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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW More lightning, high winds possible ... Scientist: We need to learn to live with wildfires ... Weather or Not: June in Redding — er, I mean Ashland ... More lightning, high winds possible ... Scientist: We need to learn to live with wildfires ... Weather or Not: June in Redding — er, I mean Ashland ... COUNCIL CORNER Council Corner: It's the solstice; thoughts on freedom Comment By John Stromberg DailyTidings.com By John Stromberg Posted Jul. 7, 2015 at 12:01 AM By John Stromberg Posted Jul. 7, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News The dog and I are out in Cesar Chavez Park in Berkeley. We’re "taking a walk," but actually it’s a battle of wills: He doesn’t want to go; I do. He’s wearing a body harness, which means I can’t control him at all — 65 pounds on the end of a clothes line. It occurs to me that “stubborn” isn’t an adjective; it’s a kind of relationship between someone who wants someone else to do something that the other (stubborn) one won’t do. Marco’s 91 years old, translating from dog years, and he and I have been through a lot together, this latest phase being characterized by health problems of an older dog: dry eye, laryngeal tie-back, neuropathy of his back legs. But we’ve been lucky enough to cope with them and he is still the same dog he was when we did agility training together; just instead of jumping over hurdles, riding teeter-totters and speeding through tunnels, he now slides on slippery floors and stops me dead in my tracks like a steer roper in the rodeo. All with the same equanimity of blending his will with mine, only now he’s got the upper hand, or harness, because a head halter could distort his vertebrae and therefore the nerves to his hind legs. Cesar Chavez Park — if I remember correctly — is a former garbage dump on the east edge of San Francisco Bay, directly across from the Golden Gate Bridge. Jane and I have been coming to this nearby hotel ever since we moved to Oregon 29 years ago. We love the views, the undulating hallways that seem to have been built on sand dunes and our friend from Senegal who works in the restaurant. We especially like the fact that Chavez incorporates a large, unfenced dog park where Marco can roam off-leash. That’s what our tug-of-war was about this morning. I was trying to drag him to the section of the park where dogs can run free and he was more interested in what Jane calls his Sunday New York Times, i.e snuffling endlessly at some post or clump of weeds. Today I wasn’t going to give up because I knew he’d like being off leash once we got there and also I wanted to gauge just how far he could actually walk. Chavez Park is like the Downs in Sussex; low, rolling undulations with hollows, gullies and occasional high ground where a poodle can look out over an inlet of the Bay to the Berkeley hills beyond. Dogs like to survey prospects, at least our poodles have always seemed to. As I was dragging my canine anchor up the hill to the off-leash area we came across two colored signs painted on the path. The first said, “Don’t feed the wild animals” (Chavez is a wildlife refuge), and the second, “On Leash Area,” only the “On” had been scratched off. I once read a story of the years-long battle to establish an off-leash area at Chavez. Initially it was simply a part of the park, several acres at least, that was remote enough that people felt safe letting their dogs off leash. Then they put markers up. Then the Parks Department took the markers down. Then there was a public campaign (this being Berkeley) and the dogs won. Then there was abuse of the privilege, and restrictions and a fence were installed. Then the fence was torn down. In the end there are signs painted on the ground and the regulars informally set a tone of responsible, mutually respectful use. It took years, but it is now a place that people treasure; Marco, Jane and I among them. It’s beautiful, windswept, flooded with light, austere — and, especially, a place of freedom. Freedom for dogs and freedom — for us owners — from keeping track of dogs. When we’re up there Marco and I keep track of each other. I stroll and wait. He snuffles and comes along. There are no signals or commands, just a shared appreciation of a beautiful, spacious place in the center of a metropolitan area of 10 million. Two paths intertwining toward the end of a life. John Stromberg is mayor of Ashland. By John Stromberg DailyTidings.com By John Stromberg Posted Jul. 7, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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