Helen,
I feel you have it in one , he is that kind of guy .

Ilene ,
On the humorous side , his old work van is finally being replaced , he hasn't taken delivery of the new one yet but I joked with him saying that I'd already painted his new signage for it reading , " Get plastered with S*** !" In the UK getting pastered also means having too much to drink ! He does like his Whisky .

Ellbee,
She very much wears the trousers in their home , so I'd guess it's his way of getting even !

Jean,
This whole question about competing could be a subject of a new thread . Since writing this thread I've been wondering if I have stirred the neighbours up . The lovely lady on my right side has made it obvious I out dress her , she actually thinks it's great and has also made it clear she doesn't think much to the attitude of the couple across from me , in her words , " She has the problem , not you !" . The couple on my left side keep a lower profile but when they were painting the fence I had a long chat with the wife , she actually did say I looked very nice when I returned from shopping . I also noticed she has started to wear makeup more . I did also have a joke with her husband when he asked if he could paint my side of the fence so I asked him what shade of pink had he chosen !!

So what is the problem with competing ? At what level am I a threat , if that's how they see it ? When I first came out to them all I made it clear I wasn't gay , so they shouldn't see me a threat to their husbands , so it begs the question how much do they trust them . The lovely lady on my right has been married twice so she knows all about husbands having affairs , we really do get on like a house on fire .

Jean I can see exactly the confusion you mention , I'm OK being the fun guy next door but I can't be the fun lady , I can't communicate through her because she doesn't talk to me in either mode .