Good Neighbors
We got home from the hospital Friday night around 6:30 pm.
Around 8:30 Jen's Mom and I got out to feed her cats. We got back around 9pm and there was already 4" of snow on the driveway.
I decided to quickly plow it in hopes of making it easier for the next day.
Fast forward to Saturday afternoon. We have around 15" of snow.
I fire up the plow.
Plow level shot looking out of the garage where the snow drifted against the door.
It was slow going, but I was making progress.
Then I wasn't.
The tractor slid off the side of my driveway and flatted one of the front tires.
I tried airing it up, but I could hear and feel the air rushing out the from the front of the tire somewhere.
Hmmm. My baby girl hadn't been home 24 hrs and I couldn't get out if I needed to.
About this time my neighbor Dino (house sort of next/front of mine) was finishing up his driveway with a snow blower. I went over and told him and his wife the good news about our family addition and asked if I could use the snow blower.
He said it wasn't actually his. That it belonged to our neighbor Jack across the street (old guy with his own "by appointment only" barber shop in his house), but it would probably be ok. Dino then started to do a few passes down my driveway.
I insisted that I do it. There was no reason for Dino to clear my driveway while I was perfectly capable. After two passes it was suddenly clear as to why Dino was doing it.
Jack was standing at the end of my driveway waiting for Dino to make his way back up there. I ran up to formally ask Jack, but never got the chance. Jack was in the middle of some overly insulting spiel about me being a stuck-up - rich, blah, blah, blah, bad neighbor, and that I couldn't borrow the snow blower unless I promised to be a better neighbor.
Keep in mind this asshole never came over to greet us when we moved in four years ago. We never got the plate of brownies or welcoming committee. I guess the miserable coward had the audacity to expect we go around and introduce ourselves to everybody back then.
I couldn't believe what was coming out of his mouth. I was stunned. I was blown away. Dino tried defending me and making a case for clearing the driveway, but I was done. I wasn't going to borrow that asshole's anything if my life depended on it. I'd ski out with my baby on my back if I had to.
I told him no. I didn't want any of it. I thanked Dino and walked away.
Later that evening and night I shoveled the rest of the driveway myself. Jen and the baby were fine with her mother in the house.
When it was all clear, Jen's mother and I headed back to her house to take care of the cats.
Rolling up to the driveway we saw an amazing thing. Jen's mother's neighbors had shoveled a three foot path down her driveway and sidewalk while we were away. It turns out the girls of the street (3, 10yr olds I guess) had shoveled what they could as a gesture to meet their new neighbor. They came running to say Hi when we got out of the car.
That's what good neighbors do. That's what good people do.
At least now I know in what neighborhood Abigail will make friends that are worth anything.
- b
Around 8:30 Jen's Mom and I got out to feed her cats. We got back around 9pm and there was already 4" of snow on the driveway.
I decided to quickly plow it in hopes of making it easier for the next day.
Fast forward to Saturday afternoon. We have around 15" of snow.
I fire up the plow.
Plow level shot looking out of the garage where the snow drifted against the door.It was slow going, but I was making progress.
Then I wasn't.
The tractor slid off the side of my driveway and flatted one of the front tires.
I tried airing it up, but I could hear and feel the air rushing out the from the front of the tire somewhere.
Hmmm. My baby girl hadn't been home 24 hrs and I couldn't get out if I needed to.
About this time my neighbor Dino (house sort of next/front of mine) was finishing up his driveway with a snow blower. I went over and told him and his wife the good news about our family addition and asked if I could use the snow blower.
He said it wasn't actually his. That it belonged to our neighbor Jack across the street (old guy with his own "by appointment only" barber shop in his house), but it would probably be ok. Dino then started to do a few passes down my driveway.
I insisted that I do it. There was no reason for Dino to clear my driveway while I was perfectly capable. After two passes it was suddenly clear as to why Dino was doing it.Jack was standing at the end of my driveway waiting for Dino to make his way back up there. I ran up to formally ask Jack, but never got the chance. Jack was in the middle of some overly insulting spiel about me being a stuck-up - rich, blah, blah, blah, bad neighbor, and that I couldn't borrow the snow blower unless I promised to be a better neighbor.
Keep in mind this asshole never came over to greet us when we moved in four years ago. We never got the plate of brownies or welcoming committee. I guess the miserable coward had the audacity to expect we go around and introduce ourselves to everybody back then.
I couldn't believe what was coming out of his mouth. I was stunned. I was blown away. Dino tried defending me and making a case for clearing the driveway, but I was done. I wasn't going to borrow that asshole's anything if my life depended on it. I'd ski out with my baby on my back if I had to.
I told him no. I didn't want any of it. I thanked Dino and walked away.
Later that evening and night I shoveled the rest of the driveway myself. Jen and the baby were fine with her mother in the house.
When it was all clear, Jen's mother and I headed back to her house to take care of the cats.
Rolling up to the driveway we saw an amazing thing. Jen's mother's neighbors had shoveled a three foot path down her driveway and sidewalk while we were away. It turns out the girls of the street (3, 10yr olds I guess) had shoveled what they could as a gesture to meet their new neighbor. They came running to say Hi when we got out of the car.
That's what good neighbors do. That's what good people do.
At least now I know in what neighborhood Abigail will make friends that are worth anything.
- b
posted by JenBob at
9:30 AM
2 Comments:
Wow that is suprizing, my neighbors are pretty nice. Grumpy old man it sounds like. If you need a hand tomorrow I can help. You could try and stan's the tire up.
thanks for the offer. I think I just rolled it off the bead. I've aired it up a couple of times now and it seems to work.
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