Thursday, May 27, 2021

Nosy neighbor (me)

The house across the street from us just got sold. We were sorry to see that the young woman who lived there had put it on the market at the beginning of the month; as neighbors go, she was perfect. She was friendly but kept to herself, had a cute little dog, quiet, and her front yard always had something pretty blooming. The trees behind her little cottage are gorgeous and frame the house just right, obviously someone was very skillful in pruning and trimming. We've enjoyed the view since we moved in and we're really hoping the new owners don't mess it up. Yesterday there was a strange new car in the driveway and I did my best Gladys Kravitz imitation, peeking through the blinds to try to get a glimpse of the newcomers. No luck. They drive a large, shiny black Toyota SUV but that's all we know so far. Once the moving in process is complete I'll walk over with a box of goodies from a local bakery and introduce myself. We want to get off on the right foot with new neighbors. I certainly don't envy them the task of moving this week. We've had a crazy heat wave and it's more like the middle of July than the end of May. It's sweltering out there as I type this, with temps today reaching almost 100 degrees. Ugh! Moving is hard enough without sweating buckets the whole time. 

Speaking of the house across the street, it went way up in value in this crazy hot seller's market. The woman who sold it had only been here three or four years and it went up about $30,000 in value and was snatched up within days of being listed. I keep hearing stories about buyers offering well over the asking price just to get a chance to buy. I'm so glad we got in here when we did, we couldn't afford it if we had waited any longer. The neighborhood is changing and becoming a little nicer than it used to be. Several houses have new owners and lots of people seem to be painting and upgrading and landscaping more these days. That's nice. It's a pleasure to see these old houses getting lots of love and young families moving in and so far all of the new neighbors have been pleasant. The jerk behind us lost his wife last month, a fact that made me feel sorry for him even though he was so nasty to us when we first got here. He's well into his 80's and I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't want to downsize now that he's a widower. I hate thinking of him living alone now and possibly being lonely, but I'll never feel comfortable having even a basic neighborly friendship with him after the way he acted. Maybe when he does leave nicer folks will buy the house. 

Hey! I just looked outside and there's a large black truck that has joined the large black Toyota SUV across the street. Hmmm. Still no sign of the new owners.  Wonder what that means? Both of the vehicles are large and new and shiny black. It's not much to go on! So I'm off to continue spying through the blinds to see what I can see! I'll report back later. Haha.

35 comments:

  1. You have a mystery to solve and report back to us; the mystery of the new neighbors.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, if you're thinking of selling, now is the time. Just remember you need a place to move into.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We're not planning to go anywhere! I hope to never have to move again.

      Delete
  3. Sounds like the Mafia are moving in! It can always go either way with new neighbours, but generally people are nice, and want to get on with each other. Let us know.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Why does every neighborhood have to have a cranky neighbor? I constantly remind myself not to be her. Good luck with the new ones. I hope you have a great friends to meet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. New friends would be nice but we'll settle for pleasant, quiet, and private.

      Delete
  5. I can't resist peaking out the window when someone new moves in the neighborhood, or for that matter if someone gets a new furniture delivery! I hope your new neighbors are friendly and appreciate you and Gregg!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I even told my husband to bring the binoculars so we could examine the license plate on one of the cars! I was wondering if they were from out of state, but they weren't.

      Delete
  6. Hopefully, the new neighbours will be as pleasant as the woman who lived there before. It is a very kind and nice idea to go over to introduce yourself and make them feel welcome in the neighbourhood once they have moved in.
    I understand how, while you feel sorry for the nasty neighbour behind you, do not want any more contact with him.
    Here, we live so close to each other that I don't even have to look out of the window in order to know what is going on with my neighbours - most of the time, I hear them clearly!
    In one of the houses and gardens I see from my kitchen window lives a family with three little boys. They have recently acquired three pet rabbits and I can see them going out in the mornings to feed them and in the afternoons letting them out into their enclosure on the grass. I even know that two of them are Oskar and Molly, but have not yet heard the name of the third one :-D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oskar and Molly! How cute!

      Yes, the jerk neighbor was just a little too....unbalanced acting and I was actually a bit nervous around him. I spent months worrying that he would hurt one of our dogs, and that's not something I can forgive easily.

      Delete
  7. A black truck and a black SUV. They must be mobsters! At least the neighbourhood will be safe. [sorry] I hope the new neighbours are a great addition to the neighborhood. It does sound like you moved in at a perfect time. So nice that it's truly become home for you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mobsters! Mafia! Haha! The possibilities are fun to think about!

      Delete
  8. I'm laughing at your Gladys Kravitz imitation. I have a feeling you're much kinder than either our Mrs. Kravitz or the TV version! So...black cars...funeral directors, perhaps? I certainly understand not wanting a relationship with that guy behind you. Despite his problems, after the way he treated you I think he's earned the cold shoulder.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I thought of you when I wrote that about being a Mrs. Kravitz! Gregg teased about how it was the small-town-minding-everyone's-business coming out in me because of where I grew up!!

      Funeral directors....another intriguing idea!

      Delete
  9. Replies
    1. I hope they're nice! And I REALLY hope the don't cut down the beautiful trees in their backyard. The trees catch the afternoon sunlight and we enjoy seeing it.

      Delete
  10. Maybe you could take them a jalousie pie? Do you use that expression in the US I wonder? It comes from the French for slatted window blinds. You can Google it if what I'm saying makes no sense...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow! Thank you, I'm off to Google "jalousie pie" right now!

      Delete
  11. I'll send Carlos your way, he's the Gladys Kravitz of our hood, and you both can do double duty!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Please send Carlos to me! I think we'd get on like a house on fire and we could have so much fun Karavitzing!

      Delete
  12. Keep us updated. We need to know.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I never understood why folks purchase black vehicles, they show every bit dirt that comes their way. Well Gladys, I will be waiting for the next report.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My husband says the same thing re: black vehicles.

      Delete
  14. Jalousie was a good word when I was a child; it was blinds. One neighbor had jalousies; occasionally she had to pull them.
    Looking forward to neighbor news.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So appropriate to give a dessert that means "blinds" when that's exactly what I've been peeking through to spy on them! Hahahaha!

      Delete
  15. I think that you should walk over to meet them with a patch over one eye and a parrot on your shoulder. Greet them with a cheerful 'Ahoy there, matie!' Pat your sword, and tell the that if they need any help keeping the trees trimmed, you'd be glad to help. That pretty much guarantees that they'll stay on their side of the street AND keep their trees trimmed. Win-win, don't you think?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Like you, I always get a little nervous when a nearby house changes hands. Will the new owners be nice or nasty? At the moment our neighbours are all very friendly and polite, but the care home opposite is about to be sold and it's anyone's guess who or what will take its place.

    Lots of people round here upgrading their homes, but there's a chronic shortage of building materials so the work can take much longer than planned. Builders are completely overwhelmed with potential customers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think building supplies have exploded in price in much of the US and there's a real problem with housing shortages. The market wasn't great when we bought three years ago; how relieved I am that we didn't wait any longer!

      Delete
  17. Hope your new neighbors are nice (and quiet)! We have good neighbors - we are all friendly wavers when we see each other but don't bother each other unless needed!
    Keep us posted!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So far, most of our neighbors have been of the "friendly wave and hello when passing outdoors" variety and I'd love to keep it that way. As long as they're reasonably quiet (while still enjoying their home!) and don't trash up the yard, then honestly I'll be satisfied. I'm only that concerned because they're directly in front of us and we have to look at their property every day!

      Delete
  18. I know of a group of private investigators who can help you with they are also hackers but prefer to be called private investigators They can help with your bitcoin issues and your clients will be happy doing business with you,they can also help yo with your bad credit score,hacking into phones,binary recovery,wiping criminal records,increase school score, stolen files in your office or school,blank atm etc. Just name it and you will live a better life
    whatsapp +1 (984) 733-3673
    telegram +1 (984) 733-3673
    Premiumhackservices@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete