What's that smell? Pepe Le Pew, of course.

There's an alley that runs next to out house, and another at the back of the property that separates our back yard from the backyards of the houses on the block behind us. The trash  and recycling trucks use these alleys as thoroughfares, and the borough has strict rules about when garbage cans can be set out and where they should be left. The alleys, of course, have developed their own ecosystems -- opossums, one family of raccoons, a feral cat colony and now, as we have discovered...a skunk.

Now, I like cats -- I have three of the contrary little bitches -- but the feral cat colony is by far the biggest pain in the ass. They eat our songbirds and it is impossible to leave the kids' sandbox uncovered without discovering a "surprise." Plus, they're mean as Hell, and they are always fighting, howling and fucking at top volume. Being woken up at 3 AM by a rousing chorus of the feline version of "I Wanna Sex You Up" gets very old, very quickly. (Not to mention the rafts of kittens produced. If God kills a kitten every time you masturbate, I'd like y'all to step up the pace a bit, because we are AWASH in stray pussy.)

There is a little old lady who feeds the feral cats (and the raccoons, and the opossums); she leaves large bags of Meow Mix scattered under the bushes. The smell of rotting and damp Meow Mix is one not soon forgotten. (I imagine it's what Lindsay Lohan's boudoir smells like.) All of her neighbors have gently remonstrated with her, and the local SPCA has even come out to talk to her, yet she persists. Even the local Animal Control officer has had words with her, explaining that she;s not doing them (Animal Control and the cats) any favors, and that eventually vermin will be attracted to the area.

She learned the hard way this morning.

I woke up about 3 AM because the smell of skunk wafting in through the windows was absolutely stifling. The husband woke up as well, and we set about closing windows and grumbling. We settled back in to bed, reminding ourselves not to put the dog out first thing, as neither one of us felt like bathing in tomato juice.

We were awakened by shrieking, cursing and a skunk odor so strong it could be smelled through closed doors and windows. It seems a skunk -- no respecter of his benefactor -- had been lurking about the bushes, and when Crazy Cat Neighbor went out to scatter more cat food, he let her have both barrels (figuratively speaking).

I love Karma.