Since Non-English Speaking Neighbors have somewhat vacated their house (and I say 'somewhat' because they seem to come back randomly, maybe to cart off more stuff - who knows), nothing has been touched on the property. It cracks me up that the blinds haven't been moved from their half-open, slightly askew positions in weeks. Not even the listing Real Estate Agent has bothered to straighten them up.
That being said, it should be a given that they haven't mowed the yard. Heck, I don't know if they mowed it any this spring before they moved out. So, the grass in their backyard grew to about waist high. I'm not sure about the front, as I have not ventured around to take a look. But what I do know is this: I don't think that waist-high grass is beneficial to anyone. I certainly don't want the things that are attracted by tall grass to migrate into my yard and meet up with my dogs. That's not likely to be good for anyone.
So, being the kind person I am, I called the City. I wasn't sure if there was a code in place that would cover this issue, but by golly I was going to find out. Of course, I had to leave a message in the Code Enforcement office, and thought it would be days before I received a return call, if at all. I was wrong. A very sweet lady called me back about an hour later, and informed me that there was indeed a code to cover such a thing. She explained how the whole thing works, took the address, and told me that even if foreclosure was in process the legal owner (who still happens to be NESN) is still responsible for maintenance on the property. Great.
Obviously they care enough to treat the house and yard with the very best, so I could only imagine how they would remedy the problem of the jungle grass. I could just see coming home to find a herd of goats nibbling away at anything and everything sitting still. Wouldn't that be a treat? (I might could stand it if they were like the 'Aflac' goat and could talk.) Or maybe when we least expected it (like at 9pm), we'd hear the roar of the lawn mower; but only in 30-second spurts since his favorite mowing method is one small strip at a time. What a giant leap for mankind that would be.
And then it happened. While Husband was at home just a day or two after I called the City to complain, he actually witnessed the mowing taking place. What was even more spectacular was that it was done all at once, during the day, by an individual who seemed to actually know what he was doing. Husband heard the mower and took a peek to see what was going on. There was an older gentleman on a riding mower dutifully chopping away at the grass bent on world domination. His wife (or who Husband assumed to be the man's wife) hung out on the back porch and supervised. Not only was this very exciting because the jungle grass was being put in its place, but it ignited a spark of hope. Maybe it's possible that we can have some normal neighbors back there again. Husband was tempted to go ask them if they were buying the house, but was afraid his hopes and dreams might be crushed if he heard that they were just there to mow.
So maybe the hopes of normal neighbors was a little premature, but at least the jungle grass is gone - for now. And we won't have to just strive to keep the jungle creatures that I'm sure were hiding back there away from the dogs. I'd rather not have to wrestle a giant rodent from the jaws of a small but very strong and determined dog. Again.
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