The Cul-de-sac | Teen Ink

The Cul-de-sac

December 24, 2010
By PerfectMGymnast DIAMOND, Parker, Colorado
PerfectMGymnast DIAMOND, Parker, Colorado
57 articles 25 photos 633 comments

Favorite Quote:
"If you don't leap you'lll never know what it's like to fly"


We've lived on Omaha street since I can remember or as my neighbors like to call it, Obama street. There are many memories from here as new neighbors come and go. Some staying years and others just for the time being. Omaha is a small cul-de-sac of about 15 houses. Right smack dab in the middle of the cul-de-sac is my house. It stands tall, pink and proud for all to see.

Mama's dream was to live in a home the color of tan, like smoothed sandpaper after its been used. The letter from the community requiring us to repaint our house was mom's perfect excuse to persuade my dad with. The painters came the next day. When they were finished my mama's dream colored house lay still and quiet like an embarrassed school boy who had just been punished. “Oh my gosh!” My mom screamed. In front of her was not her dream colored house but a house as pink as bubble gum. A color so bright that it stuck to the house like the smelly fragrance does to a garbage can.
My neighbors didn't really notice the color that much and I couldn't blame them. There was too much happening in the neighborhood already. There was no time to notice the fresh new paint of the neighbors next door. Somethings even went unnoticed under my watchful eye. Two houses down, pale, baby blue. This house looked scary on the outside, like something that would be in a horror film. And on the inside it was suspicious. I don't really know his name, but my brother guesses it is something like Mr. Crims.

Yeah Mr. Crims. I bet that's his name. Mr. Crims! It sounds evil, he says.

Nothing ever seemed right as I'd walk past that house. It gave me a queasy feeling just to look at it.

Parker, me and the triplets from next door, Julia, Joseph and Jeff knew he had to be some kind of criminal or else he'd come out once in a while. Maybe we were right because one day he was just gone. The furniture still left in the house and the water still boiling on the stove. Parker says he was like a most wanted criminal and a drug dealer and that one day he moved so the police wouldn't find him. Joseph says the police came one night when everyone was asleep. He was handcuffed and taken away, just like that. I think I believe Joseph more than I do Parker. The thought of even having a criminal living under our wings for years frightens me.

I guess this goes to show that you can't trust anyone; not even your neighbors. And I've began to learn that the hard way as even more people come passing through Omaha, the place I call my home.



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This article has 27 comments.


on Jan. 1 2011 at 10:49 pm
BekkahsLoopy GOLD, San Jose, California
10 articles 4 photos 32 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Keep looking forward; don't look back."
"To the world, you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world."

short and sweet and got the point across effectively. =) verr nice, i like.

on Jan. 1 2011 at 11:08 am
A.Bekah.Girl GOLD, Menlo Park, California
17 articles 0 photos 29 comments
i really like the description. i think it needs to be expanded...i had to reread parts to make snese of them, kind of like too few words were used to say too much i think. but it's a really good idea.

on Dec. 31 2010 at 10:20 pm
Very good for a story. I liked how the parents chose the color of the house. lol :D That I found funny.

on Dec. 31 2010 at 8:45 pm
Kbuschan PLATINUM, South Plainfield, New Jersey
25 articles 0 photos 64 comments

Favorite Quote:
Fall in love or fall in hate; Get inspired or be depressed; Ace a test or flunk a class; Make babies or make art; Speak the truth or lie and cheat; Dance on tables or sit in the corner; Life is divine chaos. Embrace it. Breathe. And enjoy the ride...

good story, it sounds similar to "to kill a mocking bird" and i like how you changed the subject from the color of your house to your neighbor being a criminal or something:) 

on Dec. 31 2010 at 5:56 pm
OliviaOriginal BRONZE, VineGrove, Kentucky
4 articles 1 photo 2 comments

Favorite Quote:
Dont loose track of who you are just because its easier to be somebody else.

i Really Like This.

Its Really Discriptive , & I Can Picture The Whole Scene In My Head. Well Done (: Also, I Really Think You Should Expand This TYo A Book ; It Has The Potential.


on Dec. 31 2010 at 5:12 pm
theheartoflizz PLATINUM, Aurora, Colorado
21 articles 31 photos 19 comments

Favorite Quote:
"I think the only reason people hold on to memories so tightly is because memories are the only things that don't change, when everything and everyone else does."

This was really intersting! My favorite line was, 'A color so bright that it stuck to the house like the smelly fragrance does to a garbage can."

I think you could lengthen this up and make a full sotry out of it. You have a really great idea here!


on Dec. 30 2010 at 5:00 pm
Hazel-daisy GOLD, --, Other
19 articles 0 photos 324 comments

Favorite Quote:
It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else - Erna Bombeck

In three words i can sum up everything I've learned in life: it goes on -Robert Frost

Live, Love, Laugh - ______

Hope, Love, breathe <3 - Me

I think its very descriptive and interesting. Like i  said before it could be in a book, i think you should expand these thoughts and write s short story or even a novel!! Well done!!