Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

Did you start singing when you read the title? Did it remind you of Mr. Rogers? LOL

The first morning after we moved in, the dog needed to go out and nobody was up. So without thinking, without brushing my teeth, I just slipped my feet into my sneakers, tied my hair in a pony and went out. Bleary-eyed because I’d yet to sip any coffee.

In our old rental, we had a yard (being a free standing house – I’m now in a townhouse). The neighbors couldn’t see me in my pjs, so it was no big deal. But here?! Yikes!

I walked outside (in sweats) to be greeted within 5 minutes by 3 neighbors, with 2 other dogs in tow. Talk about not making a good first impression! While they were really nice and very chatty, I have to really remember now that I need to be on my game when I leave the house because they’re everywhere! I’ve never lived in a townhouse development. This is all new to me. I resisted for years because I wanted a stand-alone-house like I’d always had. But the landlords wanted to take advantage of the market and sell the house we were renting, so I had no choice but to find a new place to live…and while this was the top of my budget, I felt like it was ‘the one’ to get. So I did.

Thus far, this is like living on a city block because there are always people walking around! Since the first encounter, I’ve met about 8 other people who are walking their dogs or just walking around. I guess I’ll have to get used to it. But it’s a little daunting. I’m used to my privacy. Quiet. An occasional friendly wave. But not full on chatter from strangers! LOL