Cause for Alarm

Stressful events have been going on around here lately.

Last night several local fire departments battled an apartment fire a few miles away. And today an ambulance and fire truck zoomed past our house in their apparent need to get somewhere in a hurry. The alarming sirens were everywhere!

You know, just another day in the 'burbs. Not!

And I've been a bit "off kilter" the last few days. I'm blaming my hormones - or the lack thereof - for most of it. Due to my "nerves," as we euphemistically call my agitated state, Pastor Dad gallantly offered to take The Bear to basketball practice. I gave my assent and the motion was passed unanimously. Meeting adjourned.

Soon after they left, I also left. I took Pepper for a walk. I did this for several reasons. First, it gets her some exercise, which was really necessary today because . . . Second, I was going to be leaving for the library and this would require some of Pep's pep to be expended so that I could literally get out the door without her.

And third, I was being nosy. I wanted to see if there was any visible reason why an ambulance and a fire truck came careening past my house today. (There wasn't.)

Taking Pepper for a walk is not easy. And I'm not talking about the actual walk itself. I'm talking about getting her out of the yard. Our perimeter has an invisible fence and there are only two ways to get that dog past it. One is by picking her up bodily and the other is by putting her in the car and driving her. I always choose the latter for obvious reasons. I receive enough battle wounds without actually trying to manhandle a rambunctious canine who doesn't have enough sense to know when you're trying to do her a favor! So the first part of the walk was accomplished via car.

The walk being done, I took the dog back into the house and proceeded to load essentials like driver's license, spare change, and library card into the neck pouch that had just moments ago held things like doggy treats and pooper-scooper bags. The purpose for the library visit was to catch up on some volunteer work that I do for the local genealogy society. I don't like to take my purse with me because it is hard to keep an eye on it while preoccupied between the stacks and copy machine.

The free afternoon seemed the perfect opportunity to get this done. I expected to be home before the guys reappeared.

Things never go quite as planned. There were parts of the assignment that I did not understand so I worked a bit slower than usual. When I left I realized I had stayed longer than I anticipated which meant it was getting dark outside. There would be no dinner waiting for the guys when they got home. I discovered that I didn't have my cell phone to tell them of my delay but I didn't think it important because I still expected to be home before they were.

I was mistaken. And as soon as I pulled into the driveway I knew something was wrong. Pastor Dad's car was gone, both garage doors were up, all of the lights were on, The Bear was darting out the front door as soon as my car came to a halt, and Pepper was running around like a maniac. Okay, that last one is pretty normal, but the rest of the stuff isn't. I inquired as to the nature of the emergency.

It seems that I was the emergency!

When they got home, they found Pepper in the house alone and the contents of my purse tossed about on the bedroom floor. I suspect that Pepper used the discovery of this unexpected bonanza to search for spare mints or change. Whatever. The man, the boy, and the dog all know that I don't usually leave the house without my purse and certainly not without my wallet or phone.

No one remembered that I had stated my intention of going to the library but everyone remembered that I was going to walk the dog. They also knew that the car was involved. I'm not sure exactly why they thought I'd forgotten to actually take the dog with me but they did. Pastor Dad was driving through our neighborhood looking for me.

Thankfully, I arrived just a few moments after they did or more vehicles with sirens might possibly have made their way into the neighborhood today. Pastor Dad pulled into the driveway shortly after The Bear called off the (wo)manhunt.

Once we'd all settled down a bit (and ordered pizza) we discussed the events of the day. Perhaps I'm a bit too quick to blame my stressful feelings on hormones but I think Pastor Dad might just have been a bit too quick to blame my absence for his feeling of panic, too. It seems that he had allowed The Bear to drive to basketball practice today. On the interstate.

You do remember that the boy just got his learner's permit last Friday, right?

Mmm-hmm.