I did post this news in the Good Morning thread but thought I would add it here too. We finally know who will be moving into the duplex. In the one facing us directly will be a young Nurse who is going to have a baby. In the the other part of the duplex will be an older woman who is coming from Seattle. I don't know if she's our age yet but she must be close to it. Her daughter came to check out the place and rented it for her Mom. They will both be moving in next month. Since I love babies I am excited that the Nurse is going to have one. And hopefully maybe I will find a new friend in the older woman. Maybe even a work out buddy!
Yesterday we begin redoing our porch area. It is the start of our project to give our home an update and make more privacy areas for us because of the new duplex that stares us in the face the minute we walk out our front door. I set up everything but the bistro table which my Honey put together after I picked him up from doing the Dairy order at work. The picture is a little misty because the rain misted my camera lens. The other picture is how things looked before my Honey put the table together, On the other half of the porch I did this. Thie storage bench is good for seating while my Honey is able to keep the things he needs for his outdoor projects close at hand. When it rains though if you don't have a cover for the bench that is rain proof then water gets in through the cracks between the lid and back of the bench. I had that old vinyl picnic table cloth which works fine to keep the water out...but now I will be looking for one that will match the bistro chair cushions. I took the old plastic seating and baker's rack and moved it here which gives us another sitting area when my Honey grills, etc. and with the baker's rack there now he will be able to repot his plants and start pot new cuttings, etc. without having to bend down from his chair to take care of this. We still have a long ways to go on getting things the way we want them to be but at least we have begun the project. I made these changes all by myself while my Honey was at work. I wanted it to be a surprise for Father's Day for him...and it was. And he was very happy about that surprise.
Babs, I fully sympathize with your feelings on how your view has become absolutely ruined, even with a privacy fence. What a sweet picture you had before, and now it's gone. Hal
Babs, I am new here but just had to post to your thread! First, I love your front porch area...looks so cozy and inviting! As far as the new unit right out your door....I would go with a natural wood fencing and then plant some pretty blooming vines. Trees take too long to grow to make a good barrier. Plus, if you have snow or ice in your area during the winter, you would be dealing with fallen limbs. Thankfully when we built our house 32 years ago, we chose a lot where there would not be another house jammed right next to us. We have lots of trees and wooded areas between both sides of our house. I too like my privacy and if I want to enjoy my coffee on the back porch in the morning, I don't want to deal with other people watching. Look forward to seeing your final solution!
I'm really happy to update everyone on our new neighbors and the issue of privacy for us. First of all the only privacy screening we will build is the one in the picture (click on view attachment) in this post. As for our new neighbor who directly faces us...she is a Registered Nurse who is single, in her late 40's and from Seattle. She married a man from here, had two daughters with him and then 10 years later they divorced. They lived here in our City for those 10 years though so she is familiar with it now that she has decided to live here once again. She's a great new neighbor and we get along just fine...and to tell you the truth even if we decided not to put up the privacy screening...it would be no problem for either us or her. But I still want to put the screening up because I love the one above and we may not always have this new neighbor living here. On the other side of the Duplex is another nice and young unmarried couple who are expecting their first child together. He works in the Oil Field in Texas so he is here for a few weeks and then gone for a few. She is a LPN but will not work for now. She also is shy and doesn't show herself much unless her boyfriend is home. He is not shy and likes to share a few beers on the porch with my Honey when he is in. So we are blessed with our new neighbors and very thankful it has turned out this way.
That's great news @Babs Hunt .. I'm very pleased. It's always a concern when we're about to get new neighbours and the unknown, and especially when you've not had anyone living opposite before, so that's really good news that your neighbours are nice people... but I agree I would still erect the privacy screen.