When you can't love thy neighbour
My neighbour is a 60 plus year old woman who is recently divorced. For over a year this woman has played a really smart game of getting me to take her out to dinner and buy in take-away food on a very frequent basis. She loves the big servings at the Wok Box and will only eat premium steak cooked rare.
Of course I knew I was being screwed but I felt sorry for her. After a year of this - there really is a limit to how "nice" you can be when she repeatedly says, "When we go out you have to pay because I can't afford to pay" - I'd had enough and refused to have any more contact with her.
The last straw occurred in January when I had to go overseas for a week - she was paid $100 and a carton of cigarettes to water my small garden and take in any parcels and mail that arrived. I've timed how long it takes my pocket sized garden - 15 minutes. When I got back, the place was a mess and 8,000 euro worth of electronics was sitting out in the open back yard. It was a small box packed mainly with foam and anyone could lift it. Her excuse? "I just can't do all that". Well I paid her the money and gave her the cigarettes because I just couldn't be bothered not to.
After a couple of weeks of ignoring her because I was so mad, she came around demanding my time (and probably another free meal) and I'd just had it. You can't force people to be your friends and screw them at the same time.
My real bafflement is this... she always claims her first husband treated her "like a princess". As a single woman in her 40s, I don't think I want to be treated like a princess by anyone. What's wrong with paying your own way in life? I can't imagine continuously taking and taking and never giving anything back but maybe I'm just weird. After all, doesn't it make economic sense to get someone to pay for you?
I'm all for loving my neighbour as myself, but who wants to be screwed as well?
Of course I knew I was being screwed but I felt sorry for her. After a year of this - there really is a limit to how "nice" you can be when she repeatedly says, "When we go out you have to pay because I can't afford to pay" - I'd had enough and refused to have any more contact with her.
The last straw occurred in January when I had to go overseas for a week - she was paid $100 and a carton of cigarettes to water my small garden and take in any parcels and mail that arrived. I've timed how long it takes my pocket sized garden - 15 minutes. When I got back, the place was a mess and 8,000 euro worth of electronics was sitting out in the open back yard. It was a small box packed mainly with foam and anyone could lift it. Her excuse? "I just can't do all that". Well I paid her the money and gave her the cigarettes because I just couldn't be bothered not to.
After a couple of weeks of ignoring her because I was so mad, she came around demanding my time (and probably another free meal) and I'd just had it. You can't force people to be your friends and screw them at the same time.
My real bafflement is this... she always claims her first husband treated her "like a princess". As a single woman in her 40s, I don't think I want to be treated like a princess by anyone. What's wrong with paying your own way in life? I can't imagine continuously taking and taking and never giving anything back but maybe I'm just weird. After all, doesn't it make economic sense to get someone to pay for you?
I'm all for loving my neighbour as myself, but who wants to be screwed as well?
posted by Jacqueline Smith at 5:33 PM
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