Sue, Stew and Chloe put an invitation in our mailbox for a lunch BBQ, declaring that they'd lived in that house for 12 months and hadn't had the opportunity to meet the neighbours. I didn't want to RSVP and say I've lived here for 11 years and SAME!
Thing is, we live in a beautiful part of Melbourne that is hilly, to say the least, and most of us live on undulating blocks of land. We don't get the opportunity to bump into each other while walking the dog. Who the h3ll (oh gimme a break....this censorship is really tragic!) would walk dogs around our hills without an ambulance following closely behind albeit at a safe distance?
We don't wave to each other as we mow lawns on Saturday mornings because we don't HAVE front lawns. We have slopes. We don't say "Hi" as we wash our cars in our driveways because of previous water restrictions (and my aversion to any type of unecessary housework of any kind) so.....all things considered, we've just never had the opportunity to make friends.
BUT...................
They knew a helluva lot about OUR household! THAT surprised me a fair bit. To be more precise, they knew Alex and Adam. Adam came with me to the BBQ and was greeted by most of the neighbours with familiarity whereas I had to introduce myself as Adam's Mum. Conversation was punctuated with GPS precise positioning as to where everyone lived in relation to where Adam lived (??).
I have to say they are a lovely, lovely bunch of people. Eclectic in the mix which is how I like it. For 11 years I've lived in this house and I really LOVE where we live. However, it's been a very 'keep-to-yourself' kind of neighbourhood - my experience of it anyway and so today felt really really nice. It gave me a sense of belonging and....safety.
I hope we see more of our lovely neighbours and that I don't scare them off and they move away. Hehehe.
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