The "Memories of Neighbors Past" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Talking about all the new neighbors we have.  Seems that many of the neighbors that we got to know after moving into our "Beach House" have departed.  Hank, our next door neighbor to the south, who would do just about anything for you, moved because of business, but then shortly after moving, died.  Next to him were friends who we would talk with most every day as they walked their dog past our house.  Now they have departed the neighborhood.  Across the street to  the front of our house lived Jackie and Bill.  Great neighbors whom we shared dinner with many times.  

Photograph of our "Beach House" that our neighbor Bill
took one snowy day years ago.  

Bill became ill and they had to move to a retirement community.  Then Carol and I began to talk about all the neighbors we had when we lived in the neighbor- hood known as Grandview Heights.  We lived in a semi-detatched home on a tree-lined street.  Next to us in the house that wasn't attatched to us lived Frank and Alice.  Frank was a short, frail man who was more than twice my age.  He loved to talk of the "old days" with me.  He had no time for neighbors who didn't take care of their properties.  He would often tell me that so and so's house looks like a whore house.  Frank passed and we sort of adopted Alice as our grandmother, inviting her to holiday dinners and events.  More than once I recall having to walk next door to her house to retrieve her teeth so she could share dinner with us.  Alice had a 1955 Buick sedan that she would allow me to drive.  Neat car that reminded me of my Grandpap's car.  Next to Frank and Alice, in the other half of their semi, lived Blanch and Bill who were about the same age as Frank and Alice.  Bill was disabled, but still had enough energy to curse at Blanche on a daily basis.  Bill eventually died and I ended up doing repair work for Blanche until she too died.  Behind us lived a family who had relocated from Viet Nam.  The father had been a General in the South Viet Nam Army.  Great family, but I do remember one time when Carol and I decided to throw away quite a few items and placed them in the rear alley for the trash man.  The following weekend the neighborhood held a yard sale and while walking past the rear neighbor's house, we noticed all our trash for sale in their yard. Our final neighbors whom we recall lived in the other half of our house.  I have so much I could write about them, but one event will give you an idea about them.  Fred hated to do work of any kind around the house.  One time they decided to play croquet in the rear yard.  They got out the push mower, mowed a croquet route through the foot high grass and put up the wickets.  I think you have an idea how well they kept their half of the duplex.  Memories are fun to share.  Living those memories at times were stressful, but as I look back on them now, I don't think I would have wanted it any other way.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.