I live in the Santa Cruz mountains and work over the hill in Redwood City which is only a stone’s throw from San Francisco. And unless you’ve been living in a remote wilderness without any Internet and only penguins for company, you will probably be aware that on a political graph i live  within an ocean of blue.  Because I live smack dab in the middle of granola, I can honestly say left-leaning urbanites have a self-righteous opinion about EVERYTHING. I can freely say this because I happen to BE one of those eco-friendly, composting yippies. I compost, grow veggies, raise chickens, recycle, rage against Fox news and drive a Prius. I feel very at home swimming in my blue state and if you had asked me in 2004 that John Kerry was going to lose in the presidential election, I would have laughed at you and said “Hell no, man. EVERYBODY I KNOW is voting for him.”

So what does this have to do with dogs, you ask? Well the community I live in, most people are very hard core that if you want an animal, you should adopt from your local shelter. To be honest, how can you argue with that?  When the “estimated number of cats and dogs entering shelters each year ranges from 6-8 million? (HSUS estimate) And the estimated number of cats and dogs euthanized by shelters each year is 3-4 million? (HSUS estimate)” It does seem kind of silly for people to spend oodles of money on a purebred dog when there are so many needy animals looking for a new home.

And more to the point of this post, I BELIEVE that people should adopt from local shelters. I am a full supporter of my local SPCA. I have even a adopted my cat who recently passed from there. So what crack am I smoking? And the community I belong to? You can bet your sweet bippy they think I’ve lost my marbles. Over cocktails I’ve had well-meaning friends say to me. “ I always pegged you and Brian as adoption people..” Or “my dog is a mixed. What’s wrong with HIM?!!”

Can you not feel the judgment? I can. A part of me is completely guilt-ridden. Like I’ve given up on my principles or something. But the other part of me doesn’t care, and I’m completely satisfied to go against the mainstream in this matter. I’m willing to spend oodles of money, time and energy to invest in a purebred dog that I believe could be my next family member. So yeah. I’m crazy. Crazy in love.