We’ve had a very mild winter here in Colorado and last weekend we had a very nice 68 degree day with no wind (unusual for Jan-March is usually like living in a wind tunnel here then).  Everyone in my neighborhood came out of the woodwork and the parks were filled with neighbors chatting and kids playing.  It’s like that here pretty much every warm day.  I was walking home from an impromtu park party and two nice women walking their bikes called out to a group of us in the park (another park party LOL) “does anyone have a tire pump?”.  We have a very large, awesome open space area behind my neighborhood with extensive bike trails so frequently have people riding through the neighborhood to go to our businesses–usually for ice cream.  I told the women I had a pump and they could follow me to my house and use it.  So we start walking down the street and one of the women asks “So, what do you think about living here?”. 

We joke about this frequently in the neighborhood–that when people looking at Bradburn Village or people visiting ask this question (which is a lot) we freak them out with our enthusiasim–”Thisisthebestneighborhoodeveryouwanttolivehere!”.  We are afraid we scare people off since loving your neighborhood with a passion (especially in the suburbs) has been dead for some time in America–so people may think it’s freakish. 

I answered the woman’s question:

Me: “I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else”

Visitor: “Why?”.    I pointed to the houses on my street,

Me: ”Because I am friends with every person in every house”. 

Visitor: [incredulous] “You know every person on your street?”

Me: “No, I know every person in nearly every single house in the entire neighborhood”.

Visitor: [thoughtful] “So it’s not just marketing.” (meaning she’s heard promotion materials for Bradburn or new urbanism in general).

Me: “Nope”. 

It’s not.