We’ve been in the new house about three months now. We had one brief encounter with our next door neighbors one Saturday morning when we were out weeding, but other than that, we have not met anyone in the neighborhood. Well today we received our first real introduction to the neighborhood in the mail, and it went something like this:
Dear New Home Owners,
Perhaps as a new owner in Eagle’s View II you are unaware of the Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions mandated by this development.
Enclosed is a copy for your benefit. Please read section 5.5, the requirement on maintaining your landscaping. Please hire someone to assist you if you are unable to maintain it yourselves. Our home values have diminished quite a bit already, we would appreciate it if they did not devalue any further due to neglect.
Thank you so very much for your attention to this matter.
Your neighbors of Eagle’s View II
You’ll hear no argument from me that the yard needs some attention, but there’s also no question that it is vastly improved from the state it was in when we moved in, which Steve decribed as “jungle-like.” Both of our families have agreed that it looks much, much better. We’ve worked really hard to get things in better shape. Could you give us a little credit?
The thing that really bothers me, though, is that this person or persons did not even have the guts to sign the letter. It’s totally anonymous, with no return address. We’re your new neighbors. If you have a problem, would it really kill you to stop by, introduce yourself, and talk about the issue? Is an anonymous nasty-gram really the best way to welcome someone new to your street?
I remember when I was growing up I new pretty much everybody living on our street. All the neighborhood kids used to ride bikes or play ball in the street when the weather was good, and our parents all used to bump into each other outside and chat. For a long time we had a block party every year around the 4th of July. I can’t imagine being friendly in that manner with someone that would send this type of anonymous letter, and since it’s not signed, it feels like they were all in on it.
I hope nobody around here stops by to borrow a cup of sugar anytime soon.
2009 © The Beehive All Rights Reserved
You should put up an anonymous sign in your yard asking your neighbors if they know Chata, and if they don’t to come knock on your door and inquire as to who Chata is. Then you can tell them her full name. Chata Fockup!
Did you move into a neighborhood full of hoity-toities?
Probably totally hoity-toity. My understanding is nearly all the neighbors purchased from the original developer at the peak of the market, so they paid significantly more than we did, more than we could have ever afforded. We are like the Clampets moving to Beverly Hills!
Well that explains the letter! They’re jeliss that you and Steve are smart shoppers. Yes, I said jelliss.
It’s too bad whoever wrote the letter didn’t have the balls to sign their name to it, you could have responded, “if you’re so worried about how our yard looks, why don’t you come on over and fix it yourself!” And then directed them to meet Chata.