This isn't a Thanksgiving turkey, but it's a sign of something I'm thankful for this year. (Photo: iStockphoto)
This week, the Cyberhomes bloggers will be
sharing what we've been thankful for in 2009, a most difficult real
estate year. Check back each day for a new Thanksgiving post and share
your own thoughts on what you're thankful for this season.
I’ll admit that most of the time I hate the construction across the street from my house: It wakes me up, it’s noisy all day and sometimes forces me out of my house so I can work in silence.
But since this is Thanksgiving week, I thought I’d make a list of some of the good things the construction has given me:
It's made me into a morning person
I know I wrote about this disparagingly last week, but it really has turned out to be a good thing for me. Once I got over my resentment that I didn’t have a choice about getting up early, I began to enjoy that for once I didn’t have to fight with the alarm clock every morning.
It's taught me to appreciate silence
Living in a city is never quiet, but I happen to live on a relatively quiet street in a very busy neighborhood. Until the construction, I never appreciated it. Now, when they construction crews leave at 3 p.m., the silence is sweeter than almost anything I’ve ever heard. It makes me beyond happy. And, as today, when the crew didn’t show up at all for some reason, I’m overjoyed and revel in it.
It's entertained me
You wouldn't think the racket would be entertaining–and you'd be right. But the surprising thing is that the construction workers have been. Within the first two weeks of the construction, when giant dumpsters started appearing in front of my house and loud music was playing as the crew dismantled every surface in the place, I got to enjoy watching guys in Dolce and Gabbana t-shirts working to “Don’t Stop Believing.” Another day, the soundtrack was REM–and not even rocking REM. "Losing My Religion" REM. Only in San Francisco, and only in the Castro.
It got me out of the house
I’ll admit it. I love working at home. I love the casual dress code, the short commute, the kitchen. But sometimes, you’ve just spent a little too much time at home, you know? Well, there’s no cure for cabin fever like construction. So I’ve gotten out of the house and been among, you know, people more often. That can’t be all bad.
Readers: Have you found any up sides to neighborhood construction? Share them in the comments.
Read the blog's previous Thanksgiving post.
Editor's note: For more real-life stories on what people are thankful for this tough real estate year, read "What They're Thankful For" by Cyberhomes contributor Tracey V. Velt.
—Heather Boerner