There’s more privacy out of the city – but for a stickybeak like me, that’s a disaster | Ashe Davenport

I don't have a community here yet. I'm attempting to build one by picking through my new neighbours' rubbish

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Six months ago I moved from the city to the outer suburbs and I'm yet to meet either of my next-door neighbours. On the day we arrived, a couple across the street said hello but it turns out they are the exception to the rule. People on my street tend to keep to themselves.

My last place was on a main road in Melbourne's inner north. From my bedroom window I was eye level with the passengers of the 508 bus. My kitchen window was almost directly opposite my neighbour's. I had a direct line of vision into people's lives, and it gave me a sense of comfort.

Ashe Davenport is a writer and author