Neighbors

 I consider all my neighbors beneath me. 

OK, that's because I live on the second floor and my apartment straddles both of their units. But still...

I think I have mentioned The Gilmore Girls before. I believe they have been here for 15 years. I wasn't sure how old mother Gilmore was. I met them when I moved in last year and, being curious as to who had lived in my place before me, I asked how old the woman was. She had to think about that a bit, and she told me she was the same age as her. I asked what age that was. She thought a bit more. After several long moments, it turned out to be 74. Daughter Gilmore is about 45. When my brother helped me move in here, we both thought something was a little off about her. Somewhere on the spectrum, we figured. She is on disability. 

I chat them up whenever I see them. It's usually a disjointed conversation, taking many turns for no obvious reason, and often about their cats. They are not deceptive though. Just different. I was very surprised and pleased when they told me how anti-Trump they were. We had sheltered in the basement of this old house when a tornado warning went out. In this part of the country, you take that shit seriously. They were pleased as well that I am staunchly anti-Trump myself. Honestly, I would have guessed they were maga. I don't think I look like maga. I like to think I'm still as young and pretty as I used to like to think I was. I'm not, but it's nice to think so. If I could only convince women to think so. 

For several months there was an 18-year-old nursing student named Jada. She was either terminally shy or painfully aloof. I'll never know as she moved. She was the sort of person who would walk right by her neighbors without a look or any sort of acknowledgement, whatsoever. Unless you said "hello". Then you would exist, and she would force a smile and a hello, but that would be it. Really that was fine. I had 50 years on her. We weren't going to be lovers or pals. For her own good, and for her profession, I thought it behooved her to open up a bit. Both her parents were quite sociable whenever they came to visit. Go and figure. She moved out as quietly as she strolled across the lawn after parking. 

Which brings us to the new guy downstairs. I think his name is Jeremy. I'm basing this on the landlord calling him that as, though it's been a couple of months, I haven't met him yet. Though I'm more social than your average Jada, I really haven't wanted to meet the guy. The night in July when we were in the basement for another tornado, The Gilmore Girls told me he was a pedophile. 

Well, that tracked. I had figured ex-con of some sort because other people had rented the unit for him. I overheard the landlord mention Section 8 to one of the men who had come to check out the apartment. Several people were involved in setting up the place for this guy before I ever saw him, and thus, I figured ex-con being setup for a new life. I don't think pedophile crossed my mind even when I saw him and he kind of looked like Homer Simpson with an Amish beard. I'm not going to say I'm comfortable around criminals, but I worked in Memphis around hundreds. I keep out of their way, I keep an eye out for them, and I carry a knife. Just in case. 

The Gilmore Girls may be 100% right about him, but they can be unreliable narrators. They got that information from the next-door neighbors, whom I have a nodding acquaintance with, so it's third hand to me. Evidently, the guy had introduced himself to the neighbor and wife and laid out his story. I was thinking that might be some sort of legal requirement, but I don't know. The Girl's haven't met him yet either and they are more interested in neighbors than I am though they never met Jada either. Go and figure. 

From my perch here as I write, surf the web and play golf, and with the a/c off and the windows open again, I hear things. Whoever the guy talked to yesterday was, he talked a lot about his time in prison. I'm still not knowledgeable regarding his crime, but yeah, the girls are probably right. Given the layout of this house, our paths have yet to cross. He doesn't have a car, so there is none of that back and forth as with The Girls and when Jada was here. This is to say, I've got excuses for not chatting the guy up. I just don't want to.

I should get it from him though. He might just turn out to be a basic murderer. That's something we could talk about! "Hey, what's it like to murder? Is it as messy as it looks in the movies?" I can't sit and chat up a pedophile though. Just can't. There's no 'oops' or hot blood involved in pedophilia. You don't make a mistake and accidentally rape a kid one day and promise to never do it again. Most crimes are ultimately forgivable- except that one. I have no desire to kick his ass. or otherwise abuse him. Presumably the cons take care of that in prison. I'm not one of those who thinks our nation's killers and ner do wells should get justice for society in regard to pedophiles. Yeah, they put a hurt on them, but it sounds like they mostly shake them down for their commissary and simply don't respect the crime. No one does or should.

We will see how it all plays out and what the truth is. When Jada left, I held out hope for a single woman around my age. Hey- maybe the Gilmore Girls will move out! I never know what's next. You just deal with what you've got.