Most of the cities around here have codes for upkeep of your property. Plano is especially tough, although I see a lot of crappy lawns around here. But as long as the grass isn’t too high (you need grass for that) they appear to leave you alone. More often than not, a nosy neighbor complains.
But there’s a process. They put a writ – a letter – on your door. If you don’t comply, they get it mowed, and you pay. In Plano, if that happens once, they no longer warn you. They simply show up and mow. I forget how much it is. Over $100 I think. That shows up on your water/trash bill every month, by the way.
One of my friends told me that happened to a neighbor of his. Letter on the door, followed by the mowing.
Then, the trucks showed up – the Bio-hazard, the crime scene cleanup. A dumpster showed up, and they were removing all sorts of material. Turns out the old guy died, apparently many days previously.
No one checked on him. They just bitched about the lawn (which is why property code enforcement comes by, usually). They got the cops over because when they mowed the lawn, the workers smelled the decay.
No kids. Neighbors didn’t check. Poor dude.
I have a number of old folks I chat with, usually every week or so. The guys in my Council are really good at checking on the oldsters among us. Luckily, my girl and I text and talk every day. But then again, I’m not in the dying suddenly zone yet. I’m in the do something stupid and get hurt as an example to others zone.
Yet, there but for the grace of God go I. No one comes by this house. I maybe talk to my two oldest every few weeks. I get it. They have lives. I’ve met one neighbor. Did the intro and said hi. Haven’t seen her since. I see neighbors coming and going in the alleys, and walking dogs.
We don’t talk.
I think the lesson here is get active in Church. Get active in the hood. One place where I lived there was an old dude that would go out walking every day and chat up everyone he saw. He annoyed a lot of the Karens on the street, but they’d notice when he wasn’t around, at least.
Inspected By Pat 