Top 10 topic starters for those short lift rides so that it is not so awkward :

1. Wah, the haze is back!

2. Aiyo, nowadays so hot!

3. Sigh, your place got mosquitoes or not? This dengue outbreak is really badlah

4. Who do you think will win the Sarawak elections?

5. So, how ah, this 1MDB saga?

6. Eh, you bought spare water tank already or not? Water rationing going to happen soon!

7. Where's the best nasi lemak around here?

8. I tell you, cost of living really gone up man. Just bought this Char Kuay Teow for 20% more expensive than last year. GST is a killer lah. 

9. How come petrol price go up, everything also price up but when petrol price come down, no other price come down also?

10. Your maid got run away ah?

We really should get to know your neighbours. They can be our best friends and also a great resource for any needs. I still remember a PSA in the past in the form of a song : 

Neighbours are the people

who laugh and smile at you........ ( tak ingat the rest of the verse but the chorus is below )

So be nice to your neighbours

smile at them and lend a helping hand

Kind an friendly neighbours are the best friends in the world

It is always nice to walk out your house and see friends and not enemies...

Bring the good qualities from kampungs to cities

Landed sometimes a bit more susah but highrise, always got opportunity to do so when caught in lift together,  or when go to check mailbox or go swimming or gym etc etc. In urban setting, we are too individualised already. Highrise developments are great to foster community relationships. All it takes is a simple hello and a smile and any one of the 10 topics to start something off

I seldom communicate with my neighbours tho, my mom does the job lol. But perhaps because I always go out and come home during odd hours. The above lines should help if I bump into them haha.

hahaha, yeah, it's tough at first but once you get the hang of it, the relationships formed are gold and really good to have. 

I have been staying in my current housing area for years and I don't even know who is my neighbours. Probably because I have been overseas for some years and I like to stay at home during weekend. LOL! And also, i rarely meet my neighbours even during normal time! Guess they are having the sae habit as me - staying at home. HAHAHA

It's so easy in our urban environment with our respective busy schedules to ignore everyone around us and just focus on our own challenges. But there are so much benefits of engaging with our neighbours, it really is something we should pay a little more attention and effort to. Not too hard, just smile over the fence and utter, "wah, weather these days so hot, hah?" and see the conversation take off. Follow up with, "soon, we will probably have water rationing again also. Aiyoh" :-) 

My neighbours?

- Haiyo! So many cats and dogs poo everywhere outside our gate!!! Can't these dogs and cats owner lock up their own pets? So irresponsible

- Hello. Bye. (some neighbours, that's pretty much the conversation we have since day 1)

- Who's car is this always simply park in front of other people's house???

- That day the house No.10 kena robbed. So scary! Even gated and guarded also no use.

- That day the house No. 5 their maid ran away. 

- Very hot huh the weather nowadays?

@kate_chew, haha!!! Funny yet common. 

Well, generally in KL living in the city, we don't communicate much with our neighbours. This is due to our hectic lifestyle, we leave early in the morning and come home only after dinner time. Sometimes we don't even know who our neighbours are. Unlike in kampung, everyone knows everyone.

That's why it is crucial that we reverse the current state of affairs and start getting to know our neighbours. They are a great resource

@kevlos, great resource to??? It will be if you neighbours are nice people. Mine are A**HOLES! Haha. 

@james_bob, a great resource for whenever you need any assistance or borrow anything. 

not easy to get to know them .... i know them but i dont talk to them much nowadays... as they like to gossip a lot

hahahaha, i have learnt that gossiping is one way to get to know people before getting into the heavier stuff of strong relationships. Once, I was checking on the renovations in my previous place prior to moving in, and a neighbour was also keypoh-ing inside as well, uninvited. She started making all sorts of comments not knowing I was the owner! She kept her distance after finding out!!

ahhahaha like that also can?

Whatever it takes to get a foothold in the doorway. In our urban environment, it is quite a blessing to have our neighbours looking out for us, and vice versa too of course.

My previous opposite neighbour would often send reminders on trimming the trees by my house as he has a better vantage point from us. Reciprocally, we would water his plants and bring in his mail whenever he travelled. 

Good neighbour relations are truly a treasure. But don;t take my word for it - go try out yourself!

@kevlos good sharing

I have shared this on Facebook at this link.

https://web.facebook.com/HappyThomasACTan/posts/10160011101988270

@kevlos 
Your post is 6 years old.
Now I talk about Covid and why I still wear a mask.