tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post2045594154892548167..comments2023-09-29T06:00:09.242-05:00Comments on Julie Pippert: Using My Words: Who are the people in YOUR neighborhood?Julie Pipperthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03169574697104642479noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-17309893296809195572007-08-23T07:48:00.000-05:002007-08-23T07:48:00.000-05:00This is a hot topic for me. Forgive the long comme...This is a hot topic for me. Forgive the long comment.<BR/><BR/>Our next door neighbors are nightmares. They have four kids under 10, three dogs, two cats, etc. We have a large corner lot, while they have a postage stamp lot. When they first moved in, they treated our backyard as an extension of their own - played football in our yard, let their dogs poop in our yard and didn't clean it up. We fenced the backyard just to keep them out.<BR/><BR/>Since then, their kids use our side yard as their yard, and our driveway is used for their bikes. The little boys are always coming up and peering in our windows and door. <BR/><BR/>They've damaged our fence in several places from climbing on it, broken limbs off our young trees, hit our house with balls repeatedly, turned on our outside water and forgot to turn it off, put dents in our cars from their balls, and purposely scratched up the back of our SUV. But the neighbors deny any damage at all, saying we didn't see it, so we can't prove anything. <BR/><BR/>We can't even correct their children (like saying "Please don't climb our fence") or the parents start screaming at us, threatening us, etc. for having the nerve to tell their kids what to do. Uh, it's OUR land! We haven't called the police on them mainly because we're scared of what else they could do - they're vindictive enough that they would do something to our property. <BR/><BR/>The other neighbors told me that these neighbors claim that they have a right to use our yard because they have such a small one! If they didn't want such a small yard, they shouldn't have bought that house! We bought our house so we could enjoy the large piece of land it sat on. <BR/><BR/>We've always tried to be friendly and understanding, but I've reached my breaking point. I no longer want their destructive kids anywhere around, but thanks to their threats, I don't feel like I can do anything about it yet. Thankfully, they just filed bankruptcy (for the second time - they can't keep jobs). They're selling their house or it will be repossessed by the end of September, so they should be gone soon. And I will probably have a party the day they leave.<BR/><BR/>I don't know why people can't understand boundaries. We never go onto someone else's land without permission - why can't they do the same for us?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-13332297788278452722007-08-22T22:13:00.000-05:002007-08-22T22:13:00.000-05:00Hi, I took the plunge and gave it a go! Nice topic...Hi, I took the plunge and gave it a go! Nice topic, I had fun writing about it. :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-31317289627538917672007-08-22T17:04:00.000-05:002007-08-22T17:04:00.000-05:00OK, I'm in on this one.... I'll do it tonight when...OK, I'm in on this one.... I'll do it tonight when I get home... I actually am very much in love with my neighborhood (probably moreso than my actual neighbors, but I do have a soft spot for them, too). Great topic -- thanks!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-81879654649382359522007-08-22T16:43:00.000-05:002007-08-22T16:43:00.000-05:00We have had some crazy neighbors, but that is just...We have had some crazy neighbors, but that is just the weirdest, in your house! OMG!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-67470942342990835512007-08-22T11:38:00.000-05:002007-08-22T11:38:00.000-05:00We live in a suburb of Houston, on the extreme nor...We live in a suburb of Houston, on the extreme north end, near the Woodlands, but outside of the city limits of Houston, (laughingly referred to as CWOC, City without Cops-thats another story); as such we're fortunate to live, as they say here, "in county", county being Harris County. I say fortunately because our Constables office and the Sheriffs Dept. treat law enforcement as though it were blood sport. They love to bust people for any and all infractions. We have a 3.5 minute response time and 4 contract constables patroling the neighborhood 24/7.<BR/><BR/>That being said, the neighborhood is definitely "mixed" and about 33% rental properties, (through HUD) and so we've seen our share of bad actors come and go through the years. Here's how we've survived; 1) lights all around the house 2) we call the constables at the drop of a hat and then stand outside to greet them in full view of the people we've called them on, (noise disturbance, fighting etc.) so they know who has called; 3) if we don't know them, we behave in an unfriendly manner, 4) we park in the garage and keep the garage door closed at all times so they can't tell when we're there or not; 5) under no circumstances to we answer the door unless we know who's there, 6) it pays to act crazy once in a while; I attacked a car parked in front of the house with a shovel once; attacked a mail box another time. It keeps the crooks off balance, 7) we never display flags or political signs of any kind.<BR/><BR/>I can tell you this much; I've lived all over the world and the problem is worse in the U.S. than any other place I've lived. One solution; for retirement, we've bought a house near a lake hundreds of miles from any urban area. And I suspect that's going to be a growing trend as more and more people get fed up with the lawless situation in the urban areas, particularly the high tech types who can basically work anywhere. We've certainly seen that here in Texas where the high tech corridor extends from north of Austin to Waco. Those people don't want to be nor need be subjected to the urban problems. One of the good things our Legislature has done in recognition of the out of control crime problem is enact the "Castle" doctrine which basically says you can shoot to kill if you feel threatened in or around your home or anywhere around wherever your automobile is located. Next session they are talking about legislation cutting off rights of the family of the person shot to sue the person defending themselves. This has become and is becoming an ever more important deterrent to crime.<BR/><BR/>Good Luck!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-61388041753415273432007-08-22T11:09:00.000-05:002007-08-22T11:09:00.000-05:00I've been living in this house for 7 months now, a...I've been living in this house for 7 months now, and I have to say, I am thoroughly unimpressed with most of my neighbors. One house down the street looks like WWIII.<BR/><BR/>I live in a nice, desirable area in the heart of Miami, but I swear, I ended up on the crappy block!Terehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15850314798468099658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-15906967453022483022007-08-22T10:44:00.000-05:002007-08-22T10:44:00.000-05:00We have been blessed with the best neighbors on th...We have been blessed with the best neighbors on the planet. Polite, thoughtful, helpful, plus complete with enough children both just right to play with our daughter, AND to babysit. I know we are so, so lucky.<BR/><BR/>*somehow i didn't get you into my googlereader when I got it started last week, and today I realized I hadn't read your blog in a while. sorry. I have remedied the situationpainted maypolehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06446625015003854710noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-82099655927550525612007-08-22T07:25:00.000-05:002007-08-22T07:25:00.000-05:00I am military and move all the time, so I have had...I am military and move all the time, so I have had gobs and gobs of neighbors as we all move in and out of base housing. I have to say that the majority of them a polite, considerate, and kind. They have well mannered children and take care of one another.... and they all pick up their dog poop and keep their cats inside. I have had a couple that were not that way, but that is the exception to the rule in my experience. Maybe it is all the rules that we live by as military members....some times too many individual rights breeds an “all for me” attitude at the expense of everyone else. Hummmm now I am going to have to go ponder this deeply.Mary Alicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08923591889426758103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-68235240889271173272007-08-21T20:31:00.000-05:002007-08-21T20:31:00.000-05:00I've not yet encountered a bad neighbor, and I'm b...I've not yet encountered a bad neighbor, and I'm beginning to feel extremely lucky.Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05602868040771218507noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-21434755520281100082007-08-21T20:30:00.000-05:002007-08-21T20:30:00.000-05:00Across the street is a family whose name we didn't...Across the street is a family whose name we didn't know for years. We simply called them "The Louds." Not only were they loud, but they were not friendly (with us). Now that their kids are older, it's not so bad.<BR/><BR/>We back up to woods, so we only have neighbors on the sides. That's good, because I have a low tolerance for others, and I'm home all day. When we move next week, we'll be at the cul-de-sac end of a street with only 7 homes on it, abutting woods and a park.<BR/><BR/>I guess it would be safe to say that my idea of good neighbors are ones that I'm not aware of at all.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-68524822831055850572007-08-21T18:34:00.000-05:002007-08-21T18:34:00.000-05:00I absolutely LOVE my neighbors now....but when we ...I absolutely LOVE my neighbors now....but when we first moved in...the ones that lived there was a different story. <BR/><BR/>The lady would pull in her driveway and close the garage before she got out...if we were in the front yard....AWFUL, HATEFUL woman! Words cannot express how happy I was when they moved!Queen of the Mayhemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10317309061471274358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-16691379111221820372007-08-21T17:10:00.000-05:002007-08-21T17:10:00.000-05:00we are lucky that right now we have very nice neig...we are lucky that right now we have very nice neighbors. but there is a vacant house waiting to be rented out, and we wonder if we'll get some good neighbors or bad. . .Christinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04662448292809451387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-52716288683316005192007-08-21T15:02:00.000-05:002007-08-21T15:02:00.000-05:00I"m sorry to say that we are probably the "bad" ne...I"m sorry to say that we are probably the "bad" neighbors with two active noisy boys in a sparcely carpeted apartment.... But they deal with us. And we try.MyThreeBlogshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07817857109007712976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-23464387292314797622007-08-21T15:00:00.000-05:002007-08-21T15:00:00.000-05:00Well, for starters, an all-night rave (when they h...Well, for starters, an all-night rave (when they have 4 little kids in the house) is a bad idea...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-15299782336111692052007-08-21T14:29:00.001-05:002007-08-21T14:29:00.001-05:00Like most people, I have some neighbor horror stor...Like most people, I have some neighbor horror stories. Currently, we are dealing with the one thing that can drive me to absolute distraction. As peaceful as I try to be, I can <I>not</I> stand other people's loud music. <BR/><BR/>I don't want to share in their reverie. They need to get headsets or get their hearing checked ~ whatever it takes to confine their racket to their own spaces.<BR/><BR/>During the summer here, I've had to call the police multiple times. It feels like I'm living in the ghetto. <BR/><BR/>It boils down to one simple thing: Most people are not willing to be considerate of others. <BR/><BR/>With just a little bit of thought about our actions, most of us would feel quite comfortable in our homes. <BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>Peace, <BR/><BR/>~Chanithailandchanihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171731740204067889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-12149612908401320362007-08-21T14:29:00.000-05:002007-08-21T14:29:00.000-05:00it's rainy here and I'm seeing the bleak side of t...it's rainy here and I'm seeing the bleak side of this, how can I be a good neighbor? Sometimes I do want to run from conflict, stress, interaction...yet I do want to love and serve the world. Sigh...Karenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09390898429089863816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-26383235209821876742007-08-21T14:16:00.000-05:002007-08-21T14:16:00.000-05:00The people in my neighborhood are shitheaded colle...The people in my neighborhood are shitheaded college students who smoke too much pot and play their stereos at ungodly hours, and they make me want to go postal.<BR/><BR/>But alas.flutterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11828689769747130419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-11092811138140322502007-08-21T13:08:00.000-05:002007-08-21T13:08:00.000-05:00The neighbourhood I live in has a somewhat unsavou...The neighbourhood I live in has a somewhat unsavoury reputation in the city, due to a low-income housing project two blocks away. But I've never had a problem, and the neighbours in my immediate vicinity are wonderful. <BR/><BR/>We, on the other hand, are merely mediocre neighbours - the kind who never mow their lawn. At least we stay on our own side of the property, though.Beahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15957626443087438904noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13083972.post-34092058745630828962007-08-21T10:58:00.000-05:002007-08-21T10:58:00.000-05:00I'm in for this one. Intriguing topic. I can't w...I'm in for this one. Intriguing topic. I can't wait to see what everyone writes.<BR/><BR/>I've had good, bad and indifferent neighbors and it really does affect your quality of life.<BR/><BR/>And, wow! They were IN YOUR HOUSE??? WTF??? Dear lord, I would have moved as quickly as possible too.Lawyer Mamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06819273107327846943noreply@blogger.com