As the wind blew through the trees, my feet were firmly planted on a recently poured concrete sidewalk.

The sidewalk runs down Medical Park Drive to Tom Byrne Park, and I am so happy to have a way to walk down to the park.

During a meeting last year, the Atmore City Council approved a CDBG grant to aid in the project, which residents could’ve seen being completed late last year.

As I was walking down the sidewalk, it was dark and I could hear a dog bark, declaring his or her territory.

Sometimes the hair on the back of my neck will stand up because yeah, there’s some fear in the unknown of whether or not a dog is coming after me or whether or not the dog is nice or mean. Anyway, I like dogs, but sometimes they can scare me.

Anyway, from where I live, it’s a more than 1-mile walk to the park, where I quickly did two laps and turned right around so that I can watch a wrasslin’ pay per view event.

Just down an exit road next to where I live, there’s a high wooded fence.

I learned real quick why the fence was there. On my way to the park, I saw a sign that read “Beware of the Dog.”

As soon as I was walking in front of the fence, I heard a growling and quickened my pace down the street. I noticed the owner and asked what kind of dogs she has.

“Rottweilers!” she said. “Did they scare you?”

“Yeah, a little,” I said as my voice cracked.

I made a mental note to avoid the fenced-in area on walks.