Walking in the Hood

I have started to walk the dogs at night.

Mostly to get some exercise, a bit to rumminate & go over the work day before going to bed.
And a little bit because of all the buzz the dogs create.. People love the dogs!

Initially I thought that I had forgotten a vital piece of clothing - but soon got used to the gawking and the fawning over the celebupups. The remarks are a bit stunning - like being asked if they are twin beagles (?) or if they have ever been in a commercial. At which point I have to point out that there is a downside to owning a beagle (aside from the fact that everyone in the public seems to show them more affection than your children). They occassionally eat their own waste... but even this does not deter the most ardent admirers...

While walking tonight, amid the usual paparazzi fan fare, I started to really look at the houses I was passing. Most of them were 5,000 square feet +, most had tiered back yards, pools, three to four car garages, lots of nice cars (and a shocking number of Ford Windstars.... perhaps the nanny mobile?). I started to wonder about who actually required that much space to live in. And who would buy a new driver (from all of the Ns in the rear windows) a mustang or Acura SUV?

And then more questions started:
like what kinds of jobs do these people have? Are they looking for more employees?
who looks after their kids while they are working? The Ford minivan driver?
how many of these gorgeous homes are grow ops?
where do they find their gardeners? What kind of hose would you need to reach up the 12 foot embankment?

And most of all I wonder if one day I too could afford for someone to water my forsasken petunias...
Not likely on my BC Gov wage...