December 23, 2010

Less than 1 week after my neighbors received a citation for allowing their dog to be a barking nuisance, they are letting their dog be a barking nuisance again. Oh, sure, not to the degree it was before...not yet. I've been through this before - the police or animal control comes out, there are a few days of relative and much needed peace, then the barking is slowly allowed to escalate back to the usual intolerable, interminable, incessant frequency and shrillness.

It's depressing how this barking can consume one's life. I mean, I've spent hours writing about the damn dog on this blog, reading and writing posts on the barking dog yahoo group, making videos with sound of him, putting them on YouTube, thinking about how to get the money to move, thinking about what I can do if I leave the house just to get away from the noise, dreading that he'll stop barking before the cops show up if I call the cops...when the barking invades every corner of your home, day & night, prevents you from going to sleep at a reasonable hour, wakes you up like an alarm right outside of your bedroom window, gives you indigestion, is so loud outside that you can't enjoy or work in your yard...day after day, year after year...how can you think about anything else?

I used to enjoy a lot of things, but now I enjoy very little.

I used to look forward to taking a road trip or just visiting a state park for the day, but now I'm not motivated to leave because I'll just have to come home to more barking. Doesn't make sense, I know, but it's true.

I used to read a lot and look forward to a good book, but now I can't concentrate on the read with the barking in the background, so I quit reading;

I used to look forward to listening to Echoes on Sunday nights but I'd have to turn the volumn up to an intolerable level to block out the barking.

I used to cook a lot and prepare great meals, but the barking sounds like it's right outside of the kitchen window and I often have indigestion now from being tense and not eating properly.

Spring was always an exciting time in my yard because the bulbs & shrubs would come alive with colorful, fragrant blooms, and every year I'd plant a few more interesting shrubs or trees but being in the yard now...forget it.

This is the 3rd year in a row that I haven't put up Christmas decorations or a tree, thanks to my neighbors. I used to always get a live Christmas tree and plant it in my yard later. I have lights to hang around the house, boxes full of decorations, CDs with my fav Christmas tunes...but who can enjoy any of this with the sound of shrill barking in the background?

I have a friend who has a really nice, beautiful, quiet home on 25 acres in the woods with creeks. She retired before she was 50 and has the financial means to do much more than most people, and yet she is often complaining about her life. She choses to get involved in things that are stressful & which consume all her time...and then complains about how she has no time and how stressful her involvement is in the project. I have no sympathy. I should invite her to stay at my place for a week...

Have a Happy & Peaceful Christmas

&

I hope we all have a prosperous New Year so we can move the hell away from these barking freekin' dogs.