Small, small world

Monday night, I arrived home from work and noticed a familiar looking baby blue Ford pickup in my driveway with what appeared to be either a power trowel or rototiller in the bed.  I pulled up, parked my car and veered out my window thinking to myself, No way! There's just no way.  I quickly made my way inside trying to remain incognito.

Once inside, My Friend asked me what the matter was. I promptly asked him who that truck belongs to. He said he didn’t know the man’s name, only that he was very drunk and the man was with someone (Jim) who works on the property that we live on. Jim has permission to use the boat on the lake that is essentially in our front yard and, so, Jim and this man were out fishing. I immediately started with the questions: Does the man have a scraggly beard? Is he really skinny? Is he wearing a baseball cap? A t-shirt with a front pocket? Yep, yep, yep and yep. And has teeth are a bit funky. That’s it.  The baby blue with a trowel in the back was a dead giveaway. I knew it, though I didn’t want to know it. Right there before my eyes, fishing in my front yard was the Boy Left Behind’s uncle.


So, I hid. For like two hours. Not because I don’t like Uncle G, but because once Uncle G knows where I live, then so does half of the county left behind as well as the Boy Left Behind. And, just because, I don’t want anyone to know that.

Happy Dance

Oh happy, happy, joy, joy! Guess what!?!?! Can you guess? Do you see the pictures below? Do you know what this means??

You can barely see it, but it's there. It is a moving truck. My crotchety neighbors have moved!

I really do not need to give you the gory details like how they were obnoxiously loud at 7:30 in the morning on Saturday or how there were about eight vehicles parking other people in or how their moving truck was parked across my garage so I could not back my car out - an infraction that I was guilty of when moving in, but politely moved when asked even though I got the evil eye and an uninviting stare. I do not need to tell you all this because does it really matter????!?!?!? NO! They are gone and the apartment below me will be vacant for a couple of weeks, at least. And, there is always hope that the new neighbors will be friendly and inviting.

Neighborly Goodness

To my surprise, my doorbell rang Sunday evening. I couldn’t fathom who could be at my door because no one really comes to visit unexpectedly. I ran to the bedroom window to peer down at the unsuspecting visitor and, lo and behold, it was the neighbor lady. Not the same neighbor lady as my last encounter. No, this time, it was the 80 year old mother.

Great, I thought. Now what?

I tried to be positive. I really did. I went to the door with a smile, greeted her warmly and waited anxiously for her to state her objective. Unfortunately, my suspicions were confirmed as she made her request. She asked if My Friend could park elsewhere leaving this particular space open for her because she’s getting older and it is hard for her to get around and walk that far. And it wouldn’t be for long because they were planning on moving soon.

Now, this is a request that I would ordinarily be more than happy to oblige. Respect for my elders was something I learned a long time ago from my father. Even in this particular instance, I was willing to be open to the possibility of accommodating her request.

That was until I began to close the door and she said, “And not to be mean but we were here first, you know.” WHAT?!? My first thought was, Like mother, like daughter. Neither one of them knows how to be nice or is even slightly interested in being neighborly.

I closed the door and went back upstairs and posed her request to My Friend. He laughed. He felt the same as I. If they weren’t such callous people, would we be happy to be accommodating. The parking lot is an open lot for everyone. Even if My Friend didn’t park in this particular space (it is a crapshoot, really), someone else could and does. Moreover, we each have a parking space in the garage that isn’t 10 feet from their front door. If it is so hard for the 80 year old mother to get around, why isn’t the daughter letting her park in the garage? Umm, hello! I also wonder what this 80 year old woman who is apparently not able to get around well is doing driving in the first place.

Maybe My Friend and I are just as callous and maybe we should take the high road and accommodate the elderly woman’s request. If we did, would it matter? Would the neighbors be nice? Would they be appreciative? I doubt it.

Won't you be my neighbor?

Photo courtesy of dannyO., aka dboy

Imagine that you have just moved into a new place that is totally awesome. You have a short, quaint drive to work (in comparison to haul you had to make previously). You live in a really quiet community. You have amenities that you have never had before. Everything is totally rockin'. And then, then, one day, you are unloading nearly the last car load of crap miscellaneous items and your downstairs neighbor stops you because she's been meaning to talk to you. Keep in mind you've only been in said new place a whole two weeks at this point. And, thus, conversation ensues:

Me: Hi.
Neighbor: Uh, hi. Uh, yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you.
(My Friend who is helping unload car passes pretending not to be paying attention.)
Me: Oh, really?
Neighbor: Um, yeah.
Me (waiting): Ok, sure.
Neighbor: I need to talk to you about the noise.
(My Friend walks by again with dagger look trying to keep quiet.)
Me (surprised): Oh, really? We’ve been noisy?
Neighbor: Well, Marge* at the front desk said I should talk to you. I am a nurse and I can hear you in the morning when you get up at 7:00.
Me: Do you hear the tv or anything like that?
Neighbor: And I hear you going up and down the stairs.
Me: Oh. I didn’t think I had been all that noisy. I’m hardly here. So what exactly is it that’s bothering you?
Neighbor: Well, I can hear the shower in the morning and I can’t sleep.
Me: Ok, well, I apologize. I will try to be quieter. What shift do you work?
Neighbor: I’m a nurse and my 80 year old mother lives with me too.
(My Friend passes with most irritated look on face.)
Me: Um, ok. Well, I’m really sorry if I’ve been disturbing you. I’ll try to keep the noise level down.

Where do I even begin to tell you how dumbstruck I am over this? She seemed to have a hard time approaching me to begin with. I am a sympathetic person and I, too, have a hard time with confrontation. I really tried to be open to what she was saying and understanding. Really. I did. I want to be a good neighbor. But come on. She went to the office because she can hear the shower running in the morning? Is that not an expected noise to hear in the morning when you live in a complex? Seriously? And, she doesn’t hear the tv? I mean, if anything, you can hear the tv. She also totally avoided my questions.

My Friend was completely annoyed by the whole thing. I almost busted up laughing at said Friend’s expressions as I talked to the neighbor lady. My Friend was way more upset than I. It helped make the situation more comical.

Honestly, I am a very accommodating person, but I see no way to keep the peace on this issue. I tried to discern what exactly she was expecting or wanting me to do, but I still don’t know what that is. I have wracked my brain over it for two whole days. I am a light-stepper (thanks mom for not allowing stomping or elephants in the house), I don’t like to slam doors or cupboards (again, thanks mom), I do occasionally drop the soap or shampoo in the shower, I don’t have yelling matches or screaming fits, so I don’t know how much noise I could possibly be making.

So there you have it. I’m already making the neighbors mad and I just moved in.

*Names have been changed to protect the innocent.