Would you live on Chestnut St.?

I found Chestnut Street while scrolling through Facebook Reels for relief from the heaviness of the world. Serendipity. What a find. It makes me laugh. The stories about life on Chestnut St. with all its quirky neighbors may need a little time to grow on you. If you are anything like me, you find yourself checking to see if a new edition to the storyline has been posted. That is the kind of draw it has for me.

What do I like about Chestnut St.? It is the location for an unusual amalgamation of people whose interactions turn their physical proximity as neighbors into a community of mutual support that works out differences and conflicts with mutual respect.

How do we know what goes on on Chestnut St.? Steve Watson, known online as @that-steve-guy, is the self-appointed reporter and gossiper. Chestnut St. is his creation. He lives there with his girlfriend, Audrey who is a singer, songwriter, pianist and trumpet player.

Steve works in construction. The real Steve Watson did work in construction and now appears on home renovation shows. He wears his baseball cap backward as he narrates the adventures of the people on his street, of which he is often an active participant.

How does Steve tell the story? Steve weaves the lives of his characters together as they interact and get to know each other. Steve familiarizes us with each one by reciting the character’s description every time. That may sound boring, but it is not. It gives you time to form a picture in your mind, which adds to the humor. For instance, there is Midge, the mean old lady with jet-black hair who lives in a house full of birds. She drives an old Cadillac Eldorado, with a Jesus bobblehead on the dashboard. Can’t you see her?  Steve’s best friend is Marcus, who happens to be gay. Marcus’s description is the only one that ever changes. After saying he happens to be gay, Steve adds a rich adjective like “resplendent,” “sartorial,” or “extra.”

What drives the story’s plot? The story is held together with food. Food is the glue of this community. When Steve first goes over to ask the new Mexican neighbors to turn down their music one evening, a little old lady comes out of the kitchen and hands him a steaming plate of delicious home-cooked food. The next thing he knows, he is sitting on the yard couch next to the old man who doesn’t speak English, eating the best Mexican food of his life. He stayed for two hours. Now he goes over every day. He says he needs to go shopping for stretchy pants.

Evening by evening, neighbors find their way to that front yard where they learn about each other while enjoying the food that keeps coming out of the kitchen. Soon, there are fiestas and regularly scheduled taco Tuesdays and a community Facebook page so everyone knows what is going on. There’s a lesbian couple, one of whom has short hair and one with long hair, a guy with one leg on a mobility scooter and an older white guy who is ultra-conservative but wears his wife’s clothes that she left when she ran off with her pickleball instructor because it makes him feel close to her. You will have to meet the other neighbors and friends for yourself.

What has happened in the lives of those who live on Chestnut St.?

Here are just a few examples:

Audrey now plays trumpet in a mariachi band and loves learning the different rhythms.

Steve has started going back to church after decades because his Black neighbors invited him. He sometimes sings baritone in the choir when he is needed.

Marcus wanted to go to church with Steve. The black ladies at the church loved on him and complimented his outfits. They made him a greeter.

The Puerto Rican neighbors and the Mexican neighbors agreed to combine their festivals to form a giant celebration of food, music and dancing.

Audrey got baby fever from seeing Steve holding one of the Mexican babies. She is calming it by starting a daycare in their house. The one-legged man provides security by patrolling the perimeter of the yard on his mobility scooter when the children are outside. Bill, the conservative who wears his wife’s leftover clothes, is in charge of reading books to the children. It helps him feel less lonely.

The town’s police stop by regularly for a plate of food and can be seen chatting with people on the yard couch. The 10:30 p.m. noise ordinance is respected.

Steve now has a skincare routine thanks to Marcus. He knows his neighborhood is often a work in progress, but he loves it just the same.

By the way, Chestnut St. has some of its own merch now. You knew that was coming. You can buy baseball hats that say “Chestnut St.” and, across the back, “Everybody Lives Here.”

Now that you know a little more about the place, would you live on Chestnut St.?