Bored Housewife

So I had a long talk with Mirta the other day, while out on one of my anxiety walks, and I asked her opinion about a mutual young friend. We discussed it for awhile, and how I was very annoyed at something the fellow did, and we came to a resolution.

But then Mirta added an observation that really struck home: as I am not going to the office, or doing too much else productive, I have fallen into the "bored housewife syndrome."

Mirta used to note it back when she worked for us. It was typically something she saw in women who stayed home, but still had help with their kids and housework. They would typically make mountains out of molehills -- stuff busy people would laugh off became big deals to them.

There's a new term for these women -- "Karens." I guess Karen is a popular name among wealthy moms, and when one of them acts entitled, or makes a big deal out of something, it is said she was "pulling a Karen."

Still -- I took the advice to heart, and will now, for the balance of the quarantine, focus on NOT sweating the small stuff. Slights, annoyances, etc...need to be kept in their place.

That's not to say I'll stop finding humor in the foibles of others. And that is going on right now.

We got an email from our HOA pres, Gloria, saying that "some people" have been committing a great transgression: putting their filled dog poop bags into neighbors' bins. The email reminded us that it was a Miami Dade ordinance to definitely pick up after your dog, but that we needed to bring the poop to our OWN bins.

Well, first full disclosure. I do NOT scoop up. Our 'hood is composed of half acre and full acre homesites. I figure it's my right to let my dog use the swales -- and never mind when neighbors do it to ours. If I lived in a more urban setting, like D2 and Jonathan do, I would DEFINITELY scoop. But I don't, so I won't.

I wrote back to Gloria that we now had a modern version of the classic "Fish and Chips with Vinegar" nursery rhyme: don't put your dust in MY bin... my dust bin's full." She agreed. I had a suspicion who the compainer was, and yesterday she outed herself.

Jeff and I were walking, and passed the house of she who will be unnamed. Sadly, I went to UM undergrad with her. She's nuts. She's also nasty -- she has several times called Pinecrest zoning on neighbors rather than the normal human thing of confronting them in person. I avoid her.

But yesterday, she was outside, standing vigil over her trash bins, and with a big sign telling people that THREE TIMES she had people put scooped dog poop in her bins, and she had to disinfect them.

Jeff noted to her people had done that to him, but he wouldn't dream of reporting anyone over it. This went right over her head. She doesn't listen -- she kept up on her diatribe.

As we walked away, I told her that I promised to clean up if Jeff or I had a poop accident while walking, and NOT to put it in her bin. Again -- no reaction -- just her continued rage at this trespass.

So we got our morning's laugh, as well as some humor for FaceBook.

As for taking small stuff seriously, though -- I will try to avoid becoming the bored housewife.