It's been a week...

and I am still having a problem with what happened on Saturday night, a week ago. Lou and I had made a trip to Thurmont, MD to visit with friends who had set up a booth at Colorfest.  We had a lovely dinner with them, catching up on each others lives.  After dinner we headed home.
  
By 10 o'clock, Lou was asleep and I was watching a show on tv.  Lucy wanted to go out after the local news went off.  Usually Lou takes her out in the "middle of the night" but as he was sleeping soundly, I took her outside and 11:30 really isn't the middle of the night. 

I'm standing on the side porch, waiting for her to finish her business when I see a man in a hood, come around the side of the shop at the back of the yard.  We do have houses behind us, however their back yards are are a steep downhill.  Directly behind us, the yard has gone wild. It would be strange to see someone come through the yard in the daytime, but at night it was a shock.  I screamed for Lucy to come in and am so glad that she didn't see him and run barking at the intruder.  I also yelled at him to get out of my yard...this just popped out of my mouth.  I couldn't see a face...it was too dark.  The really scary thing was that he just kept walking toward me, didn't stop when I yelled.  He had to see me as I was on the lighted porch . I was able to get Lucy and myself through the door and into the house before he made it to porch.  I was screaming for Lou who came stumbling out of the bedroom.  The figure just casually walked passed the porch, down some steps, across the front yard and down the street.  

I really do believe that it was probably a teenager cutting through our yard.  Although, the yard behind us is overgrown, the house next to them does have a set of stairs from their house to the top of the hill. We are the only house on our street, for 3 houses on either side that doesn't have a 6 foot fence across the back of the property so that makes our yard the perfect place to cut through.  But I am still shaken by the encounter.  I would have thought the person" would have stopped when I yelled out or at the very least said something like, "Hey, I just cutting through."  

I am now afraid to walk to and from the shop at night and with with the coming of winter, it's getting dark sooner.  I'm worried about letting Lucy out at night...she will be on a leash if I'm the one to let her out so that I can drag her in if necessary.  My Mother asked me why I didn't run inside when I first saw him come around corner of the shop.  I told her my concern was for Lucy at that moment.  I never would have left her outside. Lou will be installing more motion detector lights this weekend. If  there is something moving through at night, that yard is gonna look like a lighted football stadium.