Before and after.

Lovely tangle of green as observed by a wise lizard.

It seems almost impossible to start a day without encountering yet another disaster. If its not a shark attack it is an attack on a garden and our diminishing wildlife or the gloomy news about refugees being stopped in Hungary by a regime which seems to have taken lessons from our own Prime minister in callous disregard for refugees. In an act of rage and desperation I tweeted being prepared to take in a Syrian family. It is the least we could do. H even suggested making a vacant lot next to our compound ready for several refugee families. What a stir that would cause amongst the burgers of the tut tut uttering Bowralnites!

We had the unfortunate experience of our neighbour returning from Newcastle to go and slash the communal garden. He does that each time he turns up. Armed by shears and electric trimmer he hoes into the bushes that have only just recovered from his last attack. He loves paling fences and exposing them. No sooner does a leaf appear on the palings, he cuts them off. Heaven only knows what he suffered during childhood. It must have been very bad. I hear that many people are fearful of bushfires and many grew up strongly opposed to the growing of nature and bushes-things in case of inciting a bush-fire. Is that true? I know that lawn cutting will soon start again. Spring does that, grass spurting up unashamedly and vigorously, tempting all and sundry to teach grass a lesson by cutting it to size. Teach grass a good lesson! I can hear the lawn-mower brigade coming.

Of course the communal garden slasher has allies. They always do. She is also a neighbour who seems to have the same penchant for taking away enjoyment of gardens and growing things. She came here a few years ago. Within weeks she took out part of the communal garden to the delight of our ‘naked-paling fence’ adoring neighbour. It remains a battle. What is it that some seem to delight in unhinging others? Ok, unhinge me. I am merely a newcomer, but why unhinge the rare and very humble sand lizard? What wrong have they done to deserve losing their natural habitat?

Endangered Lizard in our garden.

I wrote our neighbour a letter pointing out that enjoyment of a nice garden is no crime and asked him why he took it upon himself, together with his -co-slashers, the reason for wilfully damaging a garden and limiting the enjoyment of not just us humans but also of the poor lizards that used to live there. This was his answer;  Now, dear readers just get a little closer to the screen to get the real and rare insight into the mindset of garden-haters and I copy…….’Even though I don’t live here it is my right to maintain the  VALUE of MY PROPERTY……’   Now, there you have it. The unvarnished truth straight from the horse’s mouth. It finally came out. It had to happen.

Before the slashing

Of course, the neighbours  slashing the garden are also those that are foisting a debt on others in pushing for the unnecessary re-paint job. There is a shortfall in the sinking-fund of at least twenty thousand. I applied to The Fair Trading Tribunal to seek redress.

And after the slashing.
(The love of paling fences)

We shall see.

Tags: Lizard, neighbours, Newcastle., paling fences, slashing