Neighbors in the gravel pit

Two doors down, a woman named Millie moved in two doors down. She had a fluffy white dog (present) and a military husband (absent). Although he was stationed in Iraq, Millie talked about him as if he were in town on an errand and would be coming home any minute.

"I told him, 'Honey, just imagine a gingerbread house on acid and you'll know what it looks like.'"

He never showed up.

Between us lived Carolyn and her daughter, Laurey. Our three houses were built close together, which was part of the designer's grand vision for the houses inside the gravel pit. The idea was that with our roofs all designed to catch water, the overflow during the monsoon season would run off into our front yards (I use the term loosely) and foster green things to grow.

Even though we lived near each other, the earth walls of our houses were thick enough to prevent sounds from leaking out. And the severity of the design called for no windows on the sides of the houses, so we never even saw each other unless we walked out in front.