My body has been aching to get out and MOVE. This weather keeps me a bit strangled. I mean...my yard is only so big. There is only so much to do with the chickens. Our garden beds are already taken care of for the winter and really...there is not so much to do in the house that is physically challenging and still makes me feel like I am using my time well. SO...the other day I got home from work a bit early and it was still light out. The minute I got home (I had met with an attorney that day and I was in a full pants suit and in my cowboy boots with a long, winter coat.) I hooked the dog up, put a reflective vest on and grabbed my flashlight. It felt good to walk. The air was cool and my body felt good to be out. I got to the place where I was feeling like it was a good walk. Belle got a lot of sniffing in and I still felt like I was ready to go home and be a normal human being. And I turned around to go home.
Now let me paint a picture of our neighborhood. It is DARK. There are no sidewalks and there are areas where there is a lot of tree overhang, making things even darker. I was in one of those areas when I heard someone come running up behind me. I have been walking in this neighborhood before and have been overtaken by a lot of "runners". Ummm...but when I turned around to look...this one was fully clothed...and not in running gear. Hmmmm...
He yelled, "Hey! Are you Scott?" Hmmmm..."No." And then Belle and I came out into the open where the light was better. It was such a weird experience. I should have been afraid. I should have felt something. But I was about three blocks from home...and I recognized the guy. He is a big man. But he lives about a block and a half away from me. But tonight he had really weird energy. As a matter of fact, I have met him three times. One time he did not have weird energy. But the other time I had met him on the street (in daylight) he had weird energy then too.
So here on the street in the dark...hmmm...not that great. I cannot remember much of what we talked about, but he was shocked that I was a woman and out in the dark. I was shocked when he asked if he could walk with me. Ummm...no, I wanted to say. But did I? No. I said ok.
He eventually introduced himself and I introduced myself. I shook his hand. I told him that I know where he lives and that I had met him before. He responded with, "That must have been when I was on a binge." And then, "Well then, if anything happens, then you know you can call the police and tell them where I live." Strange answer for a strange walk. Luckily I don't live on the same street as he does. And I was able to take my leave. He stood and watched me walk away. And then he yelled, "Hey, have a good evening."
I am torn. I should have been afraid. And honestly, I felt afraid after I got home and told Tim the story. But I felt a loneliness that I couldn't disregard. I want to take back the night. I want my big dog back to help me. Belle? She has met him before. He likes dogs. She likes people. He actually helped me catch her when she was being a wild thing right after we moved here. He wasn't drunk then. He was tonight. So I remain torn. Do I stop walking in the dark? Do I find a friend? Do I say hello when I see him? Is he dangerous? Should we bring him some eggs? He is our neighbor. What good is living in a neighborhood if you can't be neighborly. I struggle. I struggle with our society.
You know, honestly since I moved back here 3.5 months ago...he is the 5th person in our neighborhood who has spoken to me. And one of them was a very fearful child who tried to smile at me as she ran by to catch the bus. We all sit in our houses and close our curtains. I know that the weather isn't really conducive to being outside and saying hello. But...I get the feeling that there is a problem. Is it with me? Or is it with the way we as a society has decided to live?
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