Do you ever come up with names for you neighbors? – The ones, in this day and age, you never (or rarely) meet? I do. Dan gets amused whenever I refer to a particular property by my personal name for each one of them.
When we first bought this house, the man across the road immediately got a name in my mind. He is “The Farmer” to me. The man has a bull, cow, mule, dog and some chickens. The dog is the livestock's constant companion. I think there are baby chicks as there were little moving black specks among the flock. Let me tell you, the hens and the rooster are HUGE! Anyway, the cow gave birth last year and I believe he sold it sometime within the last month. I am assuming the cow is pregnant again and will give birth again sometime this fall. The name “The Rancher” would be more appropriate considering he does not farm (garden). But, “The Farmer” is stuck in my brain.
The next neighbor to get a name is a man who introduced himself to us one day while we were doing yard work. He lives next door. He is actually the assistant pastor or a youth minister of a local church. So, it is “The Preacher” for me.
The next neighbor to get a name is the one straight across the road from us. He is “The Welder”. He does welding work from time to time and you can see sparks flying. Once in a while, I am fortunate to hear the ringing of metal from being pounded with a hammer.
Then you have “The Gardeners”. When I first saw one of them, he had the biggest red tractor and was giving rides out back on his land to one of his grandkids. They also have a huge greenhouse on the land. We met them one weekend and I actually think it is the lady that is the gardener and the man just supports her efforts. They have lived in this area for years, were schoolteachers, are childhood sweethearts and significantly older than us. Even though I now know their names, “The Gardeners” is stuck in my mind. Not only do they own a business selling plants, they also have free range chickens (allowed to roam all over the property) and goats. Their goats gave birth to a total of 17 kids (so far) this spring. Eeeps!
The last person to get a name from me is the neighbors who live on the other side of us. “The Clothesman”. Seriously. But, the dude living there apparently likes to hang his clothes on a clothesline. It also appears that he does his own laundry as I never see the lady’s or the kids’ clothes hanging on the line. So, it is “The Clotheman” for me. Ha! We have not personally met them; but, they do seem to be nice folks.
Do not get me wrong. I am just naturally observant. I think it is just part of being deaf. If there were anything to be out of place, then I would know something is majorly wrong. Also, I am naturally interested in the livestock and the gardening going on around me. I am learning all I can before actually diving into the care of livestock and gardening. It is obvious that no one gardens around here and I now know why. It is hard work fighting against critters. Plus, it is much easier to hop in a vehicle and go down the road to HEB (10 to 15 minute drive) for all your vegetables, fruits and herbs. However, I have to say that there is something satisfying about growing a garden even if you never harvest anything. At least, I am trying and am determined to keep on trying until I succeed.
So, there you have it. You have just learned something new about me. Yes, I know I am weird. Ha!
No. You're not weird. ;-) I enjoyed reading about your neighbors. Sounds like a wonderful and interesting neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteI only have one neighbor I have named and that is 'the cat lady'...but only because I think she has 6-8 cats. When she has come to talk to us, she has an entourage of cats following her. The whole time she is talking they are constantly rubbing on her legs or rolling on the ground by her feet being all cute. LOL.