The Grass is No Longer Greener on the Other Side

We have brand new grass and it’s the greenest on the street. I want to cavort in it, but I’m not allowed for two weeks.



I didn’t do any writing again last night. The neighbours are just too much fun.

I live in an eclectic neighbourhood. S. has dubbed it “Leave it to Beaver meets Queer Eye for the Straight Guy meets Trailer Park Boys”.

There are a surprising number of kids on the street (when we bought, it looked so sketchy we thought no one else would dream of raising kids here). A few doors down there’s a family with 3 girls. There’s a 9-month-old boy across the street. Another couple just came back from China with a baby girl the same age as Cakes. Two guys up the street have 3 adopted kids and are getting a fourth! Lots of future playmates for Cakes.

There are also lots of playmates for S. and I. Last night we had a backyard cocktail party to celebrate the grass. I thought it would be a little two-hour thing. To my embarrassment, we came with an Ace bread and some tapenade (not homemade) and beer in hand. Some of the others went to a little more effort. The foodies had smoked duck breast on pita bread. They had a “drink of the day” (a delightful gin and lemony concoction with a big skewer of exotic fruit). Someone else had shrimp wraps with sprouts and poppy seeds. The nice thing is, with a little baby in the house, no one expects much from you.

We all got along like Chardonnay and smoked salmon. We ended up traipsing through each other’s homes, oohing and aahing. Some of them are stunning. We are one of the few who don’t have a wine cooler built in to our kitchen cabinetry.

My next-door-neighbour gave me a good (albeit slurry) pep talk about being a perpetual student. He started his undergrad at 37 and just finished his MA. He quit his well-paying government job and is now a sculptor. He kept telling me how young I am, which made me feel really good. He lent me a book about finding my inner artist.

I managed to steal away to bed at about 1 am, only after promising the guys next door to meet for martinis on the front step at 9:30 in the morning, after which we’d go for pedicures. I was out there this morning but they stood me up. I’m going to leave a note: “where were you, bitches”.

We’re off for the weekend tomorrow. I’ll try to post something tonight, but if not… ‘til Tuesday.