagine a world where people were actually <\/span>trained<\/em>\u00a0as well as our dogs!<\/span> \u00a0<\/em>To prove my point, here are some examples:<\/span><\/p>\n 1. \u00a0<\/span>Fetch<\/strong> – with canines the dogs are taught to go get something that you’ve thrown and bring it right back to you. \u00a0Oh, if only this had applied to some of my friends over <\/p>\n 3. \u00a0Heel<\/strong> – this is actually a technical term for when the dog is facing forward with its shoulder at your calf. \u00a0It is called their “positional space”. \u00a0Boy oh boy, based solely on <\/p>\n I’m sure there are other examples of how we might “train” people \u00a0I’d love to hear your ideas. \u00a0In the mean time, I’m sticking with the dogs. \u00a0I think my success rate will be better.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Suzanne Sparrow Watson Recently we have been putting Dash the Wonder Dog through his paces at obedience school. \u00a0This past weekend he graduated from the Intermediate level and next week begins a six-week journey to become a\u00a0Canine Good Citizen.\u00a0Actually, … read more<\/a>the years. \u00a0I have loaned – and not gotten back – clothing, utensils, garden equipment and various other household items. \u00a0As an example, a friend “borrowed” my book on figure skating written by the great sportswriter Christine Brennan<\/strong>. \u00a0That was in 1997. \u00a0For the first year I hinted to her that I wanted to refresh my memory about some skaters and would sure like to re-read the book. \u00a0Nothing. Several other hints were also met with inaction. Finally, when we were moving out of state\u00a0and I was pretty sure that I would never see her again I came right out and reminded her that the book was about two years overdue at my personal lending library. \u00a0Still…to this day the book resides on her bookshelf, permanently “borrowed” from me. \u00a0 But – and here’s where the brilliance of my plan comes in – if my friend had been through training I could have said “fetch<\/em>” and my book would have been promptly returned. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/a>2. \u00a0Wait<\/strong> – dogs are not generally long on patience or attention spans. \u00a0Sort of like husbands. \u00a0So the “wait” command teaches them to pause before entering or exiting a room or to stop doing whatever they’re doing (like bugging you to throw the ball for the 1,000th time). \u00a0I was thinking about the “wait” training trick when I was standing outside Costco<\/strong> the other morning. \u00a0I was there about five minutes before they opened and joined a crowd of about 20 people. \u00a0It was not particularly cold – it’s Scottsdale for Heaven’s sake – nor was it the morning before a holiday. \u00a0In other words, there should have been no overriding sense of urgency. \u00a0But at 9:03 when the big steel door still had not opened, not one but two (!) people called the store demanding that they open up. \u00a0And in rather harsh terms, I might add. \u00a0Now I have to admit, I love Costco. \u00a0I own stock in the company, I think they treat their employees well, and best of all, if you time it just right you can get a free meal by swerving through the aisles picking up all the free samples. \u00a0So when people are so impatient and rude that they are yelling at the nice Costco people for being THREE MINUTES late, I think that is a call to action. \u00a0If ever there was a need for people to \u00a0heed the “wait<\/em>” command, it is apparently at the Scottsdale Costco.<\/p>\n<\/a>my observations, “heel” is a concept where we humans fall woefully short. We’ve all experienced the personal space invasion – the drunk at the cocktail party who stands so close that you could critique their dental work, the oaf at the movies who hogs the armrest, or the dunderhead at the Little League game who has to sit thisclose<\/em>\u00a0to you on the bleachers when three rows stand empty in front of you. \u00a0The worst violators seem to be on airplanes. \u00a0There are the Droolers, the Seat Tilters who leave you no leg room, and of course, the Sleepers. \u00a0I once had the misfortune to be in the window seat next to a rather large man who not only spread out all over the empty middle seat, but apparently suffered from narcolepsy. \u00a0Despite several attempts to wake him, he slumbered on. \u00a0My gyrations to crawl over him to get to the restroom would make a call girl blush. \u00a0If everyone was required by the rules set down in my Good Citizen requirements we could confidently enter the public square and – this is critical – airplanes, knowing that everyone would stay in their own darn “positional space”.<\/p>\n