Last thing I expect or need leaving dialysis at 6am is to be heckled for “wearing a political shirt”.

Apparently, it was on par with if I had been wearing an “I hate black people shirt” or “a white hood”.

My offense: a t-shirt for The Coalition to Unchain Dogs.

It apparently didn’t help that today is the day that Durham’s anti-tethering ordinance, championed by The Coalition, goes into effect.

This guy in the waiting room, who is probably a well-known Durham activist with a reputation for stirring up trouble, said to me, “I hate your shirt,” to which I failed to simply walk away. Apparently, the shirt makes me a racist, and the guy was simply exercising his freedom of speech to let me know this. This was especially enjoyable for me in a room that was 90% African-American.

I am guilty of caring more about Durham’s dogs than its people. Maybe that makes me a jackass.

But I’m pretty sure that guy is a jackass. Just another fun thing to look forward at dialysis.