meow

two years ago, when we moved from our tiny dupont studio and into our current rowhouse, one of the things i was most excited about was being able to have a garden. i've always wanted to wear a cute sunhat, get my hands dirty and have some homegrown tomatoes and peppers.

last year, it didn't happen. with our wedding in june and with us traveling (what seemed like) almost every weekend in the summer, gardening just wasn't the priority. 

this year, things are different and i'm ready to try it out.

there's just one problem: our neighborhood is overrun with stray cats. 

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we used to park our car in the off-street parking space (my god that felt like a luxury after living downtown for so many years) and in the morning, the car would have no less than ten cats chilling on it. just sitting there.

now, even though i'm a dog person, i don't really mind these feline friends that much. they don't really cause any trouble and tend to keep to themselves for the most part.

but the thing is, they shit in our yard ALL THE TIME. everywhere. like you can't walk two feet without stepping in some. they've even been known to leave a present for us right on the front porch. so gross.

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we've brought this up to pretty much everyone we know. mostly, because it's kind of a funny "problem" to have and secondly, to get their take on how to have them stop crapping all over our yard.

we've heard everything: buy sprays at home depot (don't work), sprinkle red pepper flakes in your grass (nope), shoot them with a bb gun (um, never?). but nothing has worked.

i was talking with a coworker the other day who also happens to be an experienced gardener. i told her my concern, about growing catshit tomatoes instead of delicious ones, and she immediately introduced me to the scare crow.

see below.

this is a motion-activated device that shoots out a quick spray of water when something is walking through your lawn. i was intrigued. we'll only keep it in the backyard so as not to piss off and/or soak the mail carrier, but i think this has real promise.

i had always wanted a nontoxic and humane way of dealing with these cats and this seemed like the perfect thing. 

it arrived in the mail yesterday. and the reviews on amazon are some of the most glowing i've ever read.

if this works out, and we can actually have a garden this summer, i'm going to be pumped.

i'll let you know how it goes.