I had a few days away picking up a bit of sun - not that much actually as I'm not that given to lying around in it ( is it me or is sitting by a pool, in too hot sun for two weeks, reading Jeffrey Archer the very image of hell?). Anyway back to find that our neighbours have finished their radical programme of uglification of their modest semi.
Not content to remove to remove two rather attractive and mature trees that apparently were "blocking the light" they have now built themselves a preposterously large and ugly drive (concrete slabs and lots of them) that is as fucking bland and objectionable as a drive can be. Most folk round here are content to park on the road and put the other motor in the drive (if applicable) - our dumbass neighbours must have both their "vintage motors" in their drive ( P reg Astra and P reg Fiesta) I assume to stop people wanting to steal them? Yeah, that's likely. Hence massive building project. Hence removal of trees, of attractive bushes and some of the plants on my side of our property line that were unlucky enough to get in the way of progress.
I fed their cats over Christmas - now I wish I'd fed them to the dog. Last spring when we moved in our house was framed by soft spring colour from the trees and our privacy ensured by bushes. No more. Now there is a no softening from plants, and no particular border between us and our neighbour. Except a line of gravel that marks the edge of our drive. which luckily enough is going to be just wide enough ( I hope) to start planting a nice prickly hedge of, what? Berberis is good maybe, mixed with a bit of holly? Perhaps some nice decorative thistles and if I can possible manage it maybe even a small tree.
Preferably one that has really slippy leaves. They have gone for the cheapest possible concrete slabs which will I suspect be very slippy when it is frosty, or if they get covered with leaves.
The neighbours hale from good working class stock - their parents pulled themselves up by the bootstraps and so their children are now safely ensconced in that most revolting of classes - the lower middle class.
I hate lower middle class people even more than the fucking aristocracy! (I hate them too but not on a day to day basis). They read the Mail and the Express and love the royal family and talk about decent family values, but they are generally filled with hate and resentment. I have met some of the most noxious racists at middle class dinner tables, some of the most dyed in the wool chauvenists in the school playground and the nastiest, hateful, hating men and women with nice accents spout there unlovely views on Radio 4. But their philistinism is another reason to hate them - they love their white upvc window frames and hate trees ( leaves and light and a vague and large irrational fear of thier unremarkable semis being undermined by tree roots), they love big driveways especially when they are made of that red brickwork, they hate people parking outside their houses and will glare. They hate pakis, asylum seekers, wogs and anybody who wants to come into their country but they leave at retirement age for Spain in their thousands. Good. Who fucking needs them.
Ok I've got that off my chest now. Normal service will be resumed....