Someone Saved My Life Tonight

I think there might be a body in the dumpster by my building.

Alright, so probably not, but I can't help wondering if something shady went down in my neighborhood last night. And it's all because of my dog.

At 3 this morning, I got up to take Stella outside, as I do every day in the wee hours (pun intended). When we first went out, it was, as it usually is at that time, dark and quiet. But just as Stel was finishing her business, I heard the crash of something big and heavy being thrown into the dumpster and the dumpster lid slamming shut.

It startled me. Stel and I rarely even see a car pass when we're outside on our nighttime potty breaks. And I thought it was strange that someone would take out their garbage at 3 a.m. I looked over to the dumpster area, but it's not well-lit, and I couldn't see more than a vague shadowy figure.

That's when Stella started barking.

Stel is not a barker, especially not at strangers; she's usually pulling at her leash, wanting to go and greet anyone who comes within 100 feet of us. The only people she has ever actually barked at are my husband and me, when we scolded her for biting us, and even that hasn't happened in weeks. Yet at 3 a.m. in our parking lot, she decided to become my little guard dog.

I wasn't sure what she knew that I didn't, but I wasn't about to stay outside at 3 a.m. with no one but the mystery garbage dumper. So I quickly shushed her and hustled her inside.

Realistically, it probably was just someone throwing out their garbage, someone who works the night shift or something. But the fact that my very friendly dog actually barked at someone had me curious and a bit creeped out. And no matter who it was or what they were dumping, I've always been of the opinion that it's best to err on the side of caution when it comes to meeting strangers alone in the dark and, well, not do it.

I was tempted to look in the dumpster this morning to see if there was anything suspicious in it, but I think that in doing so, I would have crossed over from curious to alarmist, and I didn't want to go there.

In any case, I appreciate the gesture Stella made. It's nice to know that when the chips fall, she'll stand up and protect me. All six pounds of her.