ACK!

The meter reader and I just about gave each other a heart attack this morning. Ava was looking out the back doors and said, "Mama, someone went in our backyard." I looked out and saw that the gate was about 6 inches open. Now, instead of just taking my daughter's words at face value, I assumed that she just saw the open gate and thought someone had gone into our backyard, not that she had really seen someone. So I went out to close the gate. Before I had gone two steps, a man's figure suddenly appeared in the backyard, headed for the gate. I screamed. A brief little fearful scream, not a blaring blood-curdling one. I know Cody thinks I over-reacted, but I think most women would agree that seeing a stranger coming toward you from your own yard when you least expect it can be a tad frightening. I yelled, "Who are you?" The man sort of froze. It really took him a moment to respond which made me even more fearful. Then he said, "It's the meter reader, mam." as he stepped through the gate. I could see he was in uniform and holding the reader. I relaxed and told him he had scared me to death. He told me I had scared him too. We laughed and said good-bye as he walked on to the next house. In the entire 5 years we've lived here, I've never bumped into the person reading our meter. I guess it was bound to happen eventually. It would probably be a good idea for us to cut a hole in the back fence so the guy can read it without having to come inside the gate. Not only would it save him some time, but it would protect everyone's health and sanity.