...to get me raging mad. At least when it randomly appears in our yard, is 2 inches smaller than our hotdogs and our hotdogs are all accounted for within buns, and we have neighbors that we are less than fond of that we KNOW threw it into our yard while they were grilling.
Okay, let me explain. Tonight we were out grilling hotdogs, and then the neighbor came out and started grilling. I was pushing Addison on the swing and Chris was in and out of the house while tending the grill. I ran up to the house for something, walking over a fresh hotdog. Hum, I thought. I actually assumed it was ours. So, I went inside and asked Chris. I counted the hotdogs on the grill vs in the package and they were all accounted for. I took the hotdog and put it up to the ones we had and that hotdog clearly was not from our package. I was majorly mad. I walked out to Chris at the grill and asked him, "Are you going to the door or am I?" talking about going to our neighbors' home. Chris said just to wait until the neighbor came back out.
When the neighbor came out, he had a guilty grin on his face. The hotdog was cool and freshly thrown and I knew he had thrown it. Chris asked him about the hotdog as well as the dog feces, and he of course denied it. I was SOOOOO MAD!! I went and got Addison from the swing and went inside to eat.
After dinner, I cleaned up while the kids went back outside with Chris to play. All of a sudden, I saw Lisa, the neighbor next door that we have hardly uttered a word to for 3 years (quite pleasant), out on their steps talking to Chris over the fence. I quickly dumped my cleaning up and went outside (looking back, perhaps I would have been better off staying inside). Needless to say, I vented my 3 years of feelings and thoughts about the neighbors and their not so kind, immature behaviors. Chris took the kids inside so they did not have to hear Mommy get mad.
Lisa reported how the entire neighborhood hated us. Lovely, especially considering Chris and I did not talk to any of them but were nice and waved to them. She went on and on and I jabbed back. She was in tears, which I found interesting. Tears? Were they tears of guilt? Seriously, I should be crying! Afterall, she said the entire neighborhood did not like us and that I was labeled as the witch on the corner. Lovely. I found all of this funny considering I had never been formally introduced to the people claiming to call me a witch. Were we or were we not the ones that put our home on the market all summer for many reasons but kept it on the market because we wanted to get away from them? I thought it was most funny when I said that we know how they celebrated after we put our FSBO sign in the yard. She denied this until I told her Chris saw her, then she confessed in part to the cheering, clapping and the gossiping. In the midst of all of this, Jason, the neighbor husband, peeked his head outside to ask, "Should I call the cops?" Okay, for what? Because I am talking to them from my yard? Walk inside if you do not want to hear it! Seriously, call the cops. They will laugh at you! Anyway, Lisa was going in circles and wasting my time with her dishonestly and reports of gossip, so I went inside. I was seriously still mad, but felt better that I had told her everything - caught her in all her lies.
I went inside and reported to Chris, who had listened to my conversation with Lisa. We decided, if we are going to live here, we have to clear our name. So, we decided to go door to door up our dead end street and then to the homes behind us reintroducing ourselves, 12 homes in all. Yes, I know, they probably all thought we were crazy. But you know what, crazy is probably much better than what they had heard from our neighbors! We even went back to the neighbors house next door, introducing ourselves to them like we had never met! We just hope the people up the street think we are nice, but quiet people that live on the corner. Crazy...that has to be better than the witch and whatever name they had for Chris.
So, Chris saw my spine front and center tonight. I think I held out good for 3 years. Will we be friends with the neighbors next door? Probably not. I do look forward, not backward. I will try harder to love the neighbor. As for the rest of the neighborhood? Time will tell. Many of them probably heard the conversation I had with Lisa, so the truth is out. We will see where it goes from here.
Let's just hope we do not find anymore hotdogs!
