"expanding upon the neighbor concept"

Official word just came in from Current Landlord:

1. Awesome Leasing Agent *is* buying the building. He shall temporarily be known as Awesome Soon-to-be-Landlord.
2. Once the paperwork for sale is filed with the bank and there's no threat of an additional appraisal, landscaping work on the back garden will begin; Mrs. NextDoor, who just had her yard completed by the company Current Landlord and Awesome Soon-to-be-Landlord have retained, is an attorney handling the paperwork and designating when moving forward with the landscape architects is a go. (And she likes my attempts at homey prettiness with potted plants in the front courtyard.)
3. New 3rd floor tenant, another single professional gal, is moving in today.  She's clearly stressed and frazzled and too warm at the moment, but is also personable and sweet-seeming.
4. Annoying 2nd floor tenants who come and go at 4am and smoke cheap cigarettes on the stoop outside my window will be leaving at summer's end when their lease expires.
5. Sweet basement tenant will be serving as resident caretaker once the landscaping is done and upkeep = sweeping courtyards and stoop and setting out the trash every week.

I'll also get a chance to meet the guys who will be doing the work on the backyard -- they're coming in after work one night this week to change out the window gate so that I can fit an air conditioner into the bedroom -- and will hear their side of the appraisal on how the backyard will look, how fast the work will go, etc.

It's a miniature neighborhood! It's as fun and open and welcoming as I had hoped! And two days outside with no rain or icy wind have allowed me to actually *meet* my not-of-the-building neighbors and hang with the friendliness.

SO EXCITING!

Lowe's delivery is coming this week (air conditioner, circulating fan, dustbuster). I've missed out on the CSA but am enjoying Farmer's Marketing and making semi-weekly trips to Whole Foods Paycheck. I'm making friends independent from work and intentionally exposing myself to things I've not seen or done before (roller skating with Roller Derby girls? Totally new and outside my unccordinated-geek comfort zone!). And having an absolute ball.

Sure, there are things that would make life a little easier, a little more pleasant, but on the whole this experiment is succeeding beyond my expectations. Whee!

First published at TheNines