A funny thing happens when you live in this neighborhood- people point at you. Well, not you, but the house. I spend a lot of time in my living room, which has a huge window. It’s a big arch of vintage plate glass about 7 feet tall, and just as wide and it frames a big pine tree that has to be at least 100 years old. Under the tree sits my old white wooden bench where I change the pillows to reflect the season. My neighbors know my house based on the pillows out front. My living room couch faces that window. Despite the fact that we have a beautiful dining room, Alex and I eat dinner at our coffee table in front of the TV, and that huge window. Alex sits on the floor, and I sit (yes, in my PJ’s) on the couch, and we eat dinner while watching Mythbusters, or Modern Family, or some other show. When we first moved in, we started noticing that people walking by would be riveted to what was happening behind this big window. It was as if we were the TV show, and people couldn’t take their eyes off of us. They would walk from one side of the window to the other, and just stare into our living room. Drivers would noticeably slow down, and point at our house. For some reason, it seemed as though they thought we couldn’t see them. As if the window were one of those one sided police interrogation type mirrors. You could only see in and not out, which let’s face it – makes no sense at all. Yet, every day, people continue to stare. Eventually, Alex started to wave at them, as if to say “Yes, we can see that you are staring at us.”

How to be Neighborly: If people stare, just smile and wave.

We wondered- what are they pointing at? Were we special? Was it because we were new to the neighborhood? No, it had nothing to do with us. We found that we started to do the same thing when we would take our dog Wiley for a walk. Drivers wouldn’t just slow for our house, they would slow at several houses. And it got noticeably worse during the holidays- when our neighborhood erupts with Holiday Spirit, Christmas trees appear in those giant windows, and home owners carefully highlight the historical rooflines with twinkling lights. It is as if we are all transported to a different time when we walk or drive along these streets. You are immersed in history, beauty, and all you can do is stare. We understand. Just ignore my PJ’s, please.

Perfectly Clean Windows

Where you can see out, and neighbors can see in.

• Newspaper
• Mix of 50/50 Distilled White Vinegar and Water

Spray on vinegar, wipe clean with newspaper.