"Fired Up" About My 200th Blog Post

I wanted to make my 200th blog something special.

I started one a while ago...but as I can't get any real info online about who it was who supposedly kept talking after having their head lopped off (I'm thinking royalty - in the Anne Boleyn or Marie Antoinette arena)...I was stopped dead in my tracks. I didn't want to fake it and I sure as heck didn't want to take "Kimberleigh's" word for it at the "Ask Yahoo" website. People who feel compelled to abbreviate three letter words such as "you" to "u"...well, I tend to look at with a bit of disdain and certainly a hefty modicum of skepticism. So, when they say things like "U no, I read sumwhere it was Queen Victoria who speeked after there head were cut off"...when Victoria, who, at the ripe old age of 81, died of natural causes in her bed...well, perhaps Kimberleigh should open up her school books between making YouTube videos showing how much fatter her lips look after using Lip Venom.

So...that one's out until a later date...but I seriously wanted this blog to have some kind of spark...to cause a burning desire for anyone stumbling across it...to read it. So, I went sniffing around for something with some impact...and I found it.

I found it alright. Or should I really say "it found me". It's not even far - only one street over where from where I live. And it found me again tonite...in fact, you could say it smoked me right out.

There is a guy who lives one street over from me who deems it absolutely necessary to burn things every single weekend. Well, there might have been three weekends when he ran out of stuff to burn...but other than that...this weekend pyromaniac turns up the heat and without fail, finds something lying around to set ablaze.

Now, I live in Wetumpka...not the city - but the parts where things like fire codes, leash laws, building permits, and out-and-out laws don't exist. One of those "we've been doing it like this since my great-great-great-great granpappy did...so if it's not broke, don't fix it" kinda places.

It's not a bad place to live, in fact it's very nice...but it's no Mayberry...Barney doesn't get his panties in a wad and nips this in the bud. If he did, this would have been nipped ages ago.

Everyone I speak with HATES this burning this man does...but the conversation kinda goes like this when I try to venture outside to walk around the block:

Me: "Hi!"
Them: "Hiya! It's a shame this guy does this every weekend." (No need to say what "this" is - we all know what "this" is.)
Me: "Yep...I thought I'd take a walk, but I'm going to have to turn around because I can't breathe." I've had two lung operations and it hurts."
Them: "I can't breathe either - I don't know what he burns every single day."
Me: "It's all in my house, too."
Them: "Mine, too - that's why I thought I'd go outside - to get a breath of fresh air without smoke in it...but it's not working."

And then we say our "good-byes" and part ways.

My house, for some reason is situated exactly downwind of this...and as such, I can't turn on the air conditioner or the heater because it sucks it all up and disperses it into my house. Even without it...single-paned windows seem to keep out about as much noxious fumes as screen doors do.

So, yesterday, when my daughter was sitting here saying she had a massive headache...and I did as well...I decided to phone up the police. I knew they probably couldn't do too much - but if they came over and smelled it, perhaps they'd be sympathetic to my plight and knock on the guy's door or something.

Sure enough, the officer came over - and there's really nothing he can do...but he said he'd go over and see if the lights were on to let the guy know it's irritating people. As luck would have it, a neighbour of mine, upon seeing the police car in my driveway, stopped by to see what was up. He substantiated everything I said and then some. So now the police know it's not just me who gets burned up over this whole situation.

The police officer suggested I call the station when he's burning - before 5:00 on weekdays.

I told him that was the catch...this guy burns starting around 4:00 on Fridays...and keeps it stoked until Monday...when he probably douses it out - because he knows darned well the offices aren't open to investigate...and the Fire Department can't be contacted to see if there's any burn permits on record. Again, the whole M-F dealie.

The officer further suggested I contact the Mayor's office on Monday. This has been going on for years. I can't open my windows, go outside, or do yard work (and many others endure this way of living as well) because of this man...and we're literally held prisoners in our homes on weekends because of him. One man should not be able to wield such power.

I think I will indeed call the Mayor's office to see what can be done. And if I have to light a fire under his butt to get a stricter burn-code enacted - it's high time...as, frankly, this whole situation the way it is...stinks.