DENTAL CLINIC
This morning I found myself over at the KDH Rec Center, volunteering for our annual free Dental Clinic. They do it every year, and I heard that they were slammed past year with over 900 people that slept in a parking lot over night so they could get free dental care. They were expecting 1200 patients this year. My dentists’ practice donates their time – why shouldn’t I, right? (Oh, I also made Chip and a friend of his volunteer to help with the set-up of the facility on Thursday. My addiction overfloweth.)
So, the alarm went off at 6:15 and I got myself together and made my way over. By the time I arrived at 7:45, there were already about 500 people there. Most were there over night. Most were wet because the sprinklers went off while they were trying to sleep & stay warm. Not so good. The crowd was diverse. The crowd was loud. The crowd was getting out of hand. There were about 100 dentists there, with their hygienists and dental students… tons of scrubs and masks and gross gauze. How happy I was to have asked for a job in data entry!
The police were summoned several times for fighting. Nice, right? Most people were well behaved and grateful, but I was really upset about a young, 26 year old girl had to have 16, (SIXTEEN) teeth extracted! I mean, how does that happen? Brush & floss people… and see your dentist regularly!
DANGEROUS ANIMAL APPEAL BOARD
Last night, I had to return to my role as Chairperson for the Kill Devil Hills Dangerous Animal Appeal Board. I joined this Board, along with 2 other women, in response to a brutal dog attack last year. You can read The Story of Jazz here. This is only the second time we have had to hear an appeal. In this case, a 4 1/2 year old male pit bull got away from his owner and bit an 11 year old boy on the leg, leaving a really good puncture wound and whole lotta’ fear in everyone’s hearts.
Now, I would be DEVASTATED if one of my dogs bit someone, had to be kenneled & quarantined for 10 days waiting for rabies tests or be complete, and then faced being humanely euthanized. I’d like to say that I have spent the time to train my animals and ensure that they behave correctly – but my housemates do not share the same intensity that I do, and I am, therefore, more careful about trying to eliminate the opportunities for bad behavior. Anyway! I got the call on Friday afternoon and marked the calendar for the hearing on Thursday. I went to the vet’s to see the dog, Maximus, and he was indeed a sweet looking animal – that tried to rip a boy’s leg off. This is not Max, but he looked just like this… happy and pitiful. (Note to self – no more trips to see the accused!) After hearing all of the evidence that was presented in passionate, load terms, we determined that the Police Chief was correct in his determination that Max is a dangerous animal. That means he looses. That made me sad. Then I got home and told Chip about how it all went down, and he called me a dog killer. Hmm… he was trying to joke around, I know, but that was about it for me. Lights out.
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
The night BEFORE last night, I attended the town’s Board of Commissioners meeting to voice my concerns about the fact that they were going to rule on a decision to raise hotel heights on the oceanfront. We were there until 10:30 or so. Zzz… Meet Ray Sturza, our Mayor, and Chip’s arch enemy.
PS- I think my husband is going to investigate getting a position with the town because he is so upset about their trickery. Between the two of us, we have been at Town Hall every day for about 2 weeks. The town admin folks think we are funny and they have been crazy helpful in allowing us to get into the nuts & bolts of paperwork and processes.
So, there you have it. That’s just the past 3 days of my volunteerism issue. Think it’s getting out of hand?
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