Tag: compound

The Rainmaker

Today, Tim came in, said something about bringing a guy home with him, and JIM WALKED INTO THE DINING ROOM! I haven’t seen him in over two years and was completely surprised–maybe because I was still in my jammies at three in the afternoon. Of course I hugged him and started crying.

Then it stormed. Jim brought drought relief! Plus he provided the impetus for Tim to drive to the airport for the first time ever to pick someone up. Two miracles.

More later…

This one’s on Tim

Just after Tim and I got back from the gym, as I was unlocking my front door, I heard a clap of thunder in the distance. Empty promise, as usual. I started dinner, and Tim started tending to what’s left alive on the drought-impacted Compound grounds. Then he stepped inside and told me about this:


If you squint, stand on your head, and recite one of Hermione’s spells from Harry Potter, you can see proof that it’s raining somewhere in Texas by virtue of a rainbow.

Someone’s in the kitchen with Pixie


This is Tim’s foster dog, Pixie, with a toy pheasant sent by Aunt Marika and Cousin Dash. Pixie has a happy, playful personality and is lots of fun. She’s helping me miss Maverick a little less (he’s currently vacationing in New Mexico with his foster mom, because he’s lucky enough to have two foster homes until he finds his forever family).


Pixie is already devoted to Tim and responding well to his training. One of the things I appreciate about the forever families who’ve gone through Scout’s Honor to adopt Tim’s fosters like EZ, Tyson, and Dexter, is that they stay in touch and let the organization know how the dogs are thriving. Nothing makes me happier than a dog tale with a happy ending. =)

From July 16th-19th, Scout’s Honor Rescue will have a booth at the Reliant Park World Series of Dog Shows. They’ll be there with some of their adoptable dogs as well as lots of information on fostering and volunteering. Don’t miss out on some awesome raffle baskets and other goodies. Meet their dogs and be amazed by all there is to see at the dog show, from agility competitions to the market.

Shenanigans

Like any parent of human children, I generally understand what my dogs are barking about even when I don’t see what they see. Some of their barks include:

1. Look! That dog we hate is walking down the sidewalk!
2. Look! That dog we love is walking down the sidewalk!
3. Squirrel! (Same bark as: Possum! Raccoon!)
4. CAAAAAAAAAT! CAT ON THE COMPOUND!
5. MAIL CARRIER COME TO KILL US!
6. Mysterious event. Will bark just in case it Develops Into Something.
7. Exterminator! Run to crate! Treat will be forthcoming! (Also works for plumber, electrician, and Joe My Contractor.)
8. Meter reader/UPS/Fedex has breached perimeter security! MUST BE TERMINATED.
9. There’s someone on the porch! Seriously! LISTEN TO ME NOW!
10. I need to pee and/or poop. QUICK QUICK!
11. Friend has breached perimeter security! Prepare to affectionately crush ovaries or man bits!
12. Tim has a new foster dog!

Thursday, I ignored Bark 6. I wish I hadn’t, because when it was followed a few minutes later by Bark 9, I went to see what was going on. Bark 9 was just someone who’d taped a flier to my front door offering to paint our house or do other odd jobs. I can take a hint. I just can’t afford a paint job right now.

As I was about to shut the door, I noticed a burgundy car blocking a neighbor’s driveway. There are several cars of that color on our street at any given time. One is a neighbor’s. One is a different neighbor’s frequent visitor. One is yet another neighbor’s housekeeper. And one is Tom’s.

The car wasn’t just in the driveway at an odd angle. The passenger door was open. The driver’s seat was pulled forward. The windshield was cracked. The hood was buckled. The front was crushed. I hurried outside to see if someone needed help, but there wasn’t a person in sight. A condo dweller down the street came outside and joined me, and we agreed that the car wasn’t one of the regulars. (In fact, he knew the names of everyone on our street, which always amazes me. I usually only remember the dogs’ names.)

While he knocked on doors to try to find out if anyone knew anything about the car, I did an assessment of the area. No trees or phone poles had been hit. No bodies were lying in ditches. Whatever happened, it happened somewhere else, then the car was pulled over and abandoned. I called the police. When she arrived, she called for a wrecker, then put on gloves and searched the car. Meanwhile, Tim got home and we hung outside with Jackson long enough for the cop to open the trunk. Just wanted to make sure there wasn’t a body in it. (I may have been reading too many mysteries lately.)

I think she found something inside the car–whatever it was, it was too small for me to see, but she sure got interested in it. Later, when Tim and I left for the gym, we could see some stuff including pill bottles in a plastic bag.

I wish I could have seen the person/people who abandoned the car. That’ll teach me to keep reading status updates on Facebook when Bark 6 happens.


That’s the wrecker driver’s bottle of water resting on the windshield.
It was SO HOT, and I felt bad because I didn’t have any bottled water to offer the cop, and figured she wouldn’t take anything that wasn’t sealed.
I put a few bottles in the refrigerator today.
Just in case someone else wants to wreck and abandon a car near The Compound.

A puzzle

There is a pillow I always take with me when I travel. This summer, while dealing with some foot and ankle issues, I keep it on the bed so that when I work on my laptop, sleep, or read, my feet are always slightly elevated. Or at least that’s why I think it’s on the bed. It often seems that some other inhabitants of The Compound believe it exists for their use.

Independence Day

We grilled a weekend’s worth of meals on Friday so we could mostly stay inside away from the heat without using the oven this weekend. I did have errands to run, so I drove through River Oaks to see flags flying on the mansions of people who can afford to keep their lawns well-watered during the heat wave. Here are a couple of shots I liked:

Unlike certain cooperative Midwestern dogs, Guinness and Margot didn’t want to pose in t-shirts with eagles and patriotic slogans on them. Maybe they’re exercising their right to protest holidays that involve the noise of fireworks.

It’s settled

The dogs and I took a vote, and we decided that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with my staying right here* with the fan blowing on us all until this heat wave goes away. Which I reckon should be late September. You only see Guinness in the photo, but Margot is under the bed in Fort Emo, and Rex is sprawled out on the floor at the foot of the bed awaiting Tim’s return.

*Except for going to the gym, of course.

It’s not the heat, it’s the time off without pay

Some of you may remember Sniper Kitty from a few months ago. I hadn’t realized he was part of Compound Security, protecting the property from the Tim Stalkers, until Tim explained it.

Tim and Rexford are spending a few days at Green Acres, and somebody’s treating their absence like a big vacation.

Trust me, that was no cat nap. He slept there for hours, leaving only when I finally had to let the dogs out. (Sorry to say, they aren’t cat fans.) I probably need to start paying Sniper Kitty in water, just to be on the safe side.