Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson for June 26, 2023

A little late to be doing that! 8^ )

I once knew everyone on my street here but in the last ten years all has changed. No one talks and many have left after their kids grew up and the new neighbors never come outside except to leave in the car. Sure yard work but no talking allowed I guess.

There are 6 houses on this gravel road. We speak or wave when passing on the road. This is what you call secluded.

Mr. Johnson did it again. Arlo’s spot doesn’t look out a window. Mine does. About a week ago our newest neighbor came out on her porch. There’s a chair there where she often sits to watch her boys but she didn’t sit and there were no boys. She looked worried. I thought I should go out just as the sirens came. First the muscle on the fire truck and then the paramedics in the ambulance. Let’s just end it there. Everything worked out fine for their youngest.

Same here in Shoreline Wa, one neighbour is nice but non talkative, one across the street is a hoarder and kinda whacked out!

They’re just dying to meet you, Arlo.

Maybe a fire fighter moved in and they are having a housewarming, home fire inspection party combined.

hope it’s not Hello, Good-bye

An opportunity to meet new neighbors?

“Honey! The nosey neighbors from down the street are finally getting around to introducing themselves!”

Years ago, two brothers living across my street had a fire. THREE trucks were needed to avoid ALL the houses catching fire. Turned out fine, and the neighborhood discovered the two weren’t actually brothers but partners. Did anyone CARE? Heck No! Human – Safe – Done!

I grew up in a working class neighborhood. Everybody knew everyone else. My parents did well financially, we moved to a much wealthier neighborhood – and nobody knew anybody and nobody talked to anybody.

I moved out of my parents house, my first apartment was (naturally) in a poor neighborhood, and the neighbors knocked on my door to welcome me, and asked if I needed anything like silverware or curtains, since it was my first apartment.

Sounds like Toronto. No one speaks to anyone there. It is a “mind your own business” city.

Go and ogle, like the rest of your neighbours.

We lived here over 40 years. I used to know, at least by sight, most of the neighbors and all of the ones that had children my children’s ages. The neighborhood changed, and we became the old people. I found the new neighbors to be mostly self-centered and rude and I don’t want to know them any further than a quick and polite greeting. They’re pseudo-friendly, act like they’re people-persons, then party all night, every weekend, with kids running through our yard, dogs barking endlessly. They say they take our concerns “seriously” but nothing changes. It’s a losing battle and time to move, but I resent it they’re forcing us out before we are ready.

no really close neighbors here in OK. But we spent 14 years in a new sub in San Antonio(2003-2017) and knew just 4 people, we walked 2 miles every morning with our long hair Chihuahua, neighbors on each side of us-one fairly well, the other met twice-they moved in a month after us-and 3 streets over an 80 year old retired AF Col and 5 streets over an active duty Army Major.

Here in Orillia, we know the five neighbours who are closest. New neighbours next door 18 months ago and we have had social interaction with them more times in 18 months than with the previous owners who we knew for 14 years. Young couple with two kids under 6. so great to hear kids laughter again. Other neighbour has Alzheimer’s so we sill be saying goodbye to her soon as she is moving away. we will need to train new folks. Many dog walkers and they stop to chat. Many just ‘walker’ walkers and they stroll pretty quick but do nod or wave. I’m jealous of their commitment.

Well, I guess it is never to late, Arlo

Probably a medical emergency. They last thing the first responders need are nosy neighbors in the way.

“It may be too late for that, Arlo. And too early for an estate sale.”

I wonder how much effort you have made when new neighbors moved in?

Yep. Call 911 for an ambulance and they’ll send a fire truck every time.

I’ve been told by First Responders that it’s best to stay the heck out of their way! IF they need something from you, they’ll knock on your door. You may or may not find out later what went down. Like my grandmother said, if it’s any of your business you’ll know all about it!

My wife and I are the last of the “old folks” on our street. Five houses around us, all younger people since 5 years ago. We live overlooking an “expressway”. We’ve learned to block out the sirens we hear, mostly on the weekends.

When I lived with my parents it was in a 1960s suburban house built for the throngs moving out from NYC. Almost everyone had children. Played with other children – sometimes, event then I was too strange a person to be close to any of them. (Husband cannot understand why I don’t look any of them up on Facebook as he has looked up his old friends.)

When we married and later bought a house it was rather different than where either of us grew up (he grew up on a dead end street). We know the neighbor on either side of us and the one two to our right. Either side now is younger than 2 over or us and have young children. (We never were fortunate enough to have children.) Houses are close together – less than the width of a single car garage to the property line.

In all the 30+ years in the house we have never had anyone come for Trick or Treat. (In the nine years before that when we lived in an apartment we had 2 girls come once for same – no one else.)

We have a neighbor across the street (only one on that street as he is between a two houses facing the side streets). We wave at each other. We did not even know when his mom died – we presume she did as have not seen in her at least a decade. We don’t know his name. We just smile and wave at each other – he lives in a different community than we do. Before Christmas it dawned on me to send him a card and introduce ourselves while wishing him a Merry Christmas – of course in the quick rush of doing the cards at the last minute, we forgot. I put it in my calendar for next December. We live on a 4 lane main road so walking over and saying hello is not something we can do without taking our lives in hand.

You might want to wait until they are a tad less busy, Arlo.