Subtropical Lady

Next Door for Sale

I’m kind of having a shitty day today. First, I’m tired because I slept shitty. Second, Irma's place is for sale. That explains the picture-taking I saw.

Not happy. Not happy at all. Kind of surprised, though, because I thought if anyone would go first, it would be Toni because she’s disabled. I’m surprised she isn’t in assisted living already.

I reached out to Irma and told her that I understand she may not have much control over this but a quiet neighbor is important to me, so while I will miss her as she was a great neighbor, I would really appreciate someone over there without a motorcycle or a noisy dog. She said she would do what she could although agreed that it may not be in her control.

I asked why she was selling and she said that the long drive is getting to be too much for them. She also said she understood where I was coming from because she’s a light sleeper too and the dogs down the street bark all night. So she must be hearing the same ones I hear, although they’re not bothersome to me because they’re not loud enough.

She also said that if they don’t sell this year they’ll return for one more year. I hope she does! The economy isn’t doing so great right now and houses aren’t selling well, but you never know if there’s someone like us with limited money that has to grab the cheapest place they can as quickly as they can that’s suitable enough without really settling. Either way, I knew this day would come. I was just hoping it would be another 5-10 years before they left. Better yet, I hoped we would be gone before then. It’s looking likely, however, that by the time they do sell, we’ll know if we’re gonna be here for life or not.

They’re asking 58K for their place and selling it furnished as is. We were surprised to find that they have many of the same pieces of furniture we have which tells us that the furniture came with the house. We’ve never heard of furniture coming with a new house! There were only a few pieces that were different, and they have a nicer hutch than we do. They don’t have an over-the-stove microwave or a dishwasher, though, and they have a coil stove. Nicer floors, too.

I’m not as worried about circular saws as I would be if this was California but I’m definitely worried about barking first and motorcycles second. Also, if I could hear the TV from the guy across from next door at the old place, I can just imagine how annoying they could be if they blast their TV or music being less than 15 feet away. As I learned, you can’t complain to an office even in a park like this unless you want to be spited or blown off completely. So we’re stuck with whatever we end up with.

If they are into power tools, they don’t have much room in the driveway to work but if they did projects there or in the laundry room on the other side of their place, I would still hear it over here because they’re so close. Same goes for in the back. Hell, I can hear their AC running back there! Sexist or not, I hope there won’t be any male neighbors because they tend to be the noisier ones.

The honker's company only stayed for one night. Never thought I would say this, but I’m not sure I would like it if he moved now that I know his habits and the fact that he only rides the motorcycle on average of once a week and his dogs rarely bark. We could get someone over there with a motorcycle that’s used daily and with dogs and aren’t so quiet if he left, though he’s a lot younger so I don’t see him leaving for a good 15-20 years.

Some of the plants I planted that I put outside are sprouting. I think I’ve got thyme, lavender, chives, and parsley in that thing, so since they look very different, we should be able to tell which is which when they grow some more.

Oh, I can't wait till tomorrow! I'll be calling Kim's sister Carol. My curiosity finally won out and I messaged Carol last night. I told her I wanted to understand Kim better and brought up the extreme forgetfulness. I mentioned that Aly and I knew she had trouble speaking and that she had participated in Special Olympics. Yet whenever we would ask what disability she had, she would say she didn’t have any. I told her I hoped I wasn’t offending her and to please keep my message a secret because I didn’t want Kim to feel her trust was betrayed or to feel offended as well.

Carol assured me she wasn’t offended at all and that there was a lot to explain but would be easier over the phone. She said she’s busy between running a business and caring for her mother and Kim as well as her own kids and then planning her upcoming wedding. Wow, taking care of her own kids? I thought they were grown but Kim did say something about her niece and or nephew staying with them.

Anyway, she promised to keep our chat a secret and said she wouldn’t keep me on the phone too long and was free all day tomorrow, and I could call between 11:00 and 8:00. Can’t wait to settle my curiosity and find out what makes Kim tick! I know I’ll wish Aly was alive so I could relay what I learn to her.