Friday Quick Post...

I should be working out right now, that's what I am thinking with my new time blocking scheduling but I needed my big monitor to look for some paperwork so since I'm already here...

What should we talk about today?

I've been whining  updating you all on the move stuff for awhile so we could move on from that and cover current events. 

*looks at today's headlines*

So we are thinking we want to turn the backyard into a paved area with some planters around the edges. Maybe add a firepit area and a place for the smoker that's a little farther away from the back door, yet still covered. 

To add anything that is above the fence line (Screening in the back porch, adding a gazebo for sitting or for covering the smoker) has to be run past the architectural committee for the HOA. For the back yard. Not the front. The back. Brent is not happy at all. He didn't realize we were getting into an even more strict HOA than we were in before. But, as I keep telling him, every single place we looked at had an HOA of some sort. Some of them were really tight, some weren't. But all them had them. 

I think once we are done he'll be fine. He probably will even appreciate the structure a little when the neighbors don't park a Buick on their front lawn and three cars in front of our house. Because that's the piece I really like. You aren't supposed to park on the street over night. In your garage or in your driveway, thank you. After 20+ years of looking out my front window at a parking lot I'm willing to ask the HOA about a gazebo as a trade off. 

And that's really what the rules are right? What are you willing to trade in order to have some sort of structure? I'm willing to trade a little bit of freedom to decorate my house for not having to deal with a ton of cars in front of my house. It's a good trade for me. 

But it has to be something we honor and follow for it to work.

When we were moving in and our extroverted neighbor came to visit his wife asked me if I had received a copy of the CCRs (basically the rulebook of a HOA). Seems their realtor hadn't gotten them a copy. I told her where to find one and what some of the general guidelines were. 

Which if you don't know them, you can freely ignore them right? 

They have been getting a lot of work done and one of the things they did was pour a concrete path from their back yard to the front. Which is a great idea and we were going to do the same but with pavers (pavers can be removed so no CCR violation). But since they never looked at the HOA rules they didn't feel bound to follow them. We will see if they get any push back for it. Personally, I think it looks fine, matches the driveway, good idea for trash can to be in the side yard without having to wheel through the mud to put out on trash day. Not super thrilled about the concrete slosh over into my yard, but since we are going to redo it anyway I'm not pushing the issue. Not worth a neighbor brouhaha over something I'm going to change anyway. It's not really an issue unless I decide to make it an issue. 

You know. How most things are. 

You can choose to ignore the rules if you don't agree with them.

You can do what you want, as long as it doesn't impact someone else. 

But if it does impact someone else you should be prepared for the push back.

Or hope that your neighbor just doesn't care enough about something that is going to be changed anyway to actually have to deal with talking to yet even more people...

I am so peopled out.

*reads today's headlines again*

So very very peopled out.