Version 2.018

We put out flags around the neighborhood today in preparation for Memorial Day, which is Monday. I met a new neighbor who lives across the street from me. Neither of us is new in the neighborhood, but I had never seen her. She, on the other hand, knew exactly who I was. She said "Oh you have a fire!" I did not understand. "You're the one with the fireplace, you use your fireplace all the time." Ah, yes, that is me. She proceeded to inform me that she sees my fireplace all the time, but she does not see me, except when I'm outside gardening, since I'm always tending to the garden. Man, she must spend more time looking out the window than my dog.

Anyway, I am not very quick at putting the flags down, plus the soil was very dry and it was hard to poke the ground. I think I may have busted a nerve on my right thumb because it feels awfully numb. Oh and I also set off someone's car alarm. I didn't even get close to it and it just went off. I apologized to the young man who came to check on his car, but I feel like I am the one who is owed an apology.

Speaking of young man, a funny thing happened this morning. I forgot to put the trash out, so I hurried to do it when I heard the truck in the alley. One of the trash collectors already knows me and is always sure to make some small talk. We started talking because his dream was to have a French bulldog and he would see me walking Julian in the morning. So this morning, he asked about Julian and I told him about Julian's foot. Then the young man proceeded to let me know that he was very happy because he finally had a Frenchie that his family had gotten him. He pulled out his phone to show me a picture of his little dog, a female. Then he asked what kind of food I gave Julian.

We sat there and talked for two to three minutes, but we were less than 6 feet apart. Right at that moment another neighbor greeted us from afar. I think he was shocked that I was talking to someone so close and none of us had a mask. Later in the day, I ran into that neighbor, who was fertilizing his lawn, while wearing a mask. I do not wear a mask while walking the dog, I don't see the point. I barely talk to people and, if I do, it's only a few minutes. Plus, the advantage of being an introvert is that we always keep enough distance. Maybe it's not 6 feet all the time --who came up with that distance, anyway? -- but it's far enough that one does not feel like our personal space has been breached. In fact, I don't even remember the last time I had a cold or the flu.

But this is the neighbor that thought that this virus was not that serious and that for sure he had already had it. He tried not to get too close to me, since he had seen me too close to the trash collector. I always get a kick out of seeing people scared of me.