Poor Zoe and the Loser Neighbor

We have a nice tall gate in the doorway between the garage and the kitchen. It has a handle that when squeezed the gate opens right up. Easier than most child gates. I got in when Charlie/Steve was a puppy and insisted on going into the garage, where the laundry gets done, to get socks. He was eating the girl's socks. I don't like to keep the regular door to the garage closed, because we need to get cross ventilation in the house, and because we use that entrance most often.

Yesterday morning I was about to take the girls to school and Charlie/Steve ran out so he could go to the front yard. He got into the bushes so the girls could not catch him. Zoe was standing in the driveway trying to scare him toward Katharine and she was stomping and kicking her foot. Right before Katharine got him, Zoe gave one final kick and missed and kicked the wall below the fence, as hard as she could. I thought she might have broken her foot. All the way to school she cried silently. I asked her if she could put pressure on her foot and she still thought she was able to go to school. She stepped out of the car and hoped back in. She could not walk on her foot. I zipped up the hill and dropped off Katharine at her school and Zoe and I pulled into a parking spot, to test her foot. That was it, she was in pain and could not put pressure on her foot.

I brought her home, she hopped over to the couch and I got her some ice. No visible signs of swelling or bruising. She could bend all her toes in both directions. I figured it was a jammed big toe, which is very painful. She kept the ice on it all day. Last night it was obvious that the big toe was inflamed. It was feeling better though, and she was able to walk on it. I suggested an ace bandage and sandals for today, but then thought of somebody stepping on it, made me cringe. If she can get her tennies on then, she will wear those today. Poor thing, she rarely cries. So, I know it hurt a lot!

Back to Charlie/Steve. As some of you already know, we had a confrontation of sorts with our new loser neighbor. You remember, the one doing all the remodeling on his home without the honor of helping the city make more money by having a permit or 20! Some of you already know this story and have offered valuable advice!

Sunday, hub and I were having a peaceful morning out on the deck. Charlie started barking and David got up to make him stop. The bratty neighbor asked David if there was something we could do about "that." The dog barking at his dog. He said it happens three times a day. I told him, without getting up, that Charlie barks when he hears people walking by on the lower street. Usually it is a chain leash or collar that he hears. Well, loser neighbor has a nice loud chain leash. Of course Charlie runs out to see who it is, every time he hears it. Anyhow, the creep tells us maybe we could put up a screen! We have a nice view from here and it includes looking past his house to all the lights in the valley. David told him maybe he could talk to the dog trainer and the royal pain says, "Good, have him call me too." David just turned and walked away. Can you believe the gall of this guy? Tells us to have the trainer call HIM? PLEASE!!!!!!!!! He is all of 23. He really should respect his elders! LOL

I was not happy. I was in fact, very angry. This control freak has spent months with jackhammers, saws, Contractors blocking out driveway, you name it, and never once apologized or warned us about the noise, which began every morning at 7AM and on weekends. Ever since a fire destroyed more than 340 homes here back in 1993, it has been illegal to do construction on the weekends. He cut major trunks off the hundred year old eucalyptus trees. These trees are historical. And if cut wrong and left unbalanced they could fall over in the right weather conditions. Hmm, that just kind of put a smile on my face, as long as it crashes down on his house!

Anyhow, I put up a couple of mismatched beach towels. Not very pretty, but now I do not have to look at him. And since I moved them down a couple of rungs, I can still see the lights at night. It has not stopped Charlie from barking at him, for all of fifteen seconds, when he sees him on the street. It is also not unusual for dogs to bark up here. Our house is street to street and a series of barking begins down the street as people pass by walking their dogs. The dogs stop as the people get to the next house, as does Charlie.

So, if this loser wants to call animal control about our dog, then he will be coughing up some money for the reassessment of his home, which was the cheapest in town.