This post makes me feel seen.
Better scooch deeper into the trash.
I started working at the same company as my neighbour (different office), but haven’t managed to bring it up in a normal human casual conversation way. Now I have to worry about him seeing my pass, or other company paraphernalia, or spotting my t-shirt drying on the line, because it’d be weird if that happened before I say something. On top of the usual just trying not to run into anyone and have awkward smalltalk moments.
My wife works closely with a relative of our immediate neighbor, so we end up knowing minor stuff about them that isn’t a big deal, but would be really weird to know when it hasn’t come up in our limited small talk. Like knowing their newborn’s name before they ever stepped out of the house with them in tow.
One of these days I’m going to slip up and it’s going to be really fucking awkward.
I don’t have social anxiety and I still don’t want to run into my neighbors. I’m introverted and don’t feel like expending the energy to have small talk with some stranger.
Unless it’s about the one neighbor’s new dog. I would talk about dogs.