Seeing red

I know I shouldn’t be this angry, but I am. My little dog last week developed a very nasty habit: if we leave the kitchen for a minute, she jumps on the table to get the food. I discovered today that a ten year old neighbor taught her to do this. Instead, of apologizing when I confronted him, he gave me a convoluted rationale about dogs that are new learning new things. I was too angry to say anything. When I’m that mad, silence is always the best option.

I’m generally fed up with this kid. The rule is no shoes in the house, but he can’t seem to grasp it (and I have the sand on the carpet to prove it). He also has no sense of privacy and, even as I’m hollering at him to stay out of a room, he’ll just walk into it. I suspect he has mild Asperger’s. I’ve said that from the day I met him — although social, there’s something wrong with his affect — but I’m becoming increasingly certain that I’m right.

So, I know I shouldn’t be mad, because he’s just a kid and I think he has a mild neurological deficit, but I’m still mad, because I now have a dog who jumps on my kitchen table and steals food. Calm me down someone. I’ll take a nice “there, there,” or some practical information about how to deal with a boy who is an important part of the neighborhood social set and who, although a little “off,” is basically a nice little guy who just happens to ignor any boundaries (and who has now taught my dog to ignore an important boundary).