The government (federal, state, local) has encroached and imposed itself on our liberties and freedoms far more than they were ever intended to. I certainly don't want Bear Valley (just for example) telling me which shades of taupe I can and cannot paint my house and in which shades of brown I can and cannot re-roof my home. So, Homeowners' Associations are not for me.

Sooo, why move into a home that's not protected by the covenants of a Homeowners' Association if that's the type of structure you need or want in your life and/or neighborhood? I can anticipate a couple of answers, the first of which would probably be that it's expensive to live in places like that.

When our neighbors next door were selling their home, we had not yet bought a mower after our transfer here from Tehachapi. So we went next door and told them we hadn't yet bought one since our move and asked if we could borrow theirs. In exchange, my husband tuned-up their mower, put a new spark plug in it, etc. Each time we borrowed it we returned it full of fuel. After that, the neighbors who were selling their house walked down the street and asked some renters to mow their lawn. They didn't have a mower, so they loaned the renters the mower that my husband had tuned-up for them. Everyone ended up happy, and the neighbors sold their home for a good price for the current crappy housing market on the Gulf Coast.

I would hope that there was still a neighborly type of atmosphere in Tehachapi and that issues like that could be resolved by just talking to your neighbor. As someone else mentioned here, there are certainly jerks out there who won't want to mow the lawn or whatever, but I hate that as a society we've come to rely on various forms of government (a Homeowners' Association is certainly a form of lower government) to deal with issues like this instead of cultivating our neighborhoods with a more personal and family style.

Please don't misread my post... I'm not judging anyone who disagrees with my opinion or how I choose to try to handle similar situations. I'm just throwing some different possible solutions into the mix that I think may be more productive for everyone involved. It sucks to be pissed at your neighbor every time you drive by or walk outside your front door, and there may be extenuating circumstances for why the lawn isn't mowed (or whatever) that may not have been considered.

Reminds me of the following I got an email on.  For the record I try to keep my lot mowed for fire clearance. But I can see the beuaty in tall grasses and flowers.

Imagine the conversation the Creator might have had with St. Francis on the subject of lawns:

God: "Frank, you know all about gardens and nature, what in the world is going on down there on Earth? What happened to all the dandelions, violets, thistles and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honeybees, and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles."

St. Francis: "It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers weeds and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass."

God: "Grass? But it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds, and bees, only grubs and sod worms, it's temperamental with temperatures. Do these suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?"

St. Francis: "Apparently so Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn. "

God: "The spring rains and warm weather probably make the grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy."

St. Francis: "Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little they cut it, sometimes twice a week."

God: "They cut it? Do they bale it like hay?"

St. Francis: "Not exactly Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags."

God: "They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?"

St. Francis: "No sir. Just the opposite. They pay to throw it away."

God: "Now let me get this straight. They fertilize the grass so it will grow, and when it does grow, they cut it off and then pay to throw it away?"

St. Francis: "Yes sir.

God: "These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work!"

St. Francis: "You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it."

God: "What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of life."

St. Francis: "You had better sit down Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away."

God: "No way! What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?

St. Francis: "After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it
around in the place of leaves."

God: "And where do they get this mulch?"

St.: Francis: "They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch."

God: "Enough. I don't want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts, what movie have you scheduled for us tonight?"

St. Catherine: "Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It's a real stupid movie about..."

God: "Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis."

Source: http://www.chumfm.com/Morni...

reffup: I love that! It's perfect for this discussion.

We have been steadily chipping away at the complete coverage of lawn (and disgusting white rock) that the previous owners had on our 1/4 acre lot. It has been slow-going because we're both Tehachapi natives transplanted to the Gulf of Mexico, and we've had several trial and error episodes in our new climate. Now that we've weeded-out (ha!) the things that we can't get to grow here and found good resources for native plants, it's just a matter of budget and time to keep chipping away at the ginormous lawn.

ragmop, you obviously haven't been to Sand Canyon - I'm glad you have that attitude (snob)regarding us - that means you will STAY AWAY! I feel sorry for you, allowing a small group of power hungry people tell you how to live. NO THANKS.

It doesn't concern me nor does it bother me how my neighbors choose to live. Give me rustic, rundown and natural any day over a cookie cutter neighborhood!

LMAO reffup - that was too funny and too perfect for this blog!

lol Olivia...I think you meant 'wafting'.... 

<.Driving around my property on my tractor>   "Darn weeds,

Oh is that a lupin?... Wait I don't want to plow over the poppies... I think I see a baby pine tree!  

<shutting down my tractor>   Ah.... that was easy... 

lol    I love living in Sand Canyon.

To each their own... I like what Riceme said.... Ditto! 

I think the originator of this blog should get a life and mind his own business......................................&nb sp;

You are right, Gube. After my eyes had quit bleeding after driving by that house, and I had posted my blog, I realized how selfish and self involved I must be to not appreciate that other people have the right to live just as they choose. There surely is beauty in  brown dried-up foxtails, dead dogs, and the 1922 rusted oldsmobile. I will in the future just close my eyes as I drive by, and pray that I can become more tolerant of such things.

I care what my neighbors yard looks like, is that wrong? I want to live in a nice neighborhood, and to me, a nice neighborhood is one where people care about their things and take care of them. I'm not saying everyone needs to have a gorgeous green turf lawn and picture perfect flowerbeds but just that people should care for the outside of their home just as much as the inside. Your yard is an extension of your home. You should take pride in it. If you can't take care of it yourself, pay someone else, have friends/relatives/neighbors help, there are options.

I don't like seeing trash in the street anywhere but when it is accumulating on your property, get off your butt and do something about it. To let your property become overgrown with weeds and garbage to me is awful. Go and put your non-essential things away when you aren't using them. Don't just ignore it and let it get worse and worse and worse. When I drive by properties like that it makes me wonder if the inside is as trashy as the outside is. We all have different standards of what is acceptable I suppose, but there has to be a line to draw somewhere.

Joty..  you obviously don't know me at all, so how can you be so quick to brand me with a 'snob' attitude?   Oh, I forgot... you  have all the answers, don't you?   Everybody is different and there are those who don't mind living in weeds & junky neighborhoods .. if that is the way you want to live, you are in the right place.   Sand Canyon is an OK place to visit, but no thanks, I wouldn't want to live there.   

Believe me ragmop, we don't want you  living here or even visiting.

You don't know me at all either. You don't know where or how I live, but you were quick to make a judgment call because I live in SC and you have a pre-conceived idea of what Sand Canyon is...therefore - you are a snob.

I am living the way I want, tyvm, with no neo-Nazi's telling me I can't have a white fence or have my garage door open. I like my freedom and being able to think for myself, but you must like being told what to do...

Typical Joty.. all fangs and claws.   

I think that when you buy a property, you have an obligation to keep it cleaned up and similar to the surrounding neighborhood.  You don't need a pristine lawn, but landscaping is important.  A nice yard of native plants can be just as pretty as a lawn.  I just like having grass because my boys can play on it and they don't track dirt and mud into the house nearly as badly. 

The things I absolutely can't stand: baby stuff sitting in the front (really, is your house that full that you can't store it anywhere?), a lack of plants around the edges of a house (water stains on your stucco are not my idea of decoration), and when the entire yard is paved over with concrete or asphalt (YUCK!).

Surrounding houses affect your property value, and selling a house with a junky house next door is all the more difficult.  Plus, I know from experience the effect of living downwind from a trashy property.  We have trash blow into our yard all the time- sometimes my dogs eat it and get sick, and I have to pick up all the plastic bags before my son can play out there.

It bothers me too when people don't take care of their place. I'm a 50 yo single woman but always manage to fire up the weed eater when necessary and keep my place looking neat.  And I expect my neighbirs to do the same.  They don't need to water/plant flowers/have a lawn but just keep the weeds down and the trash picked up!  Take pride in your community!

And Gube, if you didn't spend so much time blogging you'd have time to weedwack and pick up the dead dogs too! LOL!!!!

I own my property. I will never live in any of those communistic areas with HOA's.

I will do with my property as I please and unless I break a law I expect my neighbors to keep their self righteous noses out of my business and I will do the same to them.  I like my yard natural, I collect classic junk cars to restore when I retire.

I consider even the fact that someone would post a blog against the appearance of their neighbors place to be idiotic and un-neighborly.

 "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you."