I’ve been living in this house for 20 years or so now. About 10 years ago my current neighbors, who lived down by the lake then, built a log home right next to me. This guy can do anything. They’re in their mid 60’s and built the two houses across the road from me, their own log home (sawed their own logs and everything), helped build their two sons’ homes that are also in the neighborhood, and I’ve heard them talk about building other houses around here.
He’s fixed my plumbing, helped son #1 (who’s my contractor for bigger jobs) remodel a room and put in plumbing and drainage for a washer and the electrical for a dryer, installed my motion light on the garage, fixed my screen door when the wind tore it off the hinges, fixed the side door on the garage when the wind blew it off the hinges (painted it, too), and wired for my new stove. He mows my lawn, snow-blows my driveway after the big snows, brought my mail to the back door after I had surgery and shoveled what I usually shovel but couldn’t at that time, fixed my water heater, put my bi-fold doors back on track, and more. You name it, he can do it.
And this evening at 7:30, when I realized my pump wasn’t working and the mosquitoes were at their worst, he came over and sanded the contacts on the pump switch. Ten minutes after I asked him for help I had water again.
I pay him the going rate for most of the stuff but he does a lot for nothing. This winter pre-surgery I was out shoveling and ran into him and mentioned that I needed to have his son put on a new shower head for me. He said, “I think I have one down at the shop.” Half an hour later I had a new shower head for nothing.
I make his favorite cookies for him regularly and once in a while spring for something more than that. Next Friday when I stop at the butcher’s I’m going to get a couple of rib eyes for him and his wife (she’s never done anything for me but I liker her and hey, she feeds him and stuff.) I’ve had to go without water a few times since I’ve lived here, usually over weekends, and I am so grateful that he was able to fix this tonight.
Its great to read about positive interactions for a change—it sometimes seems many often enjoy focusing on the unpleasant, negative people in thier lives…
Glad you are able to have such a good relationship with your neighbors!!!
I think I have pretty good neighbours for a student neighbourhood. My neighbour to the left once curbed my recycling for me when I was out of town and nobody was at home! Awful nice, I’d think…
When I woke up this morning I remembered that Audrey has done things for me so I have to record it here. She watered my tomato plants when I was out of town for a week and she changed my shoulder bandage the first time after I had surgery.
And I remembered other stuff he’s done. When the gas people had to replace the line from the tank to the house, he buried it for me. When my garage door opener started acting funky he tightened things up. When he and son #1 are making a run of large items to the dump they always stop by and ask if I have anything I need to get rid of. He came over several times and put down ashes from their wood stove down so I wouldn’t fall (again).
I’ll be making molasses-spice cookies tonight and I’m going to knit him a pair of socks before winter.
I have excellent neighbors too. The latest really takes the cake tho.
Tuesday I left my house early to take some paperwork down to my union hall from a weekend job. I then ran some errands and had lunch with some friends.
I got home about 3pm. As I opened my truck door, I heard the neighbor across the street hollering to me. “OMG I had to call the fire department! You’re lawn was on fire!”
Before I could even get a “WTF are you talking about?” out of my mouth I saw that indeed a small portion of the lawn near my front door was scorched.
I found out the next day from the fire investigator that she had put the fire out before the truck got there, a detail she omitted when telling me the story.
I let the owner know (I rent) and we’re both kicking in for a Carvel ice cream cake and a gift certificate to Target for them.
I mean, this beats out the time my neighbors tracked me down in Detroit to make sure I wasn’t dead.
But the neighbors in the OP are awesome. Mine make sure I don’t die or lose everything, but yours truly make your life better and easier all the time.
Thanks for sharing! What a nice change to read something good! I’ve had some great neighbors around here, and my dad and brothers were the ones the other neighbors called when something went wrong. We got a ton of baking from the widow across the street, too. She and my mom were close friends for close to 50 years.
My neighbor called me two nights ago to tell me he and his dad were goiong to be picking up gravel to fill in spots in his driveway. He offered to haul a few tons of gravel and spread it for me with his tractor, since I’d mentioned a couple months ago that I wanted to extend my parking surface.
And around the beginning of the year my miniature horse kept escaping and going over to his place to graze on his front yeard. Not only was he patient with the beast coming over every other day, he offered to help me with my hotwire fence.
When I bought my tractor and couldn’t get the guy who said he’d transport it to follow through, he borrowed a trailor from a friend and hauled it for me, then the next day hooked up his tractor to pull my car out when I got it stuck in the mud.
Of course, when he was on duty (he’s a cop) and his wife heard a noise outside, he called me to ask me to go out with my dobermans to check things out. And when he got two new pups I gave him Frontline to get rid of the fleas and ticks.
My neighbours are in the running.
I get cakes (occasionally a cream sponge) and bickies from her, rocks and mineral specimins from him. They pet sit for me when I’m away. Give me vegetables when they have excess. Lend me tools/assistance. Provide security and advice. All in all just plain nice people.
My daughter once tossed down a cigarette butt that caught the cottonwood linty stuff that was currently floating all over the yard on fire…scorched quite a huge area of the yard. How did your fire start, Snowboarder Bo?
We don’t know. The fire investigator pointed me to 2 old butts on the ground in the general area of the fire, but they seem fairly old. I do not smoke; never have. Also, to me, they seemed out of the main burn area. Thankfully, there was so little damage to the structure (just faint carbon scoring on one of the roof columns, enough that if you knew there was a fire and were looking, you could say “ah! that’s where the fire was, right?”) that both my landlord and I agree it isn’t a big deal.
I did tell the FI that I would call if my neighbors came to me with more information, but it’s highly unlikely that will happen. I’m chalking it up to carelessness on the part of some driver who mistakenly thought my cul-de-sac went anywhere. We get people who turn up, drive the circle and then drive away all the time.
My husband is the kinda guy you want as a neighbor.
As the wife of someone who can fix and repair anything, the best way to thank them is a)appreciation b) something for the guy ( Home Depot gift card ) and something for her.
So, I would say you are on the right track.
