Am I the only one that has never heard of NNO? (National Night Out) For the past two months I have seen signs all over neighboring towns, announcing this neighborhood party for the 6th of October. We were told by many neighbors and by fliers in our mailbox, about this night for neighbors to gather and donate canned goods to the food shelter, while enjoying some mingling and free food. So, Paul and I went last night and had an awesome time. We met several more neighbors and our neighbors to the right, whom we haven't talked with yet.
Its fun to get to know who you're living by. Such as...our neighbor two houses down. Seems to be the peeping tom from afar. In a good way though. I remember the first time we met him weeks ago, he made some comment like" this neighborhood really watches out for everyone. If people go on vacation, there's always someone around to keep an eye on your house. Yep, there's someone allllllways watching." Ok, good in a safety sort of way. Bad in a nosey, I'm gonna watch everything you do sort of way. I get the feeling that ANYTHING you do, will go unnoticed by him. I find myself wondering if he wont like the flowers I plant in front, or the compost heap that is in the back. He even asked me about it last night, wondering what the heck it was. To which I responded "it's a compost pile in the making...just need to get a compost bin to contain it." Lol. Seriously though, why should I care? This is a free country, and people will always have an opinion on what you do.
Anyway, so we got up to speed on the neighborhood details...the mayor lives in the neighborhood...so does the manager of walmart (can you tell we live in a glamorous community?)...they are widening our highway out here from 2 to 6 lanes (collective groan)...pretty interesting stuff. And, to top it off, I even made some stupid remark that made everyone laugh. I'm still reeling from the shame today...our neightbor owns a male and female dog . He was talking with a few other neighbors and I admit, I was slipping in and out of interest in the conversation. So, while I checked out for a minute or two, when I finally came around, I heard the dog neighbor say "yeah, and she's pregnant again, seems like she's always having kids!". Dont ask me why, but I exclaimed "Oh! Your dog's pregnant???" And clearly, by the way everyone bursted out laughing I had misunderstood. No, some girl I dont even know is pregnant. So, way to go Alexa. I'm still hiding in my house today hoping by the time I am visible to the neighbors once again, they will have forgotten my comment.
I've had to learn fast and hard that I can't put so much stock in what other people think of me- especially those who only know me in glimpses who aren't around me enough to know the real me. That's hard to do when my personality is naturally inclined to be a people pleaser! Instead, I have to remember to remain steadfast in my beliefs and philosophies (this is ESPECIALLY true in education) and be content with the fact that I am truly doing what I believe is the best. Not everyone will agree with me, and that is okay. A phrase I've learned to use recently with one of the four parents I have this year who teach in other districts (she believes my standards and expectations are too high-- umm, sure, let's LOWER the standard- that's just what we all need! ha!) is, "You and I may simply have to agree to disagree- we both are firmly rooted in our educational philosophies, and I believe I am doing the best thing for your child." You can use that phrase with your neighbor if he starts snooping again. You guys will do what you believe to be the best for your property, and he will have to learn that he doesn't have that power of intimidation over you. I love you tons and tons and really am getting desperate to see you!!!
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