4-Alarms at the Motel 6!!!

As per usual today, I went home for lunch to let poodles outside, eat, read the paper, etc. One reason I took my job, aside from not having to dress up, is the going-home-for-lunch part. It is like mini-detox during a hard day's work. Usually. I read the paper ate a sandwich, let the dogs out, blah blah...WELL, as I was leaving to return to work, I realized I had left my sunglasses on the coffee table. When I reached to get the glasses, I noticed what seemed to be flames, yes FLAMES coming from underneath the fence that surrounds the mini-Motel 6 patio. Now mind you, the fence much like the fridge, is probably an original...maybe 30 years old? Up like a matchbox, it went! By the time I grabbed the fire extinguisher, the whole gate was aflame and the fire was heading straight towards our sliding glass door. Yeppers, right on track to the gas can and charcoal lighter fluid we keep outside. The fire extinguisher is one H got for a Christmas gift about 100 years ago and we have hauled from apartment to house to apartment. It even had dust on it. I was thinking it might end up on Antiques Roadshow if we kept it much longer. Luckily, the thing still worked and spewed it's 1/2 cup of extinguisher-stuff and slowed the fire for a second so I could dial 911. Meanwhile, the neighbor guy (not Brad Pitt, a different neighbor-guy) came out and was trying to fill with water a tupperware container I grabbed to douse the flames. As helpful-neighbor-guy and I battled the flames with our mini-extinguisher and water filled tupperware, the fire dept came roaring thru the main drag of the Motel 6. The poodles were stunned with all of the excitement and sat obediently by the sliding door kind of as if they were right there to help ward off the wall of flames headed our way. What pandamonium! (I don't even think I spelled that right but surely you get the drift.) As the flames subsided and we stood around the charred remains of our patio fence, I had to do a little Q & A session with the firefighter guy about whether I was smoking or if I had been using the grill. Nope, just home to read the paper and let the poodles out for a pee, sir. I wanted to add, as the Motel 6 manager-lady (who thank god wasn't Shiela -see previous post) walked up to inspect the damage, I am just trying to survive this nightmare of living here until my house is done and I can get my very own horse, go to the Olympics, and return to normal society. Until then, back to work! Good gravy, what a lunch hour.