Neighbours who would have (want) them!!!

As you said at the end of your post that it is no wonder you wish to move, perhaps you've expressed that view to someone and they have repeated it.

I have lovely helpful neighbours, unfortunately my closest neighbour had a stroke recently, but is doing well,I hope she can come back home and never have to leave.

My next door neighbour has kids the same age as mine and we have been to some local groups together.

She also has a father who is a convicted paedophile (we both grew up in this area and the victims, her friends at the time, are known to us both). Of course the family does not believe it at all, it was a terrible miscarriage of justice, etc etc.

So the father frequents the house next door most days.

She often invites my toddlers over to play with hers. You know, without me, in the house where the child molester is sitting playing with the toys too.

Not f'ing likely, to quote my father on this point.

Neighbours................yes been there,done that and learnt many a hard lesson in my lifetime!!
it has been a pleasure reading some of your uplifting stories about the great neigbourhood experiences you have had and I hope it continues like this for you.
However there are also far too many horror stories which literally have me racing for the escape route!!
We started married life on a brand new Council estate so were fortunate in having a choice little brand new 2 up/2 down with garden front and rear plus a garage.
The neighbours were a mixture of newly weds and oldies and to be honest we had nothing to complain...........or boast......about.
Then we moved to the private sector to a charming detached 3 bed bungalow,and from then on there were various neighbour issues.
Nothing too detrimental causing us to complain or move, but certainly it taught us how to preserve our own privacy at all costs.This proved a good grounding and a lesson that we carried through with every move.
Because we are both inclined to be loners,very private and reclusive we realised that it has been most important to keep to what makes us tick so we avoid "rocking the boat" as it were in any situation.In fact latterly, the moves have meant we have been fortunate enough to find the peace and privacy we so enjoy.
However it also means we have to be extremely diplomatic so as not to "step on the toes of others"...... realising that this world is made up of individuals, and we each have our own idiosyncrasies,so far better to take life very slowly and carefully wander through, without hopefully,upsetting anyone on the way.
For us two, living on a Desert Island is probably the perfect answer!!