Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Through the Wall

He has a pierced eyebrow and his pants are always falling down. It's hard for me not to judge; I'm more of a fuddy-duddy than I care to admit. She is the stepdaughter of the condo owner. I don't know if her stepdad knows her boyfriend is living there with her. They're about fifteen years younger than I am; the last neighbors were more than fifteen years older than I. I get to be the grownup in this go-round.

Loud thuds against the shared bedroom wall. Could have been a closet door closed too hastily. What time is it? A thud again. It's 6:30 a.m. I hear shouting, another thud. I am tense. Loud noises like these usually meant bad things when I was a kid. Maybe my son won't hear the ruckus.

Thudding, shouting.

I take the dogs out to pee, and stand for a few minutes outside the front door. The shouting permeates the closed patio door. "I'm afraid of you half the time!" she cries. I'm frozen, but the thuds have stopped.

What could I say to her when I next see her? What should I say? Should I write a note? Should I have called the police? Her stepdad? Will the boyfriend always be there? I don't even know their schedules.

I think of the oldest of six daughters who lived two doors down from my parents. She babysat my son a few times when he was a baby and I was in counseling, trying to figure out what to do about my ex, trying to make the depression go away.

On October 10, 2007, she was found dead in an alley in North Hollywood. Her boyfriend had strangled her. He was found later at a friend's house. She was four-and-a-half months pregnant.

I see my neighbor's boyfriend outside once in a while. He usually has a put-upon air, like he thinks his life is hard and he wants pity. He bugs me.

I imagine what I could say to him if I hear thuds and shouting again. I imagine saying something about not letting him create that kind of atmosphere in our complex. For his girlfriend. Right next door to me and my little boy. I imagine calling the police. I imagine telling my neighbor she doesn't have to put up with that kind of fear and chaos.

A few weeks pass. This morning is quiet. I take the dogs out to pee. I hear shouting, but no thuds. It's about 7:00 a.m. The boyfriend is shouting expletives. They quiet down. Maybe they've heard my foot on the stairs.

I freeze, listening. Nothing. I don't know what to do, what to say. I just stand there, waiting.

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Friday, February 20, 2009

I'd Say I'm Pissed Off, But That Would Be Inaccurate



Hey, I know this is turning into the Bad Dog Blog (did I tell you the auxiliary dog has pooped in the kitchen twice in two days?)...but...the primary dog just peed on me.

We were sitting on the couch and he was napping on my lap. Then he woke up, looked at me, panted a little...and my lap felt warm.

Shoulda named him Ruprecht. Maybe his next owners will. Heh.

Okay, you know he ain't goin' anywhere.

I'm such a sucker.

I promise my next post will be about real people doing human things.

(If you don't see the comments link, try refreshing your browser. I'm having trouble with it, too. Thanks, Blogger!)

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Just When I Think I've Seen the Last of Weird Dog Behavior

Today we had the front door open for a few minutes, and the primary dog disappeared. At first I thought he'd gone upstairs, but a quick check confirmed his absence.

Where was he?

Oh...pooping in the neighbor's bedroom.

Our neighbor TWO DOORS DOWN moved out today and her patio door was open, so I guess the primary dog assumed her Berber was a beautiful carpet...to poop on! The new owners are moving in tomorrow (so fast!), so they'll probably be glad to encounter the bigole wet spot where I sprayed carpet cleaner.

That dog is lucky we love him.

In other news, my sister and I built bunkbeds for the kiddo today, and said kiddo is now peacefully asleep in the top bunk. Naturally I'll be checking on him, like, a million times to make sure he's not anywhere close to falling out of bed.

I'm a little bit like that. Ahem. ;-)

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Argh.

I honestly don't know what's worse: being stuck at home with the flu for going on six days, or being stuck in the house with the kiddo while he repeatedly plays "Music of the Night."

Today: a trip to the pediatrician. I hope my tummy behaves during that time.

Tuesday, February 03, 2009

A Moment of Quiet

For the past hour or so, the kiddo has been downstairs on the couch, coughing frequently. I've been upstairs, trying to bring down my stubborn fever (seriously, I took Tylenol AND Advil and it's still over 100F) and hollering down the stairs after every cough to make sure the boy is okay. In between, I've been praying that my son would be able to get some rest from the coughing. Eventually...I noticed things had quieted down, so I tiptoed to the stairs and saw that the wee boy had fallen asleep. *sigh* I love that kid so much.

Can I Go Back to Sleep Now?

Well, now the kiddo and I are 2-2, since he just barfed about five minutes ago. (Have I mentioned I've actually blown the capillaries in my eyes from barfing? That'll stay REAL pretty for a long time.) I gave him some cough medicine and he just upchucked; at least he did it in the sink. Still, he's kind of interested in discussing what was in his barf and analyzing the whole experience. Bleah. Earlier I slept for four hours on the couch while he played video games; that was good. I think by tomorrow we may be able to go back to school/work and see how it goes. We won't be 100% yet, but hopefully the barfing has passed and our temperatures will be back to normal. The kiddo's was 99.4F this morning and mine was 101.3F. After I took ibuprofen, it went down to about 99.4, but now it's back up to 101.1. What the heck? Maybe I'll get a flu shot next year. My dad would like that a lot. He's a HUGE flu shot advocate.

Now I get to clean Mini-Wheats and cottage cheese (milk) out of the sink. Yay. Then back to sitting in front a space heater turned up so high it might burn my non-fire-retardant pajamas.

The friend who had surgery yesterday came through the procedure fine; now she has about eight weeks of recovery to look forward to. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts/prayers if you can. Thanks.

Monday, February 02, 2009

Short Pity Party, Then Back to Business...

Man, I think the last time I barfed was when I was pregnant. Well, prior to TODAY. My son had a 103-ish temp. all weekend, and last night I started getting the chills as well. Today...big headache, some fever, and two vomiting episodes.

Feels so good...when it's over.

Needless to say, we're both staying home today. The kiddo was scared just now when he heard me throwing up, so I had to reassure him that I was okay when I was done. The kiddo's dad is out of town for the week, so I don't have anyone to hand the kiddo off to; I hope I'm much better by tonight.

The kiddo just hollered up the stairs that I should under no circumstances use his toothbrush. As if I ever did or would!! Wonder where that came from.

This is a lonely parenting day.

A friend is having a total hysterectomy today, so I need to shift back out of poor-me mode. After all, I would choose today's illness over surgery. If you could please keep her in your thoughts/prayers, I would appreciate it. She deserves good health and peace.