They’re Trying To Do Me In!

It was a long and brutal day that wouldn’t end.  To make it even more fun, I got a call from a client who decided to use the loppers he found today in his garage by trimming his own tree.  He got part way through before he was overcome with exhaustion.   He had branches on the ground, strewn about his front yard, and the blasted things refused to clean themselves up!  Thus, the call to me.  Included in his message was the fact that this “Life threatening landscape emergency” (the branches on the ground) had to be handled before day’s end, or else he would seek the services of a more accommodating landscaper.  Just goes to show the appreciation sent my way for 7 years of hard work…  (I LOVE my job!)

The property wasn’t that far away, the tree wasn’t very large and had just been trimmed last maintenance visit.  There couldn’t be that much to pick up, right?   Maybe 45 minutes max round trip, shorter if I could get in and out before the client saw me and wanted to talk.

The kids had been cooped up inside the house for a rather lengthy day, so I decided to leave the non-horse harassing nim wits out while I made the trip. Crabby was away visiting with out of town guests, so there was no one to supervise.  But again, the kids I left out were the more well mannered ones. What could possibly happen?

Shock and awe.  That’s the only way I can describe what my client did to the tree.  He pretty much took off everything but the main trunk.  Literally, it was a bare, 7 foot trunk with all branches removed.  When I arrived on the property, husband and wife were in a domestic dispute over it.  Once nerves were calmed, the direction to just cut down the trunk made, and the newly found loppers put in a safe place (my trailer) where they can never be misused again, I quickly cleaned up the debris and sped home.  1 hour, 15 minutes had passed, not that I was keeping track…

We live on an easement accessed off a paved road.  I never reach the speed limit on the pavement because I don’t want to be that person who runs over a rabbit or squirrel.  Tonight, however, I not only reached the speed limit, I exceeded it.  I continued to speed until the Stop sign, made the appropriate stop, then proceeded to speed on.  I continued breaking the law…

…until

I saw Slugger, standing in the middle of road, imploring a south bound pick up truck to stop.

When the truck did not stop, Slugger looked my way, then assumed the imploring posture at me, not realizing who it was.  I had stopped, stunned,  in the middle of the road and was opening my door.

I didn’t notice the car coming from the north, and neither did Slugger.

Unlike the pick up truck driver, the driver of the car was a dog person.  She also stopped in the middle of the road and exited her vehicle.

Unlike me, the driver of the car noticed not only Slugger in the middle of the road, but Vito and Hector sitting on the shoulder.

Our “Main Drag” (center road running vertically) may be paved, but even Google earth is hard pressed to find much traffic on it. I count that as a blessing.

In my panic (finding Slugger loose, about 1/2 mile away from home  and in the middle of the road), I wasn’t very coherent when speaking to the Good Samaritan, and she was a little leery about my “intentions” when running toward Slugger.  Alas, a dog mom herself, she recognized a certain irrational freaking that can only come from love.    Also, at that point, Hector and Vito made it quite clear I was their mom when they came running to me while I was hugging Slugger.  This was when I first became aware of them.  {Increase Freak Out… NOW!}.

It was as I was vacillating between tears of horror (what kind of Mom leaves her kids out in the yard, unsupervised, even for a short duration),  and relief that my boys were OK, when the car alarm went off.  Only, to my trained ear, I knew it wasn’t a car alarm.  I looked in the direction of the sound, and there I saw, making a great attempt to hide herself behind a bush, eyes big as saucers, Marcy.

Whenever Slugger becomes unsure of his circumstances, he looks for the nearest responsible adult to take care of him. No question, he was trying to flag down someone for help!

Marcy has come a very long way, but she will always have feral in her.  That she didn’t run to me when she saw me meant feral took over.  I knew better than to approach her, even if I wasn’t so upset, as she would run.  I explained the situation to Good Samaritan as I was putting the boys in my truck  and asked if she watch them and hold back any traffic while I went for Marcy.

I went to the middle of the road, centered between my truck blocking north bound traffic and Good Samaritan’s car blocking south bound, took a few breaths to calm myself, squatted down, and called Marcy in my special voice just for her while opening my arms for a hug.  Marcy and I hug every day, it’s our “Thing”.   Though her tail was between her legs, she immediately ran to me, and hugged me back.  To this day, Marcy loathes being picked up, but at that particular time, she never stopped hugging me hard as I lifted her and carried her to the truck.

I am very impressed Hector stayed with the group rather than exploring on his own.

Many thanks were extended, a) to Good Samaritan for her intention to stop and help my boys, and b) to the driver and passenger in a truck, who we blocked from passing, for not getting snarky at me for needing a few minutes to get sane before I could call Marcy.

The world is much too big for Vito to be out in, without parental supervision.

Franky, Gracie, Pablo, Sarah, Emmi and Gertie were still safely in the back yard.  The rest of the kids were in the house.  That didn’t mean I didn’t do a total head count, twice, anyway!

The heavy storms of a few weeks back created a dip under the fence, an escape route.  It has been fixed so no more escapes occur.

I am shocked that Marcy left the property. We’ve had her outside the gate before, and she will never cross the property line. Actually, she rarely goes more than 20 feet from the gate unless we take her somewhere in the Waggin’ Wagon!

The heart palpitations have stopped and I think I’ll live through this latest crisis.

Honestly, though, I swear the kids are trying to do me in!