Friends and Neighbors

Remember when you were a kid and how you had friends in the neighborhood? Remember how your parents used to hang out on the weekend with your friends' parents?

Do people do that anymore? Do you know your neighbors?

I remember playing Frisbee across the street with all our neighbors, friends, and parents. The memories of cookouts with neighbors and friends is vivid in my mind. I recall playing at each others houses and my mom getting together for coffee with other moms in the neighborhood.

What about you?

I am happy to say I know my neighbors and they are friends. Maybe I don't know all my neighbors, but definitely some. We do hang out together. In the summer we hang out at the fire pit. In the spring we talk about what flowers we are going to plant and ooo, aahh over the results. In the winter I can send a text that says, "Steak Thursday night?" and get a response back from, "I'll do the sides."

Recently one of my neighbors moved to Georgia where his family lives. While I am ecstatic for him and his family, I am sad by my loss of the friend and neighbor that I can call up and say, "Chicken wings?" or "A movie?" Sometimes I could even convince Mike to take a long walk with me. Even though he has moved miles and miles away, we still stay in contact. We are friends.

Oh my gosh! The day I bought my house I was introduced to my neighbor and now friend, Donna. The first thing she said to me was, "This is the view you will see all summer." Then she proceeded to bend over and show me her backside. Because she spends a lot of time in her yard and gardens.

I knew at that moment we would be friends! And I am grateful to have them in my life.

Are your neighbors friends?

Funny thing happened while playing in my yard

I don't know about the weather where you are, but the weather here in New England this past Saturday was a tad wet. It rained most of the day and night.

When Sunday rolled around and the sun decided to show it's brilliant self, I immediately went outside...after doing some early morning writing.

And here is where my story begins. With me dressed in shorts and tank top, sandals, hair pulled back in some thingy that makes me look like I'm about twelve years old, and work gloves. I do make quite the picture for 'Farming USA'.

Anyway, I'm out there pulling weeds and planting plants, radio blaring my one and only Zac Brown Band CD when I look up to see my neighbor walking across the street and in my direction. Mike has been in the neighborhood for not quite two years and we speak at least once a week, share a beer between mowing our yards, and the occasional ice cream cone when the ice cream truck guy drives by and I happen to catch him. I mean who wouldn't want an ice cream on a hot summer day.

At first I asked Mike if the radio was too loud. He responded with, "Huh?" and held up his hand to his ear.

Ha ha. Very funny. Actually it was loud so I asked him If he wanted me to turn it down. "He said he liked music."

Great. So I let it keep playing.

Then Mike turns to me and asks if it is a secret.

"What is a secret?"

"That you're an author?"

Then he proceeds to tell me how his girlfriend looked me up on Facebook, found my website and that I was an author. She called Mike and told him, "You have to go check out this website."

He, being the good boyfriend did and to his amazement he was staring at my website. Apparently, it was quite the shocker. So much so that he then called his mother and told her the story of his author neighbor and while they were on the phone speaking, she ordered a copy of IT HAPPENS IN THREES for her Nook. How cool is that?!

After that Mike decided to spread the word and tell a few of his friends and work colleagues. Maybe I should hire Mike as my publicist.

A week later, Mike is in my yard giving me grief for never having mentioned it and telling me he wants to read CONNECT THE DOTS, which of course, I will give him a copy.

[SHRUG] I guess that by this time I assumed everyone knew I was a writer. Oops!

Note to self: Put a sign in yard that says, "Author lives here." Or perhaps, rather than wearing my Ireland or Boston Red Sox cap while playing in my garden I should wear a hat that says, "Have you read one of my books yet?" Hm...that would make a great T-shirt.

Thanks Mike for making my day.

My neighbor is my real-life hero...

As an author, I write about heroes all the time. Fictional heroes with qualities that may or may not exist in people we know. Today, I'm sharing with you one of my real heroes, not in the sense of saving me from some unknown danger...although, my neighbor has done that.

Actually, my neighbor has come to my rescue more than once. He watched out for me when I had an experience with a stalker when I first moved into my home. He constantly checked up on strange cars showing up in my drive. He was instrumental in preventing the person from buying the house across the street from me.

And you all remember earlier this winter when I accidentally locked myself in my office and had to scream out the window for someone to come get me? This is that neighbor. He truly is my hero.

His name is Kenny and he owns Pellerin Siding in Salem NH. I LOVE him! In a neighborly way. :-) His wife, Donna, might get upset if I don't add that in there.

A couple of week's ago I was chatting with Kenny's wife and I told her how what a shame it was that the builders who constructed my house didn't make the deck bigger so it extended to the dining room part of the house. Then they could have put in an 8FT slider instead of an 8FT window. Two things happened then. First, she laughed because she wonders what else I will come up with to do in or to my house. Then she reminded me that decks and stuff is what Kenny's company does.

Next thing I know, Kenny comes down, takes some measurements, gives me a quote and BAM! Yes, I am extending my deck. DOUBLE the width!! Not only did we make the arrangements but they started it...in the snow.

Yesterday morning when I woke and was getting ready to leave I glanced out my window and saw floor boards on the deck. WOOT! I took pictures Oh - and if you look real close you will see the offending ladder that broke my finger last weekend in the window. GRRR!

After leaving the house at 6:30 AM, having my Saturday morning bagel with friends, attending the WZID Women's Expo (great event), finally locating two lampshades I needed for my spare bedroom, I returned home about 3:30 in the afternoon. When I arrived, I found two Pellerin trucks in my driveway and the guys packing up. My deck was done!!

Holy cow, can you believe it? I wake up and it's more than halfway there and before I go to bed, I have a new deck. Truly, it was only a matter of days.

It's beautiful. They are my heroes! Wouldn't they be your heroes too?



Thank you Kenny, Paul, Paul, David for the terrific job. Can't wait to do the door next and maybe a front porch. Thank you Donna for the great suggestion.

Now my summertime writing spot will be so much nicer! Bring on the sun, flowers, and BBQ. Time to write outdoors.