23rd Street- Neighbors

You watch your television and you think " I know someone like that". It might be a funny uncle. A silly child. A level speaking teacher. I had the same occurence when I used to watch the old Bewitched. Do you remember Gladys Kravitz? The thin neurotic neighbor with some quirky traits? We had a nice family living next door to us on 23rd st. with a mom that fit the bill. Don't get me wrong, not everything coming out of next door was bad. My brother Jeff was caught with his clothes off in the garage with Tina trying to innocently explore the differences between the boy and girl anatomy. Not bad, only because at this young age you are gaining knowledge that is completely useless. (I am sure the parents had a difference of opinon on that). True, most of our exchanges with Kenny and Tina consisted of making cement out of mud around the posts of the Sears chainlink fence my dad had installed. Kenny, their boy, had a few allergies that required him to be extremely careful with life. His mom, in all her oddities, would not allow him into anything without him being medicated up. This boy was allergic to grass, pollen, cats, dogs, and nearly everything anyone could think of. My theory is that he was also allergic to ditzy mom figures. Kenny was one step from the real life Boy In A Bubble as played by John Travolta. Sue was a sweet woman. She had dark hair and a thin frame that looked as though it might break if you bumped against it. Her voice made a noise akin to squealing pigs just before the slaughter. The kind of voice that was annoying if you were awake and had active hearing. I remember her as a very attentive mother. Hovering over Kenny and Tina in such a way that breathing could be difficult. Her husband, Raymond was a bulky guy. Not heavy just bulky. He was a mechanical guy who spent time in his garage. I think he was happy. He understood that the choices you make are ones that you have to live with. His interactions with his wife seemed different. I think as long as they didn't have to talk much, it was ok. Sue wasn't someone that was very deep. She spoke well and she spoke often. Listening wasn't something that was her strong suit, unless it was to hear herself talk.Mom and Sue were freinds. Dad and Raymond were freinds as well. Thats the way suburbia worked. You liked the people next door. We had more in common with Sue and Raymond's family than we did with the elderly folks on the other side. So our parents migrated their friendship towards them.

No story about Sue would be complete without talking about her dog. My mom gave Sue a puppy. I am not sure if it came from a dog we had or not. What I do know is Sue loved that puppy. Sue named her dog Inky. Inky because of the color of the coat. This dog could not have known the life it was in for. The truth is, Sue treated this dog like it was a child. Kenny had allergies, so did the dog. Tina got the flu, so did the dog. Raymond got the dissentary, so did the dog. Poor little Inky spent most of his time suffering through every childhood illness in the neighborhood. Sue cried over that dog like you would cry over a family member. Sue was a fragile woman with a frail constitution. Her love for this dog gave her a purpose and some fulfillment, so I guess its not a bad thing. Tina and Kenny grew up and last we heard Kenny had outgrown some of his allergies. Tina was doing well too. Sue and Raymond got divorced and I never found out what happened to Inky. My guess is, she had him cremated and then spent the next several years sprinkling him over her favorite food dishes. Woof.