Intruders

  Last night we came home after a night out, and were just minding our own business in our house when our neighbor knocked to tell us he saw our dogs run out of the back yard. Neither one of them have gotten out since we put zip ties all around the gaps and filled the holes. Turns out, our back gate was wide open. The zip ties had been cut.
  The back gate seemed untouched. Did they decide to climb over it? Why bother cutting the zip ties? I am so creeped out by the fact that someone did this. If it was harmless, and they were cutting through to get to the back alley for whatever reason, I feel like they wouldn't have stopped to take the time to sever the zip ties. Seriously, why?
  I don't like this neighborhood. It seemed harmless enough when we got here, and cops show up when needed every so often which means they're pretty good at their job. But the people here don't seem to have any sense of boundaries or personal space.
  The first time my army wife neighbor and I noticed this was when an old man carrying a box of junk cut across our driveway, a few feet away from our window, and through my neighbors rose bush. And more than once someone has knocked on our door or shouted at us if they can cut our lawn. We have a lawnmower, we're perfectly capable.
  Next was when I got a knock on the door, alone in the house, and was greeted by a rail of a guy who wanted to know how much I would take to sell my car. He had parked his (or a friends) p.o.s of a car, peeling paint included, right behind mine in our driveway. My car has gotten me to and from a lot of places. It's very reliable and I've had little trouble with it. Not to mention it's our only mode of transportation. I said, do you see a for sale sign on it?! He kept pestering me until I had to tell him to leave.
  After that I was again home alone, in the middle of doing yoga, when another stranger knocked. I opened the door to an older man with a gut and a stained white shirt that said "worlds greatest grandpa." The first thing he said was "Is your dad home?" After I gave him an unabashedly rude look he corrected himself "...or husband?" He asked if we were the owners of "the two little dogs." I thought he was going to tell me something terrible, like one of them got out and he hit it with his car. He beat around the bush until finally asking if we wanted dog kennels. Do I look like I don't provide for my dogs? I felt kind of insulted, and sent him away too.
  I feel so....watched here. People looking at my car, my lawn, my dogs, my yard. No one seems to know what Private Property means. In Arizona we had the occasional friendly chat across the street or over the fence after we decided they were approachable. Sometimes we got people looking for dogs, or selling something, but it never seemed creepy. I guess I just always felt safe there. Nobody ever hopped our fences like they own the place because they needed a short cut, or scoped out our cars.
  I just want to get out of here. The longer we're here the drearier it seems and the more I hate it. We'll know this week or next week where we're being sent. I really really hope it's Ft Bliss, Texas and nothing else.