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The Pledge

posted at 1:59 pm
on Sep. 10, 2005

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I’ve decided to be a friendly neighbour.

This building I live in, The Palladio, is probably one of the least friendly buildings I’ve lived in.  The only one that was less so was the corporate housing in Pasadena that Susie and I used mostly as a box to hold our cats and belongings as we geared up to move to France.

It’s not that the people here are mean, or bad or anything.  They just don’t talk.  They don’t talk when you pass them at the door or elevator, they don’t say hello when they come into the weight room, they don’t say hello in the parking garage.

So I’ve made it my mission to say Hello and start a genuine conversation with everyone I see here.  What’s that expression about being the change you wish to see?

It’s not easy.  Sometimes I feel grumpy, and there’s definitely not a lot fo time to try to strike up a connection.  There’s also the fear taht someone will be curt or worse, which would probably be a bit of a downer.

So far, the pledge has been a success on every occasion.  I’ve learned three new names, learned a bit more about the neighbourhood, learned that yes, everyone here HATES the construction, and that no one likes the power outages, either.

What? Oh, did I mention that we had no power for two days this month, and no hot water for about a week?  But I digress.

One thing I didn’t learn is how the guy who parks next to us in the garage can manage to have a brand new snazzy car every three weeks.  It used to be a BMW convertable, beige leather interior.  But now it’s an Audi TT.  I asked him when I saw him sitting in one recently.

He said, “I guess I just like cars a lot.”

I like computers a lot, but I still don’t get a new one every fornight.



 
 

 

Previous entry:
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Real Estate Quiz: When does 1200=900? *

Overheard

“The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.”

...who said it?

“Almost every American I know does trade large portions of his life for entertainment, hour by weeknight hour, binge by Saturday binge, Facebook check by Facebook check. I’m one of them. In the course of writing this I’ve watched all 13 episodes of House of Cards and who knows how many more West Wing episodes, and I’ve spent any number of blurred hours falling down internet rabbit holes. All instead of reading, or writing, or working, or spending real time with people I love.”

...who said it?

“Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, then they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones.”

...who said it?

“I play with variables constantly.”

...who said it?

“Only the person who has learned Continual Love coming from a heart of Gratitude/Worship can effectively deal with the problem of loneliness.”

...who said it?

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