Renting sucks

Well, what happened was...

So, when we got home on Thursday 7/3 at 10:00, there was a note on our door from our neighbor. "Please call me early tomorrow morning. Thanks."

The possibilities were endless. Did she want to invite us over for a bbq? Did she want to bake us a pie? Was she complaining about our dogs? Kevin fretted, I figured it was #C. Whatever...

So, I woke up at 5 a.m. to go el bano and almost called her. But I waited, like a good neighbor, until 8 a.m.

The phone call went like this... Pleasantries, pleasantries, beautiful weather; your dogs suck. Apparently my doggies no likey the fireworks. They were sooooo loud last night. Actually, she was really cool about it. She offered to help in any way she could but couldn't take the dogs waking up her 3-year old anymore. So, we struck a deal. Dogs in by 9 p.m. Not unreasonable at all. She's a very cool person and I totally get that my dogs barking at night is a nuisance.

But... #1 She brought up that she doesn't want the other neighbors calling the guy who owns our house (a.k.a. our landlord). Really? Are you going to threaten a grown woman who is otherwise an upstanding citizen with telling on her? Really?

#2 So... the fireworks weren't waking your kid up? Because those are illegal. Right?

#3 Does this give us carte blanche to ask her to put her kid back in the house when we are hung over at 9 am the next morning and she keeps yelling in the back yard? Trust me, the kid is really cute and all. But a cute kid is no match for 5.5 Dortmunders.

Anywho... I'm trying to take the high road. I talked to her the next day. Pleasantries, pleasantries, blah, blah, blah. I know she honestly wants to help. But, being a nomad, I'm leery of any neighbors who offer to help me with my dogs without being paid. I'm trying really, really hard to see her point of view instead of just hearing, "your dogs suck, renter! and so do you! why don't you just go back to the hood where they like barkers." Maybe it's just me. Maybe...