During the summer, while out on walks or runs, I would laugh as the closely cut lawn in front of one house abruptly stopped where property lines ended. Beyond the divide, weeds would rule, dandelions would grow, and the grass grew high. I always wanted to stop at the house with the closely cut lawn to ask if they were driven crazy by their neighbor's lack of lawn care. On the flip side, I also wanted to know if the neighbor didn't cut their lawn just to drive Mr. Mower to the edge.
Now that the season has turned, this great dividing line is even more apparent as dead leaves fall from their trees and litter the ground below. The oranges and yellows and reds certainly separate those on the ball with leaf cleanup from those waiting for the maples and oaks to strip themselves bare.
This makes me wonder if these sort of property lines bring about resentment between neighbors. Maybe a few Hatfield/McCoy relationships? Does it make neighbors try to one-up each other? Is there a "I have to get out and rake before Joe" thought process that ever comes up?
If anyone out there reading this has one of those relationships, leave a comment. I'd be interested to hear about it.
Posts
4 comments:
My method is to watch and wait for the neighbors to be out - i.e., not at home. Then I go and blow all my leaves onto their lawn.
That way, I don't end up with the burden of the massive leave piles at the curb in front of my house.
Smart thinking!
When I rake my lawn (or shovel the walk or mow), I make sure that I rake about 4 feet over the border, just to be neighborly. But if they don't return my "generosity," I am deeply offended.
See, that would be me, most likely. Then, I would hold a grudge against the neighbor if they didn't do the same. Really a "no win" situation, isn't it?
Post a Comment