This is a love story to my neighborhood. I feel like I belong, and I love the new dynamic in the area.
I don’t live in a “destination neighborhood.” (Did you know those even exist here in Wausau?) When we decided to buy our first house, our budget point was so low, we were only on the market for foreclosed houses or very small houses. We’re simple people with simple needs, so we chose the small house. In less than 1,000 square feet, we’ve made a home for ourselves and our kids. We plan to eventually add on to the house rather than move. Why? I love this neighborhood.
We’re about a mile from downtown and my husband’s work. We are just a three-block walk from our neighborhood diner (we love you, Blue Willow) and a 15-minute walk from a nice park (Scholfield Park). I love our house, and I love our huge backyard. We feel very lucky.
But more importantly, I feel accepted here. I feel like I belong. Yesterday I was sitting in the backyard watching my husband build a fence around our new garden plot, and I could see the newest neighbors down the street doing some heavy landscaping in their own yard. The house they bought was a joke when we first moved here. I called it the “pitbull house,” because they had a sign advertising pit bull puppies for sale years ago. The house was for sale for at least a year or two because it hadn’t been maintained properly. It was an eyesore.
When it was finally bought, I hoped for the best, and I quickly saw improvements. They renovated the front porch to give the house an instant facelift. They added potted plants. A few weeks ago, they cut down the huge evergreen tree that blocked most of the house from view, and the house had been reborn. Now they are working on their yard, and I feel so proud of them. In my head, I imagine they are like us… so excited to buy a home and so proud to care for it.
The house next door to that was for sale as well, and it wasn’t in as bad of condition, but it had some attractiveness problems. Last week a painting crew came and worked magic. Another house is in the “pretty” category.
We’re not a wealthy neighborhood, but most of us own our homes. I remember renting a house, and I itched to upgrade the yard and really do something special with the curb appeal. It was cost prohibitive to do anything other than keep up with the lawn mowing, and my landlord, though very kind, wasn’t going to do much with it. In a neighborhood full of rental homes with a bunch of people who weren’t responsible for the properties, there wasn’t much to look at, not much to bond over.
Here, we have something special. Alice across the street has a lavish display of her green thumb. Troy next door keeps his lawn very clean and well maintained. Down the street, there is a couple who spend many hours a week trimming hedges, mowing their lawn and tending flower beds. Broken fixtures are replaced. Yards are kept tidy. We may not be rich, but we care, and we are proud of our properties.
We’re trying to do what we can with our limited budget. This year we plan to reglaze our windows since we can’t afford to replace them yet. We need to tear out our front walkway and replace it with bricks. Paint touch-ups are on the list, with a complete repainting next year. We’re not flipping our house, we are putting down roots, and I think that’s the same story with our neighbors.
(Now if I could only get rid of my stranger anxiety and go and introduce myself to these people…)
What is it like where you live? If you rent, do your landlords do anything to upgrade the property other than the bare minimum? Do you care?
Saltpeter
3:50 pm on June 3rd
I can tell from your description that I grew up in your neighborhood. Blue Willow was an A&W and a white farm barn was there before that. I played Little League, fished and ice skated at Schofield Park. I’m glad you like the old hood and embrace it. Fond memories abound.
Moved to the mid eastside 30 years ago. Same type of neighborhood. 50’s era homes. I’ve liked that, too. Closer to downtown. Eastside or westside…home is were the heart is. Your post warmed mine. The old hood sounds like it is in good hands. Keep up the good work and….go meet the neighbors!
John H. Fischer
3:54 pm on June 3rd
I am not really a people person and I am a firm believer that good fences make good neighbors.
My first house was just a stones throw from Lake Dubay.. it was the PERFECT bachelor pad, a small 1,008 sq.ft. 3 bedroom house… however what made it perfect was the 3 stall detached garage in the back of the property in addition to the 2 car garage by the house, plus it sat on two acres.
Behind me was farm land, accross the street was forest. On the south were neighbors in a large old farm house on a couple of acres that I never met (however we would wave if mowing the lawn at the same time as our tractors approached each other).. the house on the north was identical to mine (without the second garage) and was a rental I managed – so I got to pick my neighbors, more people who thought good fences make good neighbors.
A few years I moved closer to town (really close, my east and south property lines are also City Limits for Wausau). It is a century-old farm house that has gone through many rennovations, and as a buffer to neighboring properties, it sits on 3 acres.
A line of mature balsams are a visual barrier between my lot and most of the surrounding City of Wausau properties. We have another line of trees along the west property line and I have not yet met the people who live there, nor have I met any of the people who live accross the street.
I do share a driveway with my neighbor to the east and we have met and talked a couple of times, but I couldn’t tell you their name.
The only neighbor I really see on a regular basis has a property that borders mine near the south-east corner of my lot… he is one of our local television personalities and a really nice guy. He does a great deal of yard and landscaping work, and it is much easier for him to move in with large landscaping trucks if he comes from the back of my property, so I see him on a regular basis as he makes sure its okay for them to come accross (which it always is)
I miss my old yard… 2 acres of flat with 1 tree… really easy to mow and no need to rake as after a good wind, my leaves became someone elses problem. This yard has a ton of trees and other items to mow around.. and Mrs Rent has a list of more things she wants (water features, more trees, etc). So far, I have been able to keep things where they are… afterall.. its more fun to mow over stuff than it is to mow around.
Jim Rosenberg
6:08 pm on June 3rd
Nice post and comments. I grew up on the southeast side and I was happy to be able to return to Wausau after a half dozen years in the Air Force. After four years living in the downtown area, we were able to return to the southeast side within four blocks of the home I grew up in. The kids grew up going to the same parks and walking up and down the same streets that I did. I pass the house where my high school girlfriend lived whenever I go to my parents’ home (but of course, now she’s at my house because we’ve been married for almost 34 years.) Wausau has some great neighborhoods filled with people who take pride in their community. It makes all the difference in the world. The slogan “Welcome Home to Wausau” is very much on target for many people.
Cheryl Mathis
6:13 pm on June 3rd
It’s so true about that sign, Jim! I lived here in Wausau until I was 11 when we moved to the northwoods. The first time we came back to Wausau after we moved, that sign was waiting for me, and I wept like a baby.
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