September on Our Street

September is quiet without school traffic on our street. That had been a defining feature of living here. Weekdays started with lines of cars in front of our house. Afternoons repeated. It was only for brief periods, just half an hour in the morning and half an hour at 4 p.m.

It was annoying, but not really. I liked the buzz of activity and sense of schedule that structured the week. But now, in the time of pandemic closed schools, every morning is like a quiet Saturday, with almost no cars going by. I lose track of what day it is.

September said goodbye to the hummingbirds, they're gone now except for an occasional transient on its way to Mexico. We've left the feeders up for the travelers but there isn't much activity now.

September continues August's dry weather. Monsoon started well enough in early July, but then abruptly stopped. Nothing since July and here it is September. Storms have circled around us and clouds threaten, but it has rained only in the mountains. In our dry basin we haven't had a drop for 6 weeks. I think the cottonwood has given up, the canopy is alarmingly thin and leaves have dropped everywhere.

September brought new neighbors. A woman with two teenage sons moved in across the street. We were so fortunate when we moved here that our immediate neighbors are nice people and we've made some good friendships among them. Except for the one guy directly across the street.

There was an ugly divorce, loud arguments, unkempt weeds in the yard, and a rotation of various trucks and vans that parked on our side of the street in front of our house. The man was nice enough to talk to on the street, but kept a disruptive and unsightly home. The new woman who has moved in set out immediately to clean the place up, including major renovations inside. I think she's gutting the entire interior. She said there were holes punched in the walls . . . 

Even in a state of repair right now it looks so much better.

No traffic, no rainstorms, no disruptive neighbors, no dive bombing hummingbirds. It's awfully quiet on our street. Awfully quiet.