I had noticed, in that vague not-noticing way, that there seemed to be a strip of green grass showing in the back yard, right along the drainage line when I glanced out the kitchen window this morning. It was ruler-straight, which I assumed was because it followed the line of drainage. Water, least resistance, and so on. About half an hour ago, after a half-day off spent blogging and so on in the Lair o’ Computers, I again looked out the kitchen window and noticed that there are tire tracks visible in the bare strip of lawn (in this area, it’s called a swale). So out we went all hotfoot, cameras in hand.

Music cue: Who Are You?/The Who

Ah, the joys of home ownership in Burbclavia; the young people have evolved uniquely suburban methods of entertainment-as-vandalism. What we have here is a kid or two on an ATV: they drove it straight in off the neighbor’s driveway, right up to the star magnolia (which never thrives, owing to its position in a low spot).

Thank GOD I procrastinated on having the rain garden put in!! They would have driven right through $800-1600 worth of labor and plantings.

I think the first order of business in the spring is a nice, strong, tall wooden fence. Every time we get snow, I can see just how many people are cutting through the yard, and today it looks like a herd of caribou went through on their annual migration to the Yukon.

And then maybe get around to the rain garden to solve the drainage problem.

Meanwhile, we called the cops and filed a report – the officer was here in less than 15 minutes, so it must be a really slow day back at the shop. David took pictures of the tracks before the light went… no other physical evidence, no cigarette butts to send to Trace, no bodily fluids glowing in ghastly UV blue. So if they catch the perp doing this somewhere else, we’ll have the goods to charge the bastid(s).