Well, its been a while since I last updated this blog, so I thought I'd write today. I can't say today was an overly productive day, but it was enjoyable, and I think a day off housecleaning is a good idea once in a while. I'm still on my weird cleaning spree that started a few weeks ago, but I'm trying to remember to take it a little easier with my due date five weeks away. I've been having a lot of Braxton Hicks these last few days, so I'm definitely not scrubbing floors like I was last week.
So today started out like every other morning, Isaiah woke me up far earlier than I wanted to get up, though not as early as some mornings. We got up and had breakfast, well he had breakfast, I prefer to wait till I wake up a bit. Then he was ornery as all get out, so I put him back to bed for an hour. After that he was just happy as a clam. The weather was beautiful so I decided to take him out for a walk. I wasn't sure where we were going to go, but thought I'd walk around and see what we found. I love walking, but don't do it as much as I used to since I had Isaiah, so I'm trying to take the time to go for walks again, its been nice.
However, here is where the title of this blog comes in... I got maybe halfway down my street (we live at the end of a cul-de-sac) and I see a gentleman talking with a lady on her lawn. Having grown up in a place like Surrey, you don't greet people as you walk down the street, you keep your eyes ahead and mind your own business... that's the safest thing to do, so its what I'm used to. However, out of the corner of my eye I notice the gentleman walking towards me; now I'm thinking he's a salesman of some sort and I'm hoping he'll just ignore me. He calls out and says "Hi there..." I turn and nod and give him my winning fake smile that strangers think is genuine and say hello and continue walking, thinking the exchange is over. "You live at the end of the road, don't you?" ... by now I'm realizing this is not a salesman, but a neighbor... and one who wants to talk... now, I'm not a rude person, but I DO like to keep to myself. I'm not unfriendly, but I'm not terribly neighborly. I've never lived in neighborhoods where people know one another's names and I just prefer anonymity.. its comfortable for me. So now I have the OTHER neighbor coming up as well, this is how the exchange went down.
Man: "Hi there, I'm Kent, I live across the street."
Me: [insert winning fake smile -- again] "Hi Kent, nice to meet you..." I'm trying to sound genuine, but I'm SO uncomfortable I want to crawl into a hole, but don't see one on the neatly manicured lawn.
[Enter woman Kent was talking with earlier]
Woman: "Hi, I'm [insert name here], I was one of the contacts on the flyer that we sent out about the block party on the 14th of August, Not Irene."
--Unfortunately I'm not good with names, so when she said her name wasn't Irene, that's the only part that stuck in my head... so now when I refer to her to my sister and brother-in-law I call her "not Irene"..
Woman: "I knocked on your door this morning, but didn't want to knock too loudly cause I didn't know if the baby was sleeping or not."
At this point I'm confused, but the lights turn on when I realize she thinks I'm my sister...
Me: "Ooooh, that's not my place, I live in the basement, my sister and brother-in-law own the house, my husband and I rent the basement."
--I watch as the lights turn on for both Kent and Not-Irene
Well after a few minutes of discussing the block party that's coming up and them making sure I'd be there (oh joy of joys - nothing I'd rather do that be surrounded by neighbors I'd rather pretend don't exist), discussing large families and small families, babies on the way, grandkids and kids, and every other topic I LOVE discussing with perfect strangers... they notice I'm actually out for a walk! How astute of them!
Kent: "Oh so you're going for a walk, are you?"
Me: "Um.. Yep, just takin' a walk......." Not really sure what I can add to that statement to make it sound less awkward, so I just kinda trail off, hoping they'll just let me go... no such luck!
Kent: "Do you know where Mill Lake Park is??"
Me: "Yeah, I've been there once, but I don't know how we got there, we were just driving around when we first moved in, so I'm not sure where we were.."
Kent: "Oh well you just turn left, then left, then right, then left.... " the instructions carry on and I see my escape route..
Me: "Well I guess I know where I'm going for my walk now! That's wonderful, I should get going."
Kent and Not-Irene: "Oh okay, have a great day Maegen."
I shudder as I hear my name come from unfamiliar people. This is killing my style. I am NOT neighborly!
I walk away as quickly as I can without looking like I'm running, but inwardly I'm sprinting away from this terribly uncomfortable situation... THEN I realize I've left Isaiah's sippy cup sitting on the counter. Well there is NO way I'm walking back down my street and risking another conversation with Kent and Not-Irene. I decide I'll go to the pharmacy down the street and get a sippy (can never have enough of those anyway) and a bottle of water. I walk to the pharmacy, finally getting over that traumatic experience, and grab the water bottle and I'm trying to find a sippy cup. Before I even have a chance to look lost or bewildered I have a clerk asking if she can help me find something. Once again I'm caught off guard, I'm used to having to hunt down a clerk and then them being annoyed that I'd like help, but in Abbotsford apparently they seek out the customer... anyway, she informs me that unfortunately they don't have ANY baby things and that head office recently restocked them and reorganized everything and they took out the baby section. Then chatted with me for five minutes about my upcoming baby and the weather and everything else that seemed terribly out of place for someone I'd never actually met. Toto, we're NOT in Kansas anymore!
I leave the pharmacy and sit on a park bench that's just outside, only to have at least two people come up and talk to me during my brief five minute break. I'm beginning to feel a little bit like I live in a small town. I realize I'm going to have to go back to the house for Isaiah's sippy cup, it is far too hot a day to go for a walk without it.
I get back to the house with no further incidents, run in and grab Isaiah's sippy and begin, once again, to head towards Mill Lake Park. I get about halfway down the road and hear, "Did you get to Mill Lake Park Maegen?" I'm surprised to hear someone call me by name and look over to my left, only to see Kent and another lady walking in my direction. Heaven help me!
Me: "No, had to come back for my son's water, on my way there now." I'm trying to keep my smile genuine, I've got my mom on the phone, but I'm using a handsfree headset, so he doesn't realize I'm on a phone call. I can hear my mom snickering on the other end, she KNOWS how uncomfortable these situations leave me. I'm hoping that if I don't initiate any further conversation that he'll just go away, but apparently I have about as much luck in that department as I have in the lotto department -- not much! Except in this case, I don't even have the option of just not buying the ticket and ignoring my bad luck... here its thrust in my face.
Kent: "This is my wife Irene..." I smile and say hello, making a mental note that at some point I'm going to have to figure out Not-Irene's name... Irene is just as friendly as her husband and wants to make small talk about children and moving into the neighborhood, and how small I am considering I'm due in just over five weeks. They're both very friendly, but I'm just NOT, as I mentioned before, a neighborly person. Finally they let me go and I start walking away, my mom still laughing at me on the phone, and I'm trying to keep the smile on my face, they might have neighbors who would tell them if it suddenly disappeared, I'm walking once again quickly, but trying to appear cool, calm and collected... then I hear my name again - this time to my right. It's Not-Irene telling me to have a good walk.
I finally get off that street onto the crossing street and breathe a sigh of relief as I realize I'm finally on a road where nobody knows my name. Ah bliss.
Now for most normal people, that little exchange would be nothing, even enjoyable, but you've got to remember, up until highschool I was SO shy I wouldn't even look up from the ground. Its only been in recent years I've forced myself to look up and talk to people. I was homeschooled for Kindergarten, and the reason my mom put me into school for grades 1 through 3 was she was hoping it would help me with how shy I was -- it didn't. So while I think its nice that these people are so friendly, it takes me WAY beyond my comfort zone...
Anyway, I went to Mill Lake Park. It was an absolutely beautiful walk, I will post pictures when I'm not so tired. There are at least 4 playgrounds, a water park, a lake, and apparently a swimming pool. I didn't see the pool, but I did see everything else. It was so nice and has a paved path for walking that makes it very stroller friendly. It's a long walk too, I was gone for three hours.
Isaiah slept for most of the walk, but did wake up and enjoy watching the geese. I quite enjoyed the peace and quiet and was only interrupted by strangers saying hello a few times when I was on the boardwalk. Abbotsford really truly IS small town. I'm SO a city girl!
I finally got home and after making Isaiah supper I decided to take a short walk around the block (what better way to start labour?)... as I was walking I, once again, heard my name. It would seem I am doomed now to talk to my neighbors every time I leave my house. Not-Irene makes a point of saying hello every time she sees me, and all the other neighbors wave and say hello. I can see how living in the suburbs will be quite the stretch for me... my family thinks its comical.. I haven't told Garren this story yet, but I'm sure he'll find it quite funny as well... they all think I'm so "funny"... hmmph! lol.
In truth, it is comical. What normal person gets that weirded out by people? Betcha didn't know I was THAT shy, eh? I'm sure that Dean, Bruce, Kent, Irene, Not-Irene and whatever other neighbors I have that I have yet to meet will drag the shyness right out of me! lol.
So yes, that was my day getting to know my neighbors.... There's more to post, but it will have to wait till tomorrow. Its nearly 1am and I am sure Isaiah will be up early, and we're going to Whonnock Lake tomorrow.. so I need to have SOME energy!
Love you all,
Maegen
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