The Stakeout: Steve, the Telescope and a German Shepherd named King
Steve was hiding in the same type of foliage across the street. He was looking through a telescope designed specifically as an iPhone attachment. He lifted it from the bushes like a submarine’s periscope, scanning the area. Making notes in his phone’s notepad app, he watched the man head toward the mansion entrance. The wealthy homeowner sensed something as he passed, but continued toward his front door as though nothing were wrong. From the corner of his eye, he saw Steve standing behind the bushes with the telescope attached to the phone and rested against his face. He continued to watch Steve as he moved toward his mansion. For a moment, Steve thought he had been spotted. He breathed a small sigh of relief as the homeowner continued toward his home. He made a few more notes in his phone before stretching his long, twenty-something frame to stand upright. Unfortunately, Steve was not at all good at spying on people. When the homeowner reached the mansion’s entrance and opened the front door, he turned to stare at Steve, standing across the street in gold-colored sports clothes and a Boston Red Sox hat. The mansion owner whistled, sharp and loud. Promptly, a large, fit German shepherd bolted from the mansion’s doorway and headed straight for the well-groomed bushes and Steve’s not-so-well-groomed stakeout disguise. “Get ‘em, King!” the wealthy man shouted as he pointed toward the telescope. The dog locked in on his target and then charged toward Steve. His telescope was still in his hand and he was unaware of what was happening. What he saw through his telescope was something fuzzy moving fast and furious. Zooming out to focus, he saw the German shepherd. He jumped from the bushes, turned, and ran for his life. “Good dog,” he yelled. “Good dog, heel, roll over, play dead!”