Attractive men storming my house

It has been an interesting week. I went to Reno for a few days to play golf in a member-guest tournament. There was a practice round, silly but fun games and then the tournament itself. The course was very difficult – much harder than what I normally play – and there were lots of big hitters. I’m not super long off the tee, and it was humbling to see these women blast the ball.

We didn’t win anything, but I’m proud to say I held my own with the big girls. In situations like that, my greatest challenge is lack of confidence, so I just tried to play my own game and focus on what I know I can do. Reno is dry and windy, and the course was mentally and physically exhausting. I got home Saturday with seriously chapped lips and just wanted to sleep for two days.

And then it hit me, I can! I don’t have to go to work! I’m retired!

So, I was enjoying a restful evening. I decided to start watching Downton Abbey from the beginning, since it is now free on Amazon Prime. I had the headphones in and was watching it on my Kindle Fire, when Dale starts hollering, “Donna! Donna! There’s a fire in the backyard!”

We both jump out of bed and threw on some clothes. By the time we got downstairs, four firetrucks were parked out front and a slew of firemen were in the backyard dousing the fire.

Note: Firemen are very attractive. It’s not just the fire that’s hot.

Back to the story. There’s a ballfield behind our house and some brush in between. Apparently some kids were back there smoking, and the brush caught fire. They ran off and left their scooters behind. I kind of wanted one of the scooters for my yard art, but the firemen took them as evidence.

All the neighbors were out, peeping over the fence. We just had our fence repaired, so I’m kind of pissed about that. It should be relatively inexpensive to fix … probably not even as much as the deductible on our homeowner’s. My neighbor, on the other hand, is thrilled. Her fence was in bad shape, and the firemen broke through it to get to the yard. She’s excited at least part of her fence will be paid for.

While I was out there, I chatted up the neighbor’s son. He’s in community college and works at the local grocery store where we frequently shop. I’ve never really talked to him, but he made an effort to snag me one of the scooters. The firemen said no way. While I had him, though, I talked to him about the comment card I filled out at the grocery store. I’ve been surprised no one has responded. It has been at least a month.

Dale thinks it’s hilarious that I expect a response. It’s a good store with great customer service, so I absolutely expect a response. Michael, our neighbor’s son, asked me what my feedback was. I said I suggested they peel and core ripe pineapples to sell whole, so you can just cut slices for the grill. He thought it was a great idea and said he would follow-up.

I’m calling that a win-win-win. A minor fire with no injuries and no significant property damage, attractive men storming my house and a possible solution to my pineapple concerns.

Then there are the stupid kids who started the fire. I told Dale they should have to spend at least one night in jail, just to scare them. Their parents should pay for the damage and reimburse the fire department for their expenses. However, we don’t know who they are. I thought about putting up signs that say, “Did your child lose a scooter?” And then see who bubbles to the surface.

Maybe those cute firemen will figure it out. Perhaps they will need my assistance? They did an awesome job and kept us informed throughout the evening’s events. I was impressed and happy to pay taxes for their excellent service.

As for Downton Abbey, I got to the episode where Lady Mary finally figures out she loves Matthew Crawley, so I slept well, although poor Mr. Bates. And that awful O’Brien. She reminds me of someone I worked with, and it made me all the more glad to be done with that nonsense.