in my neighbourhood

the people you meet when you are walking down my street,

in my neighbourhood

are basically fine people.

I mean you can't tell who is an axe murderer

and who isn't.

I do actually know a couple of  murderers

and you do too most likely.

Different ones to the ones I know though.

My point is we don't really know

what goes on behind closed doors

or inside cars

or what happened to someone

this morning, yesterday

or last year.

This evening I attended

a neighbourhood watch meeting.

This was called by neighbours because

in the middle of our streets,

next to my house

is the most scuzzy little cottage

in the universe.

And in the scuzzy little cottage

lives a couple of 18 year old boys.

They do things that 18 year old boys do.

Like play music all hours of the night,

have bonfires in their backyard all night,

have random people who scream

 insults at each other in the middle of the night,

they climb on their roof and

 have fisticuffs on the street outside neighbour's houses

in the middle of night.

My favourite is

they go skateboarding on the very non-smooth road

in the middle of the night.

They are generally terrible, thoughtless, threatening neighbours.

So the pommie chick down the back called a meeting.

Most of the neighbours came,

except, obviously the boys in question.

And we sat in Pam and Tony's lounge

basically complaining about the noise and the disruption

these boys cause.

The pommie chick told us that she knew they were on bail

and that they had weapons.

I think she may have known this cause her husband is a screw*.

Cops have been called

and Aaron,

the cop was invited to this evenings meeting

but must have got busy with a crime

probably sheep rustling**.

What I found most interesting about the meeting

was that most people just wanted to sit around complain.

They didn't want an action plan

or to know what to do.

They wanted some else to sort the problem.

So I am, Mel is and the Claw is too.

We each have an assignment

and will report back to the next meeting

in a few weeks.

Meanwhile, poor Mags

has an abscess on her jaw

and looks like she has a goitre.

Will try to get a photo.....

* Corrections officer by profession as many people who live in my town are.

** Don't laugh, it's a serious issue around here.  Sheep are worth quite a bit of money at the moment.