Wednesday, January 26, 2011

I See You Seeing Me

I love my house. When I thought of what my dream house in town would be, it has always been one of the big houses, on a corner, with a high retaining wall. So, when this one was for sale, there was no way we could pass it up!

The only downside has been the only neighbors house is a bit too close to ours. It's not like we can reach out and touch it or anything, but it's pretty close.

When it was our first neighbor, an elderly woman, she always kept her curtains closed. We never saw inside her house. And this is possible, especially when I'm doing the dishes because our kitchen window sits higher than their windows, and I can look right in. The new neighbors seem to like fresh air and sunshine just as much as us and their blinds are always open.

I try not to. But....

Well, when you've got nothing to look at while you are doing dishes except your neighbors house, you can't help yourself.

That is how I know they've got a large Guinea pig. They like nutcrackers. They rearranged some furniture. And their bathroom is a straight shot from my kitchen window through their house.

For a long time I couldn't figure out what I was looking at. Was their bathroom painted a weird shade of green? Um, no. If the bathroom door is open, the giant mirror reflects my kitchen window back at me. I am seeing the outside of my house.

That's cool. Sometimes I wonder if I can see myself, but it's too far (and my eyesight to bad) for me to tell. I really try not to stare too much, but when I'm at the sink, I almost can't help but glance over.

Today I saw myself reflected back. It was super startling! Even more so when I realized that was NOT me. It was one of the neighbors looking out through their window at our house. I'd never have known because of the shading inside, but thanks to that mirror, I could see their shape in front of my house's reflection.

I stopped staring. Then I glanced back. Still there.

So.....a bit awkward. But honestly, if they weren't already looking into our house too, what kind of neighbors would they be? Not my kind, that's for sure!

2 comments:

  1. I understand about looking out the window. My kitchen window faces our neighbors bathroom. The 'frosted' glass technique really is not a privacy screen. I have a full view of them doing their business all the time. And since it is the only thing I can see out my window, I must look. The worst was when they were working on their upstairs bathroom, which also faces our kitchen, and I was once again staring when the wife looked out. An awkward wave followed and then I tried to find something else to look at!

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  2. Love this post! Matt's and my first apartment was above a busy street and our kitchen washing-dishes window looked out on a stop light. I had so many awkward eye contact moments with strangers stopped at the light. And forget about running to the fridge in your birthday suit! :)

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