After a week of grey rain, gray clouds, grey people and gray dogs the weekend came with sunburst and starlight. Warm days, warm nights and people acting stupid drunk at 2am on the stoop next door on Saturday night.
With their annoying whiny loud voices discussing earth, movies and fake friends, the drunk and stupid woke me at 2am.
An engaging discussion it was not, so I turned on a Spotify’s white noise selection.
Ocean waves and hypnotic rain drops blended with annoying whiny loud voices and the not engaging discussion, pushed me over the edge. The edge of my bed that is.
Obviously, this did not help.
311 did. 
The cops arrived on the scene and off the stoop went the whiny loud voices along with their not engaging discussion.
Good riddance, good night.
Alas,
hanging with Sandy (Mr. Sandman) was not to be.
Fine…
got up at 7am and ran 10 miles around Ppark. Afterwards came home, showered, dressed and dragged my reluctant Greyhound, Katie out the door.
Reluctance on her part because if she had it her way, she’d sleep for 14 hours instead of pounding the pavement! (Some bad habits must be broken)
We walked.
Up the block, past Ppark, past Brooklyn Public Library, past the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens to the Brooklyn Museum.
Wowza.
(Brooklyn surely in the house with this writing)
We sat, or rather I sat on the steps of the museum, as Katie refused to sit or lay down or just about follow any command coming from my mouth.
All good.
“Neighours…or sometimes it would be nice not to have any”.
On our return home I ran into a neighbour I have not seen in a long while sitting in a chair outside her home. She did not attend my mom’s prayer service. (Not good, so not good)
I listened to her wail over the loss of her own mother, how my mother loved me very much, how she should have come to visit my mom when she was at home, how her son treats her bad, how her daughter treats her bad, how she’s suffering from Dementia, how her hair fell out, how she’s not feeling well, how she’s glad my mom listened to her lawyer advice, how the world is against her…
Enough.
But, at least she asked me how I was.
As Katie and I stood there listening to the never-ending misery of her life (wanting to trade this encounter in for the whiny drunks on the stoop at 2am) another neighbour joined the one-sided conversation. He was on his way to Target to buy a present for a co-worker. (He did attend my mom’s prayer service)
(Thank goodness, my escape excuse to get away from drama and go home).
Neighbour on the way to Target, walked down the block towards where I live, with Katie, and five cats.
Neighbour on the way to Target: “Well, you know my birthday was this month?”
Me: “Oh really when was it?”
Neighbour on the way to Target: “June 5”
Me: “Oh”
Neighbour on the way to Target: “Well don’t bother taking me out to dinner as I’m all dinner out. **** and her husband****took me out to dinner on Wednesday, then I invited them to my student’s recital, and now I’m just dinnered out. Have to buy a gift for a co worker and don’t know what to get her. I’ll get her a vase. Gift certificate you say? No, that’s not a real gift. She’s an older woman and would appreciate a gift than a gift card. Now I don’t mind gift cards but other people really want a gift.”
Enough…
And, he didn’t ask how I was. 
That’s okay.
Just another day in the neighbourhood…
with neighbours you wish you didn’t have.
*****This post is dedicated to quotation marks and I’d like to thank the ellipsis for being accommodating.