Wow what a last couple weeks!

Boy has my life seen some ups and downs over the last couple weeks. The hubs and I live life of the philosophy "live and let live". As long as you aren't putting my family in danger I have no trouble with you. We were lucky enough to find a neighborhood that fit that when we moved to the desert for this tunnel. No one really knows anyone else well though we do know those who attend our church. It isn't a block party type place. It is a place where our kids all play outside together. We stay out of each others business. Honestly the only time I have interacted with some beyond a hello has been over the kids. It is a pretty quiet place which we love. We keep our eyes out for danger for each other but we don't meddle. It is our kind of place. With the market crash here a lot of the homes have turned over to new owners since we have been here but the vibe has stayed the same. Well we got a new next door neighbor in a house that was empty for over a year. This neighbor was not of that philosophy and not of the type to knock on the door and talk if there was a concern like the rest of us are. We had (still ticked, grrrr) a black lab that the rescue Gracie works with found as a newborn pup. He was a bit dopey and very big. Too big for me but Hubby wanted a breed big enough to help with protection as his job requires long hours with me home alone with the girls. The part we failed to take into consideration was my FMS. It means I don't have the muscle strength to wrestle his weight and strength without paying a price so during the day while our daughter was at school Jasper was on a line in the back yard. He was on a line to keep him from eating everything as his 17 month old puppy brain still loved to devour trampolines and wood furniture. If he saw me pass a window he barked until he realized I was not bringing him in. He also barked if it was stormy. He also barked if he stayed on the line to late into the evening and it started to get dark. He was kind of a sensitive gent. Love him but he has quirks. Anywhoodle Mrs. New Neighbor decided he was a nuisance though no other neighbor had ever complained and we had had him for 14 months. So we got a visit from Animal Control. First visit was about him being on the line. We let the officer see the line and were reassured as were they that he was well taken care of. He was not left on the line all day. He had access to shade, food, and water. Then 2 weeks ago on Monday husband is on swings and i am putting my little one to bed. Bug had not brought him in and so he of course panicked as dark approached. Nice lady came over and yelled at my nephew to bring him in. Didn't ask for an adult. Yelled at the 12 year old. The next day Animal Control is back with a report he barks for 14 hours a day every day. I am told if they come again I will be ticketed in increasing fine increments until he is silenced. The situation can't be changed. Jasper is sensitive, I am not going to be cured tomorrow, a shock collar just tortures him. So we had to surrender him. The kids were destroyed. Monkey is 2 so she has no idea what is going on just that her dog is gone and she bawls constantly for days. It was horrible. I had a flare of monumental proportions. Sheer agony. Poor diabetic nephew had keytones for 4 days due to stress. I may be a horrid mother but I let the kids pick out a smaller rescue dog to try to help them feel better so we have a new addition.


Then came that Thursday. For a year Hubby had been in prep for a hunt to Canada with his dad and BIL for Bear and Wolf. He drives up and discovers his mom is in the hospital with a clot in her lung. She has had numerous health issues stemming from her own struggle with FMS. Pretty serious so he is stressed but she sends him on. His plane is broken making him miss the next 2 flights. He lands in Canda where somehow they have his unsealed juvenile record and they deny him entry despite the fact he was able to hunt there last year and obviously committed no crimes and has not committed crimes in a very long time since his time as a foster kid. Soooooooo he has to fly right back home. 8 flights in 2 days and 8 hours of drive time and he meets me with family. Poor guy is beat physically and emotionally. He has paid his dues has worked his tail off and got bit for it. Sucky ducks!!!


So he decided to take the week off and hang out with me anyway. He was scheduled for the time and we had the money to cover it so figured why not. It was nice. We went shooting, we took the quads out with the kids, we watched our favorite shows. I loved having time with him that is so rare though I hated the price that came with it.


That has been my last 2 weeks! Pretty interesting huh? What it hammered home to me was that you aren't always lucky in who you have for a neighbor. AND government really needs to take more in to account than just what it wants to use to manipulate things. People are made up of many things and no single moment defines anyone. Some moments are bigger than others and absolutely can and do ruin lives but an entire life should be used when you judge someone.

What's the norm these days?

So as all of you know we recently relocated to the beautiful, hot, vast desert. Honestly I like it in a lot of ways. We have a wonderful house, we are is easy driving distance of family, we are in easy driving distance to some awesome places like the Grand Canyon and Disneyland. I also have mentioned how the people seem so different. It is holding fairly true. Hubs and I are very down to earth and easy going. We would rather go to a movie than a club. We would rather I be home than I work just to have what others view as more. We like playing games and relaxing with our kids. So far not many people I have met feel like we do. It is hard to make friends here, even for the Hubs. He is a great guy and he likes to have connections. He likes knowing the bank teller's name or visiting with the gas station clerk. We are great friends with a store owner from the PNW. so it is hard for us to find our footing here. Finding people who love what we love, who hold life above things and money seems to be as elusive as snow. Hmmmm. Here's hoping it gets better.

I wish more people thought of others.

Hubs got the weekend off, which is a treat for us, so we decided it was time to go see Harry Potter. We had a marathon of the previous movies throughout the week so we were ready to go. We went Saturday morning. I loved it!

Anyway when we came out we saw a completely flat front drivers tire. It was 115 out and the ground was easily 125. Hubs put the girls and I into the car, dropped the spare and proceeded to change the tire at the theater in the sun. Easily 100 people walked by as we were right at the front door. Not a single person stopped to offer sympathy let alone a helping hand. I find that so wrong.

Not even a week ago Hubs was late coming home because he helped a pair off teenagers in a broken down car get up and running again. We both see the blessings in our lives and feel we need to do what we can to share with our fellow human beings. If even a few more people thought to offer a kind word, a smile, or even that helping hand maybe this country could get back to what it should be and wants to be.