dog days continue

Sally (on the left) and Harry (on the right) alert me to all the action on the street...except for when they're napping...

Another story: The first week when the university's back in session is always nuts. Just inject 18,000 students, plus employees, into the neighborhood all at once. Make most of them from rural places, not used to more than one stop light. Merge them into a small city. Yup--driving is scary, going out to eat is crowded, and well, you can imagine. This year hasn't been too bad on the late night keg party front so far, but they are doing construction in our neighborhood, so it is still noisy. Oh well.

One afternoon I'm up in my office, minding my own business, speaking to the professor on the phone. (He is barely standing up by the end of the day, so I find out what he'd like for dinner and offer to him like a lifesaving device when he comes home.) I hear my dogs bark an alarm, and then screaming on the street...and I hang up on him, rush outside.

We live on a corner, and we have a picket fence. One neighbor (you might remember her?) walks her very small furry dog alongside our fence in one direction. Another neighbor walks her 100 lb short haired shepherd mix, Blackie, in the other. Both neighbors are older women, at least past sixty and perhaps towards their seventies, active but petite. Neither was looking ahead. The dogs met at the corner, were taken by surprise, and Blackie doesn't like other dogs. Blackie, surprised, apparently attacked the little dog.

When I rushed out, Blackie and his owner were already across the street, looking stunned. Little dog's owner, clutching her dog, was keening and somewhat hysterical. I got her, and her dog, into my car and off to her vet's office, two blocks away. There was some blood, but not a lot. Mostly, I worried over the neighbor...I thought the owner suffered from, as we Southerners say, "nerves." She was--no other way to say it, not quite herself...poorly.

Then I drove down the street to check on Blackie's owner, who was also upset, but more calm. We decided she should check on the little dog and other older woman later. After that visit, she came to tell me the news...one broken rib and some bite marks. Very upsetting for all, but from what I heard, the animal control officer probably felt, like me, that it was an accident all round.

A very good person would have checked on that that little dog's owner but by then, I was all worn out and not that person. Instead, the professor and I took an after dinner walk with our dogs. Our destination just happened to be $1 scoop night at our local ice cream shop. That very same day, I encountered 2 other loose dogs in town...and couldn't catch either.

I often wonder if everywhere is like this (everywhere I live, at least?) or if maybe other folks sometimes miss the screams on the street? Isn't it my obligation as a person to rush out and help? (then, where was everyone else?!) In the meanwhile, believe me, I'm still reading the proofs. I'm speculating about squash. (Vicki, it might be white acorn, but since we've never eaten one, how would it be in the compost?!) I'm propping up one very tired professor... Have a good Labor Day weekend, everybody. Take care.