New Neighbors on All Sides of the Fence

You know how things seem to go along as usual for a time and then all of a sudden, major things change. That seems to be a certainty of life. Like the Texas weather, stick around, it'll change.

Over the past two weeks at our homestead, things have changed dramatically when it comes to neighbors.



Crandall's

First of all, the major landmark on the corner known as Crandall's went up for sale after some of the usual hollering and fussing that goes with a tenant leaving having no desire to do so. Trucks came and left, taking out load after load of teetering piles of poorly packed belongings. A few days later, a yellow notice went on the front door.

There has been a for sale sign in the yard for a month now and the house sits empty. A Constable has been to the door at least twice looking for someone. Plus I think I've inherited their leftover cats.

Then, the folks who bought Troy and Edie's house behind us have some new people living in their garage apartment. Tony has enjoyed the exercise of running to the fence and looking for the lady's dog, whom he calls Brandy. She is the girlfriend of his imagination.

This past week folks came out and staked out a section of the pasture behind their house and fenced it in with horse fencing. The area is directly in the view from my back porch, which, other than when Edie's front yard caught on fire, hasn't changed much in twenty plus years.

Well, the Popcorn Tree has grown quite large in that time; "See the tree how big it's grown".

That afternoon they brought a beautiful horse into the pasture so naturally I began to worry: there are no trees, no shelter, no shade for the animal. Which reminds me that I must soon capture the kitties and get them to the vet. Fortunately the temperatures are mild at this time of the year.

These are the best two weeks to visit weather wise here in Texas. Then came that torrential rain a couple of nights ago. Poor horsie. I was much relieved to watch them build a feed stall for the horse this week. Another new impact on the landscape: A corrugated steel shed and the silhouette of a horse on that side now. Not too bad.

Back in May, the proud new owner of the neighboring ten acres closer toward the lake knocked on our door and introduced himself. He asked if we minded him trimming some of our trees that hung over the fence line. I thought that was really considerate and thoughtful of him. Over the past few months, he and his family have followed exactly what we did when we first bought our property. We camped out here on the weekends, mowing a patch of grass here and there on the huge chunk of land envisioning our future homestead. They have barbecued and laughed and planned their way toward their dream home which has broken ground this week after they finished building the perimeter fence.


Early Saturday morning, just after seven, I heard heavy machinery operating nearby. Now that is an unusual happening out here in the boonies; to hear the roar of a cement mixer rev up its engine and start to drop its load. We peered out of our second story window to view the work in progress. All week there had been workmen on the neighboring property who built the wood frame and tied in iron rod for the structural support of the foundation now being poured.

Before long our view will be permanently altered to include their residence now fully in progress. I'm grateful that they placed the base of the house far enough back where we still can enjoy the view from the front porch. That was a major concern while we freely enjoyed the unimpaired view of sunset for the past two decades.

Welcome to the neighborhood.