Crazy Lady on our Street

No matter where you live, there is always a "crazy lady" in the neighborhood, and we are no exception.

This elderly woman lives in a four bedroom house all by herself with no family or friends visiting, ever.

According to some long time residents, she was run out of her last neighborhood about a dozen years ago because of her busybodiness. (Or is that busybodyness???)

Crazy Lady recently counted the number of crepe myrtle trees in our housing tract, (95 if you care to know), and called the City to complain that only 4 out of the 95 were blooming. She has been blacklisted by the City staff and is No Longer Allowed to call them. Yes, Really. She must deal exclusively with our homeowners association about her "concerns".

Crazy Lady, instead of asking her next door neighbors to trim, and rake the leaves from their tree that fell into her yard, gathered all the leaves up, and dumped them over the fence into the next door neighbors' yard.

I saw Crazy Lady late the other evening, riding her bike with no light, on our dark street. I commented on this as I greeted her. She then proceeded to ask me some medical questions about an upcoming heart procedure she is going to have. I answered them as best as I could, and wished her well and "Good Night".

The next morning I was in my front garden doing some pruning before the heat of the day. She was across the street in her driveway with her bike when she yelled across to me from a distance of some 45 feet,- Did I think it was going to rain and should bikes be put away? I looked at the collection of dark clouds in the Southern sky and replied- "Yes, that's a good idea, I'm going to put my bike away, it might sprinkle". She then proceeded to scream at me, "I don't like the way you talk to me, you are very inappropriate and disrespectful. You talk to me like a child, first telling me not to ride my bike at night, and then telling me to put my bike away."

I have always been polite to Crazy Lady, and was one of the very last people on our block who hasn't "gotten into it" with her, so I was taken aback, and said, "What are you talking about? You asked me about the bikes. This is a misunderstanding..." I walked over to the sidewalk in front of her house, lowered my voice, and said, "I am not yelling at you, there is no need to scream at me". She then continued to rant and rave about how I disrespected her age, think I know it all because I am a RN, treat her like a child. I had had Enough. My New Jersey roots reared up, I ripped into her about how "Everyone thinks She is Nuts and Now I do Too!" She knows how to dish it out, but Not Take it, because she told me to "Shut Up". (Such a brillant comeback, Not!!) I told her that she could do Us All a Favor and ride her bike, at night, on the Interstate. Also, that her heart condition was Obviously interfering with the circulation to her brain. She was ill equipped to deal with my unique version of "an open can of whoop-a$$".

I now know why her last husband dropped dead on her several years ago, it was the only way he could make his escape. It will take restraint on my part, not to remind her of this fact, if she decides to try and cross blades with me ever again.

How are the crazies in your neck of the woods? Quiet these days? Or stirring the pot?

One Sentence Post - Teach Your Children Well

In addition to educating our teen and preteen about the dangers of drugs, alcohol, and reckless driving, I have now just warned them strictly against eating any Peanut products!

Eight is More than Enough?

I have been disheartened about the recent news about the birth of octoplets in California with the use of Assisted Reproductive technology.(ART)

The clinicians who initiated this pregnancy are reprehensible and unethical, and did not follow clinical guidelines and standards of care. I fear it will cause a negative cultural mindset against ART.
I am concerned for the children. The mother's pyschological state is suspect at best. She has no means of support for these children, (besides hawking them like a sideshow attraction). It looks like my husband and I, and all the taxpayers of California, just gained ourselves 8 more dependents in addition to the 6 children and the mom too!
When I learned of the news of these octoplets, I was reminded of a billboard on the Flor.ida Turnp.ike that reads, "If you can't feed them, don't breed them."
What were these so called adults thinking?

Updated: I wanted to Thank Annie, Mamma Val, and Mrs.Spit for bringing up the crucial issue of the severe risks to the mother's health in carrying such high order multiples. I was amiss in not mentioning this in my initial post. (Not enough caffeine?) I thank you all for addressing yet another ethical issue pertaining to something that feels like it's out of a science fiction novel.

Observations while driving

These are my observations while driving the highways and streets of Santa Clarita -

People in California can't drive in the rain. They drive too fast, tailgate, and have no clue about how to deal with puddles or skidding. The concept of safe stopping distance is completely alien to the California driver.

I saw a bunch of human skeletons loaded in the back of a truck on the freeway. What would cause alarm and distress in other cities, is just another day of transporting stuff to the film set. I still think it's cool to see all the TV filming nearby. I walked my dog through the local park as the set for the TV show, NCIS, was being "struck" or taken down.

The Department of Motor Vehicles office was closed today, part of the closure of California state offices due to the budget mess. There was a guard posted at the door. Two days a month, state offices are now closed with the employees "furloughed" without pay. Ten percent of their pay to be exact. Their pay from the 6th biggest economy in the world.

What a crazy world.