Thoughts from The Porch

It is a beautiful afternoon in Houston. I am sitting on my front porch, the sun warming my legs and the dog guarding the perimeter of the yard.

The dog (I have pictures of her posted below somewhere) is rather protectived of the yard. She really barks at some people, and tolerates others walking by. But there are two people that she really, really hates. One is a poor kid who looks like he is doing the “thorazine Shuffle” and is always talking to himself.

The other is an older, short fellow named Peter McDonald, and he YELLS at the dog, kicks the fence, and throws rocks at her if nobody is around.

I confronted Mr McDonald last week. It was not a pretty thing to see, but I did come to an almost amiable arrangement that I will make sure that the dog is inside between 2:00 and 3:00 pm daily, as he never, ever, ever changes his walk. He also told me that he talks the same path within a two foot boundary. I say OCD.

But I guess that is why we love this neighborhood. Nuts abound.

Earlier this week I had to call 911 at 3:00 AM. The construction site across the street was being robbed of building materials. Two guys were just loading up sheets of plywood and rolls of tar paper. The cops arrived not five minutes after I called, and yet the thieves were already gone. That is too bad. I wanted to see them go down.

Anyway, it is a beautiful afternoon here today.