We know the neighbors on either side of us. They are nice. We're certainly not friends--I'm even sketchy on their names--but I feel like I could ask them for help in a pinch. Greg and I are thankful we have pleasant neighbors, on both sides. But we aren't much interested in them.
Greg is too busy watching the man across the street. "There's another car at Bruce's house today." "I think Bruce is out of town." "Bruce is mowing his lawn." "I've never seen that car at Bruce's house before." "I think that's Bruce's girlfriend." "I wonder why Bruce is flying his flag upside down." "I wonder why Bruce is no longer flying his flag upside down."
Meanwhile, I'm too busy watching the nameless couple on the corner to care about Bruce (although I've actually met Bruce--Greg must be so jealous). "Why do they close their blinds during the day and open them at night?" "Why don't they ever weed-whack?" "Looks like her mom is in town from Nebraska again." "I think they traded in both of their cars for a mini-van." "I wonder why they never open their garage." It was a dream come true when their house was put up for sale by owner because we could view the listing. I couldn't wait to see what the inside of their house looked like: Blue carpet! And a very low price. Were they desperate to sell? But I soon learned that they themselves were mere renters (so they couldn't be held responsible for the blue carpet), and soon enough they moved and another renter moved in. He's boring. I don't care about the army locker and blue cooler on the driveway like the way I cared about the previous renters' gas grill on the back patio (that they never used, by the way). Now I have no one to watch.
Our neighborhood is pleasant enough, and feels much warmer and more "lived-in" than neighborhoods like my parents' (which is eerily empty, except for the landscapers), but this is certainly no tight-knit commune. And that's probably too bad. (Though the status quo suits my comfort level just fine.) If we were really concerned about it, we could do like this man and invite ourselves to sleep over at the neighbors' houses, to get to know them better. I know who would be at the top of Greg's list.
