The wonderful Janet was my neighbor until the middle of May. She was quiet and rock solid dependable. I always knew that if there was an emergency I could pound on our adjoining wall and she'd be at my door in a heartbeat with a level head and willingness to help. I miss that and I miss her humor and her caring heart. We cried when she left. The new neighbors are quiet and they seem to be fine, but they're not Janet.

I'm very fond of my landlords, who live upstairs (my studio is a 120-year-old in-law unit). When I came to look at the apartment, five people were already here vying to be the next tenant(s). All had jobs and references. I was new in town, an impoverished student, and had neither. I got the apartment. Much later, when I asked my landlords why they rented to me, they replied that I fit their criteria for a desirable tenant: Young, eccentric and possessed of an irrational desire to become a writer. Twenty years on, I'm still here, watching the hummingbirds outside my window.

As for the neighbors in the buildings around me -- and there are many -- some are better/worse than others. They come and go. I abide.

I am blessed with amazing neighbors on both sides and two houses down. We sit each others' animals, and know we can call on each other for help at any time. At the same time, we also respect each others' privacy in a neighborhood with small urban lots. All in all the perfect balance.

This is a huge improvement over our last neighborhood half a country away, where, during the year I was in the house alone (my husband moved a year ahead of me), I was stalked by the creepy next door neighbor.

I'll never forget my neighbor from my first horrible apartment. Before the laundry facilities burnt to a crisp, I had already had to call the police on an older man who continually exposed himself...one day even drunkenly watering the bushes outside my window naked at 2 in the morning....ick

I don't think I've ever packed quicker.

Not my story, but the house next door to my parent's was sold... to a woman who purchased it as housing for her son in his first year at the local college. He planned on having several roommates.

The mom went door to door, giving everyone within a few house radius her cell phone number with instructions Absolutely To contact her if there were any problems at all. Parties. Noise. Etc.

Awesome. Neighbor.

My husband and I lived in San Francisco for 3.5 years, and for the entire time in our one apartment there, we had the best neighbor ever! Nealan was the sweetest person. She always stopped in the hall when we crossed paths to chat, and often came over to say hi (as did we).

One night I was in our place alone when the power went out. It was pitch black and I only had a few candles around. I knocked on Nealan's door, and she grabbed a few of her candles and came back with me to drink wine on the couch and talk for an hour while we waited for the power to come back on. Just one of the nights I realized how lucky we were to have such a great person right next door! =)

My next door neighbors to the south are a lovely family. The husband and wife moved in with no kids, and now their three boys are tweens. It's been marvelous to watch them being raised so sensibly and kindly. Their kids are so good that they make me more optimistic about the future.

I love this upbeat post, it's so heartwarming! May I add mine? Carolyn has lived next door to my parents for 34 years. She and my mom were like sisters, even though she was 20 years younger. Carolyn's husband Tom was like my mom's younger brother she left behind in Norway. Mom pulled the 5 kid's teeth, she didn't have the stomach for it. Mom and dad passed away 1 and 3 years ago and now I'm living in their house. When I told Carolyn she was like an aunt to me she said she wanted to be like a sister. It's worked out that way. We dash over to each other's houses and help each other at the drop of a hat. Two years now we've shared a share at the CSA and we drive there together every week, picking berries and chatting. She's freaked out by critters that get into her house, I help her get them out. I have a hard time in a personal situation, she offers me a clear headed way of looking at it. I give her my baked goods, she gives me flowers from the garden I designed and installed for her 15 years ago. I dread when I have to sell this house and move. Even though it'll only be a block or two away (that's the plan anyway), it won't be the same. We share the same aesthetic in music and reading and laugh ourselves silly over faux pas. Love you, Carolyn, my second sister next door neighbor.

I haven't missed my neighbor, but I do miss her awesome cat Benny.Since I don't have a pet because I travel too much, he was a great substitute. He was the coolest cat around, and would always brighten my day giving me some affection. When I came in through the gate he would run up to meet me meowing and giving me snuggles. Sometimes he'd be waiting for me outside my door while I was inside. I miss him a lot. :(

i adore my upstairs neighbor, Chuckles. she looks after my kitty when i'm out of town, will let me borrow a roll of TP if i run out, makes me waffles and is overall the best person to live under. i seriously don't know what i'd do without her.

our complex is rather small and we are all friendly with each other...especially after experiencing an early morning building fire a few years ago. there's nothing like standing in the middle of the street at 5am with your building mates, looking at your apartment about to go up in flames.

This is my first time living on my own, so I don't have many neighbor stories. I do, however, have an awesome neighbor. Larry lives in the apartment next to mine and is probably 30 years older than me. The day I was moving my washer and dryer in, he stopped to help, before he even introduced himself! That's just the type of man he is. He always says hello to me and my dog, and gives me fatherly advice when he sees me (aka shouldn't you be wearing a coat?). With this being my first time out there, it's been great to have a next door neighbor who I can count on.

The first neighbor I moved to my current place. We had kind of blocked him in moving stuff but instead of getting mad, he stopped in to introduce himself and actually helped move up the sofa that was large and awkward. Sadly enough he moved out about a year later and so far every neighbor that moves in has been annoying either with more cars than they are allowed, loud music, smoking right outside my door (I wouldn't care if they are in their apartment), and the latest installed a LARGE satellite dish to their balcony.

We have great neighbours who let our dog out when we run into difficulties, and accept veggies we have too many of, and are a great source of advice about all the rest of the neighbourhood.

I've learnt Neighbours are best kept at a distance. My mother was unfortunate enough to have a govt funded house for a special needs family put across the road from her. From burning her van down in the driveway to macing her dog, snapping the necks of her birds and throwing random tools at her house.

When I did move out I found myself flanked on one side by some of the rudest people I've ever had the misfortune to meet, and on the other side a single mother who constantly screams at her boyfriends and ignores her barking dog which I had to train over the fence.

I highly doubt I'll even want to meet my neighbours the next time I move, the less I know them the better.

I had the most amazing neighbor, Sean. He would let me know if anyone was poking around our yard or apartment parking lot. He once gave my husband a bike. His wife crocheted me a tablecloth as a wedding gift. But most of all, he was ALWAYS friendly and happy to stop and talk, and those little conversations make life so much more pleasant. When we left town, I told my husband we would never have another neighbor like Sean, and sadly, that has proved to be the case.

However, the jerks downstairs have just moved out, so maybe there's hope for the future!

My most memorable neighbors came from the four years and two apartments I lived on the same street: Paul, the manic shoveler who would clear spots for his wife and my roommate and then ice the tires of anyone who stole the spots. Who also LOVED grilling and would clear a path to his grill in the dead of winter. Jerry, the retiree who painted the exterior of house with a paintbrush and who kept all of the neighborhood squirrels fat and happy. Clay, the 15 year old punk kid who would skateboard in his bedroom. And then for a while my sister lived across from us, and my best friend lived below her. We'd throw up our windows and talk across the yard. It was fantastic.

We live in a cul-de-sac and there are 18 houses, all are nice, a few are great, one is frequented by the local RCMP. Pretty great odds, really. I babysit the next door girl and tow of my boys go to school (one very part time) and 3 of us moms share the walking.
We have a grass "island" in the middle where the kids all play all summer and ride their bikes around. In the winter some of the dads make the middle of the island into a snow hill for the kids.
We're going to be moving in about 2 years to a regular street and I'm already feeling apprehensive about leaving the cul-de-sac!

Worst neighbor would be girl whose boyfriend climbed up balconies to the 6th floor and tried to come into my apt when he was terrorizing her in the middle of the night (I was 22 and living alone!).

when my parents wanted to buy a house up the street (and next door to two other tiny houses they already owned) they couldn't put in as large of an offer as a couple of other people. one was another neighbor and the other a man who openly told the sellers that he planned to tear down the house to build a much larger one. the neighbors who had an offer in called the seller and said they would withdraw their bid if he sold to my parents. the other neighbors also told the seller they would prefer to have my parents live there. and what do you know? the seller went with my parents! i think it helped that they'd been keeping an eye on the sellers great aunt who was living there while afflicted with dimentia and that my parents kept telling him how much they loved the house as it was and didn't plan to change it very much (aside from making the kitchen larger, which his aunt would have liked). now my sister and i live in the tiny houses next door to our parents. we love our neighbors :)

when my husband + i moved into our pico/robertson area apartment a few years ago, it was to take over a lease the current tenants were trying to get out of. the girl showing the place was hyping up the hardwood floors, the parking + then she said, "and the couple upstairs will be like your adopted grandparents." i thought it was just a selling point, to ensure us we weren't living under loud, partying folks. but no, she was right.

on move in day, they offered to have us up for lemonade + the friendship blossomed. ruth + jacob lived in this unit for over 30 years. they had been married for 67 years, before ruth passed away last summer. there are simply not words for what they brought to my life over the past 3 years...

nights spent playing texas hold 'em (in which they'd always beat us), how they always tried to feed us, jacob singing to ruth + calling her his "true love" | jacob + i took up sign language together, and he'd end every visit with signing "i love you" | jacob would call me at work + ask me to come up when i got home. if i started to say i was working late, i realized work could wait. i needed to make time for a special friend. it sounds so, so corny, but having people that slow you down + make you focus on what matters is a blessing. | when he was in his 80's, jacob decided he wanted to learn to play guitar, so he checked books out from the library + taught himself. he still plays today.

here's a shot of jacob: http://jessicafulkerson.blogspot.com/2009/12/when-9am-feels-like-9pm.html

you can't beat my neighbors. just can't.
;)

My building has some pretty great people in it. My neighbor Mark is awesome, always has a smile to share as well as a snack or meal, and an open door policy. Unfortuntely, a real nutjob moved into the house next door, which my unit faces. After 6+ years, the longest I've lived anywhere, I'm considering moving. All the problems from nutjob have made me realize even more how great and special all my other neighbors really are, guess it's pulled us together. I know I'll stay in touch with most of them even if I move.

When living in apartments we never had super great or truly terrible neighbors. One was a friend of a friend who would check in on our cats when we went out of town and vice versa.

When we bought our condo last summer in an "up and coming" (to put it nicely) area, we made really good friends with some neighbors in the building, about 7 months after moving in. We see them at least 3 days a week, have family style dinners, go to movies, etc. We also look after one another's pets and are already talking about vacationing together, as we are more than just neighbors, we are very close friends. Since they moved in around the same time we did I know we will all be living in the same complex for quite some time.