Are you a good neighbor?

I always call round to see my new neighbours, not that we have very many, most neighbours stay just that, neighbours. Very few houses for sale in our area.

I take them a card to welcome them and perhaps a bottle wine.

I have made very good friends with a relatively new neighbour, who comes to visit on a regular basis, because I have fresh mint growing in my garden. She picks bunches of it, and takes it over to Spain to make fresh mojito cocktails when she visits her s/o.

I have now taken a cutting of the mint plant, and will present it to her when it begins to grow again.

I also invite my neighbours whenever I am holding a party. It is better they are in my home than knocking on the door complaining about any noise LOL

@partyparty can i be your neighbor? loll

I am a friendly person and I am very welcoming to my neighbors.They are free to stop over anytime(and do). :)

I don’t really do anything lol. If I happen to run into them, I will say hi and create small talk if the neighbor even wants to. And Fluther isn’t really a community to me, it’s something to do when I’m bored lol.

@Blackberry LOLL….very good answer…me too…and i’m bored today! winter blues!!!

@lucillelucillelucille thank you for your answer…gosh, you have a long name…loll

I know all of my neighbors by name, and have keys to a few of their houses, in case they get locked out or go on vacation and need someone to care for pets, mail, plants, etc. Everyone lends out tools. I have a neighbor that I swap recipes and food samples with. We go to baby showers, graduation parties, etc. at the neighbor’s.

When I was younger, we would socialize more with the neighbors, and I’ve noticed the younger members on the block doing the same thing. We tend to sit on the front porch or the steps near the sidewalk all the time, and rarely use the backyard. We know a lot of the people who walk to the coffee shop or hardware store by name or by sight.

I’ve always been pretty respective of those around me. Now I could tell you people that arn’t good neighbors that I have been around. I understand that I am in an apartment complex and that I need to be mindful of my environment. I am mostly reserved about who I talk to because im ultra paranoid about people knowing my business.

@PandoraBoxx yeah, we do that also…you would be a very good neighbor and thank you for the answer!

@Tenpinmaster thank for the answer…uh, what is your average? Don’t bowl much now..did a little when i was younger…bad on the golf swing! loll

@BoBo1946 -I have to keep repeating it until I remember it..;)

I grew up the same way you did, @BoBo1946. People knew their neighbors, socialized with them. The kids on the block, even blocks away, went to school together and played with each other. I can still see my folks in front of the house in the evening, chatting with neighbors as we kids raced up and down the street. It’s not that way on my block these days. I rarely see anybody at home, let alone see them chatting. And I’m just as detached as anyone else. I do talk occasionally to a pleasant Kenyan woman who lives a few doors away. We met by accident. Literally. We ran our cars into each other in the alley! Mostly all I want when I’m home is to chill out. Clearly it’s easier for avatars to be welcoming and friendly than people. (However, I’ll take that dish of food anytime.)

@Austinlad understood, the World has really changed. People are so busy now days! Both spouses are working and when they fight the traffic etc, they don’t feel like visiting. My grandmother never worked a day in her life out of the house…you don’t see that much anymore. Guess, we are telling our age Austinland..loll

Hey, see a lot of old friends from an unmentionable site (yeeehaaaaaa) here answering this question..loll

Really miss the “old bag!”

On line I would like to think the people who know me adore me to no end to everyone else I am…well think for yourself there.

At home I am a great neighbor as good as they get until the kids go outside, the go kart gets fired up and the electric guitars get turned up…after that…well think for yourself there!

@Cruiser got’cha Cruiser…loll

I try to find out if my neighbors are in need and help them if I can. My help must be anonymous, as my mild autism (AS) makes F2F contacts and dealing with gratitude painful to me. A cord of fireword or a truckload of groceries delivered when they are away, a delinquent electric bill or property tax payment made anonymously in cash, a truckload of Christmas presents to the orphanage, hundreds of books send to the jail or the nursing home, playground equipment to the elementary school, body armor for the Sherriffs deputies. I do what I can, but don’t want recognition.

@BoBo1946 Well, last year i averaged around 200 at one of our easier bowling centers. Depends on lane surface and conditions (and consistency of the oiling machines and oil breakdown) but im usually around 190’s, 200’s. I am not fantastic but I know how to show up in a pinch. Now I con’t golf for nothing, but I have tried a couple of times.

OMG i figured out that fluthering is so much better on a tropical island.. currently at the Moon Palace resort in the Dominican Republic! yay!

@Tenpinmaster wow..that is strong…well, I’ve been playing golf now for 42 years. Been a member at my club for 30 years…we have a group that plays everyday at noon. We are called the “nooners!” We usually have anywhere from 12 to 30 show up everyday. We have a standard game…you put 15 dollars in the pot and we play skins, teams, low net. low gross etc…based on your handicap…lots of fun. Bunch of great guys and have been playing with most of them for the 30 years..

@stranger_in_a_strange_land wow, everyone needs a mild form of AS!

I’m a good neighbour.
Where I live, I have neighbours left and right, the neighbours on my Right are great, There’s an elderly disabled lady and her duahgter. I make sure they are ok when I see them. During the recent cold snap I did thier shopping for them, just checked in on them from time to time without being a pest.
The neighbours on the other side are a bit strange. They complain at the drop of a hat, shout at eachother all the time in thier gardens and leave thier cars parked over my drive. We don’t get on too well with them as you can imagine.
In our street we dont really know the other neighbours too well and that’s the way we like it.

@scotsbloke loll..everyone has one neighbor like that…thank you for the answer!

I am the type of neighbor that I will be there if my neighbors need me, but mainly will keep to myself. If they need my help, would be there in a heartbeat. I am not up in their business and them in mine. Guess, I’m boring. Need to throw a party with loud music and booze. Shake their boots a little. Some are a little too stuffy, however, for me.

@pearls i need you baby!

@pearls Your party would be fascinating. I’ll be the guy in the corner reading a book.

@BoBo1946 What you need, baby? @stranger_in_a_strange_land Don’t be a party pooper and just sit in the corner.

@pearls I like to be around people that are having fun, but my social skills are so poor that I wouldn’t want to ruin things for others. Perhaps best that I not attend

@stranger_in_a_strange_land We need to work on those social skills.

@BoBo1946 As soon as a house comes up for sale I will let you know.
I might even invite you to one of my parties… good food LOLL
@stranger_in_a_strange_land If you like to keep in the background, perhaps you could help me in the kitchen with the food !!

I know the names of two or three of my neighbors on our street…the rest of them I nod hello to but I don’t expect any of them to ‘just show up and hang out’...and I like it that way.

i’ve killed all my neighbors so i guess that would be a big fat no.

I guess I am. I do carry State Farm.

@AstroChuck That is too funny.

@BoBo1946 My dad is very good at golf. He’s been playing about as long as you have. Do you run into people that are total jerks on the golf course?

@partyparty I’d be glad too. I’m a pretty decent cook, too.

“Are you a good neighbor?”

If they are. :-)

@AstroChuck understood, worked for them for 25 years!

We keep the yard clean, our pets do not go outside, we do not have loud parties or make much noise at all, in general. I’d say I’m a great neighbor. Why do I have to associate with the people who live next to me just because they live next to me?

I’m a fabulous neighbor, but so are my neighbors. We share a driveway and a well, so we have to be. Those projects have forced us to know each other. We’re not alike, but we know each other. One of my neighbors is one of my best friends. Another always comes down and looks after my animals if I have to be away – on very short notice. We do have one neighbor who’s an abusive drunk. We’ve covered her share of expenses from time to time rather than speak with her at all.

I’m also a member of a co-op building in the nearest city. I’ve been renting out my space, but I go up there to do my rotations on cleaning the hallways, I serve on committees and do a lot of design work and garden work, and I visit a lot. In a co-op, you have to be a good neighbor because the whole building belongs to everyone, rather than each person owning only their own unit. I think it’s a really good model.

Yup!
I have two elderly neighbors. I’m surrounded. I mow one’s lawn and am a fix-it handy man for both. Electrical, plumbing and carpentry. I take out the trash and recycle bins. Let the dog out when she’s away, shopping or at the Dr.‘s . Bring in the mail when it’s storming. Explain and hook-up the latest in electronics, ie: phones, TV’s, DVD players. Stack three cords in the wood shed every year and fill the inside wood bin for the stove when needed.

Most definitely but, I keep my neighbors at ½ arms length. After all we have to live with these people. I have seen neighbors getting too close and wind up enemies. I want to always be able to be helpful to them, to know them, to be friendly with them. I do think it is a great idea to have a block party at least once a year, so you can reconnect with those neighbors you have not seen lately. We are home all day as we are retired, so we keep an eye out for their homes. My husband repairs things like their lawn mowers for them. If they are having long hours at work or are sick in bed, I will cook extra food and deliver it to them. I especially don’t want to impose myself on them, since I am a person that does impose myself without realizing it until it is too late.