Needsleep259’s Weblog

We suddenly realized the For Sale sign was taken down next door, when we saw the new people moving themselves in. New neighbors are always worrisome to me; it’s that unknown factor. The last house we lived in was isolated, three acres with acres of nothing across the street, a goat farm on one side and acres of woods on the other. The builder assured us the woods would remain, since no one could build there. Two years later trouble arrived when two houses went up.

The people who moved in next to us had five kids and as many atv’s. Well, maybe only three, which they raced alongside our property at all hours, revving the engines and also running them on the road. They would target shoot off their back deck, the kids that is, aiming towards our woods, where we walked when the mood took us. Which wasn’t ever again, after Dad told us they could do what they wanted on their property. On the other side, the goat people, as we called the owners, got a bit too intrusive. A moat started looking good right about then, but it they still weren’t as bad as our New York neighbors.

The last place we lived was an attached duplex, with a couple downstairs that would drink too much and have screaming matches all night in French. Bad enough to keep us awake, but not even letting us eavesdrop?  Next door we had a woman with  mental issues, who drank AND smoked. We wondered if she would catch the place on fire, until she did, and then we hoped it wouldn’t happen again, until it did.  Then we moved, but not until our lease was up, since the property manager wasn’t returning our two months security until then, threatening legal action to recover any remaining time left. You would think fire was a legitimate deal breaker, but apparently not.

 For a time we lived in a lake community, where there was no parking. No sidewalks, few driveways or garages. This was originally a summer community and space was at a premium. We could only park in front of the house, which was at the crest of a hill. Our neighbor had a narrow driveway and an oversized truck, plus a boat. It was extremely difficult to back the truck in with the boat there, so he told us we shouldn’t park in front of our house because it blocked his view getting out. HUH? He felt we should just park up the road by the stores and walk home. After refusing , we had many screaming tirades directed at us, by both him and his wife. Did I mention we lived there first, and they could park in front of their own house? But then, that was too reasonable.

In Florida, we lived next to a very quiet family. Too bad about their twenty cats leaving their mementos every where, like on our patio furniture. They also had a rather annoying habit of digging up my flowers and yowling in heat.  On the plus side, we also had the best neighbors ever across the street from us – the cemetery. I kid you not, the folks there were the most considerate neighbors we had ever had.

So we have had lousy neighbors in our life, but who knows what they say about us? We always tried to be considerate and private though. So far, everyone is this subdivision seems quite pleasant, keeping to themselves. Someone did bring us a dish when we moved in, an act that was previously unknown to us. Maybe it will work out fine, after all, I see no signs of pets and best of all, no atvs. It’s time for some neighbor  luck, like where’s Mr. Rogers when you need him????