Am I crazy, or is my neighbor?

[chawn]

I think you and your neighbor are both crazy. If your neighbor is worried about her privacy, then she can close her blinds. But having a swingset in your front yard is a lawsuit waiting to happen from an uninvited and unsupervised child getting injured on it.

I bought my house not only as a place to live, but as an investment. And my property value would definitely take a hit from a swingset in the front yard of a neighbor. I live in a painfully strict HOA for that very reason.

 

[Kharnynb]

The extremes of you guys....all the way from having a maximum lawn height...to having a iron monger in the front yard......

Over here we try common sense and trying not to piss of the angry grannies.

 

[Pkrd]

A man and his wife are awakened at 3 o'clock in the morning by a loud pounding on the door. The man gets up and goes to the door where a drunken stranger, standing in the pouring rain, is asking for a push.

"Not a chance," says the husband, "it is three o'clock in the morning!" He slams the door and returns to bed.

"Who was that?" asked his wife. "Just some drunk guy asking for a push," he answers. "Did you help him?" she asks. "No, I did not, it is three in the morning and it is pouring out!"

"Well, you have a short memory," says his wife. "Can't you remember about three months ago when we broke down and those two guys helped us? I think you should help him, and you should be ashamed of yourself."

The man does as he is told, gets dressed, and goes out into the pounding rain. He calls out into the dark, "Hello, are you still there?"

"Yes," comes back the answer.

"Do you still need a push?" calls out the husband.

"Yes, please!" comes the reply from the dark.

"Where are you?" asks the husband.

"Over here on the swing!" replies the drunk.

 

[sfish]

She let you know she does not like it and she may never talk to you again. You win with this. However if she does just say you understand her and are planning on taking it down. Just do not say in 10 years. Next time you begin to list obstacles you have in removeing. Say My brother in law was going to come over last weekend BUT his wifes son's son hamster was _ _ _ _ and canceled. He is schedule for two weeks down the road

 

[PRE66_6TART]

A front yard is widely viewed as a symbol of prosperity in our society. It says to the world, "Hey look at me, not only can I afford to own this space and not use it for anything, but I have the resources to keep it looking nice and well-maintained." Actually using it for something other than sitting there looking pretty detracts from it's symbolic value.

I think society is totally insane in a lot of ways, but playing along with the rules of an insane society to reap its benefits doesn't necessarily make you insane.

You made a rational decision that your quality of life was improved more by using it as a space for your children to play, but I could also understand someone making the rational decision that your yards impact on their property values was more valuable to them than your children's happiness. It could be seen as a little mean and selfish, maybe, but not crazy.

Two people's rational self-interest can be in conflict with each other, and they can see things two different ways, without someone being crazy. And if she had calmly explained her concerns to you along those lines I would say neither one of you is crazy, but from the way you described her tone and the totally bonkers invasion of privacy thing I would say she does sound a little crazy.

 

[Grannyknot]

I think I would probably just have put it in my back yard just for the peace of mind in knowing they aren't playing right near the road.

 

[agrazela]

^^^ You all can take your calm, rational analyses of the situation and...

GET OFF MY LAWN!

 

[j1n]

should have told her to smoke more weed and chill the *** out.

 

[Psylocide]

Also, lol his teeth never come apart for that.

 

[agrazela]

Here in the land of tiny yards, it is not at all unusual to see a swing set in the front yard. But usually in a fenced front yard. And fenced front yards are also not at all unusual here.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

Here in the land of tiny yards, it is not at all unusual to see a swing set in the front yard. But usually in a fenced front yard. And fenced front yards are also not at all unusual here.

I am planning on putting up a decorative 3 foot tall fence this fall, to help keep the kiddos corralled in and to keep random folks from coming and using the swingset when I am not around. I also figure a very small 'no trespassing' sign on the gate will cover me from any potential lawsuit of some idiot hurting themselves on it and trying to sue me over it.

 

[b-boy]

We dont have a HOA but I didn't check with the city if this was allowed or not before doing it. I doubt she will call and bitch to the city because there are many things I could do to retaliate and she knows it, like reporting the monster pot farm she has going just the other side of her fence.

Anyone with a monster pot farm should be keeping a really low profile with the neighbors. She shouldn't be pissing anyone off.

Just sayin...

 

[SlickTX]

I am planning on putting up a decorative 3 foot tall fence this fall, to help keep the kiddos corralled in and to keep random folks from coming and using the swingset when I am not around. I also figure a very small 'no trespassing' sign on the gate will cover me from any potential lawsuit of some idiot hurting themselves on it and trying to sue me over it.

I was thinking more like concertina wire and claymores . . . but to each his own.

 

[b-boy]

I hate lawn Nazis. I keep my yard looking neat and tidy, but I don't stress about it. Occasionally, I might skip a week between cuts if I have something else going on. My wife likes to garden, and she keeps that looking good too.

However, I've had some issues with the state of some neighbor's yards. All I ask is that you keep it neat and maintained to a minimum acceptable 'standard'. That 'standard' should be what the rest of the neighborhood is doing. If you live in a mansion, that standard will probably be higher than if you live in a trailer park.

One person can't dictate the standard for the entire neighborhood. Ask your other neighbors for an honest opinion of your swing set and go with the consensus.

I recently sold a house. I had issues with a neighbor with lots of junk in his yard. Old bikes, piles of wood, power tools, etc. were thrown everywhere. It did detract from my property, since you could see everything from the 2nd floor windows. Now that I've sold the house, I don't care anymore.

 

[NickTheGreat]

She's about 99% wrong. The 1% is in case there is a city code against it, or you're in some sort of easement.

I suggest not worrying any more about it

 

[Homercidal]

I wouldn't stress about it. The kids will ignore the swingset soon enough and then you can take it down.

 

[Rhumbline]

Put me down as against it.

There's all kinds of stuff that is legal, but decent people just don't do it. "There's no law against it" should not be the high water mark that we measure our actions against, it is the bare minimum of what is acceptable in a polite society.

My neighbor was all excited once because he got one of those clothes drying racks that look like a giant umbrella, his back yard is completely shaded and when I asked where he was going to put it he pointed to his front yard... I told him that was the wrong answer, I never saw that thing again.

There are people who think it's genius to make planters out of old tires, toilets, bathtubs, etc. No, it's white trash, just like the refrigerator on the front porch or the '82 Camaro that's been up on blocks for the past six years in the driveway.

 

[harleybug88]

Put me down as against it.

.

There are people who think it's genius to make planters out of old tires, toilets, bathtubs, etc. No, it's white trash, just like the refrigerator on the front porch or the '82 Camaro that's been up on blocks for the past six years in the driveway.

Come on, are you saying you wouldn't approve of a bathtub Jesus?

 

[Inkleg]

I don't care if it rains or freezes
Long as I have my bathtub Jesus
Looking out over my front lawn

 

[Grannyknot]

I don't care if it rains or freezes
Long as I have my bathtub Jesus
Looking out over my front lawn

haiku?

 

[hunter_le five]

haiku?

Far too many syllables.

 

[JonM]

Haikus are awesome
But sometimes they don't make sense
Refrigerators

 

[Rhumbline]

I don't care if it rains or freezes
Long as I have my bathtub Jesus
Looking out over my front lawn

I can plant rows of pretty flowers
as long as I've got the Almighty power
Standin' there beside the sprinkler head

 

[Inkleg]

haiku?

Nope, Billy Idol, Flamming Lips, I just changed some words around on a song covered by a lot of people. Can't Get a link to a video from work.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

Reaction to the front-yard swingset was more negative than I suspected, with about a third of folks saying they wouldn't do it, so I guess my wife and I are a little off-normal in that regard. Although consensus is she is crazy regarding the invasion of privacy thing, which I already knew.

I'm not going to stress about it, and hope my kids can enjoy it for a few years before taking it down. If she does decide to go all "neighbor-war" on me i'll be sure to include the battle reports here. I hope it doesn't come to that as that's not what I want, but with that said I would sure enjoy firing a few rounds her way.

 

[Grannyknot]

If it comes to neighbor war, you should at least start a blog about it.
maybe put something new in the yard every day or something.

 

[Rhumbline]

... If she does decide to go all "neighbor-war" on me i'll be sure to include the battle reports here. I hope it doesn't come to that as that's not what I want, but with that said I would sure enjoy firing a few rounds her way.

It's up to you to decide if this is a hill worth dying on, but it always starts like this...

Next thing you know, you start looking for real or imagined slights. Leaves are blowing from her yard into yours and you feel the need to dump your grass clippings in her yard. Your kids loft a Frisbee into her yard and break a window and she calls the cops, you retaliate by calling code enforcement every time she leaves her trash can out an hour too long. You can't have a party without her calling the cops about parking or noise.

Pretty soon both of you have installed cameras and security lights.

...and then the neighbors start getting dragged into it. Every conversation one of you has with a neighbor is proof of a conspiracy to the other. Anyone on the street who waves to her gets put on the blacklist, and anything that happens to them is going to be blamed on you.

Do a Youtube search for "Neighbor from hell", you'll find thousands of videos that will show you exactly what your future holds.

Is that what you want for your wife & kids? Do you want to come home from a day at work and have to deal with that kind of drama?

Rule #2: Don't sh!t where you live.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

It's up to you to decide if this is a hill worth dying on, but it always starts like this...

Next thing you know, you start looking for real or imagined slights. Leaves are blowing from her yard into yours and you feel the need to dump your grass clippings in her yard. Your kids loft a Frisbee into her yard and break a window and she calls the cops, you retaliate by calling code enforcement every time she leaves her trash can out an hour too long. You can't have a party without her calling the cops about parking or noise.

Pretty soon both of you have installed cameras and security lights.

...and then the neighbors start getting dragged into it. Every conversation one of you has with a neighbor is proof of a conspiracy to the other. Anyone on the street who waves to her gets put on the blacklist, and anything that happens to them is going to be blamed on you.

Do a Youtube search for "Neighbor from hell", you'll find thousands of videos that will show you exactly what your future holds.

Is that what you want for your wife & kids? Do you want to come home from a day at work and have to deal with that kind of drama?

Rule #2: Don't sh!t where you live.

This is not at all what I want, so i'll do my best not to have it go down this path. I'm not going to escalate things, she's retired and has infinite time to devote to a war, thus i'm already behind.

Case and point, my wife and talked and we're still going to invite them to our big annual Oktoberfest party in a few weeks, if only so she doesn't call the cops on us when we party until 2AM. Now if she still calls the cops i'll have some choice words for her at that point. I hope this gesture will allow us to maintain the 'I don't like you but i'll play nice to your face' relationship we've had the last 3 years since we moved in.

 

[MaxStout]

People sometimes use the guise of "invasion of privacy" to cover the fact that they are doing something illegal. If the CO law allows 2 plants per household, and they have more, it's illegal. Knowing that is something you can keep tucked away for a rainy day.

Have a friendly chat with the woman. Let her know you are willing to tolerate her little illicit pot farm if she is willing to tolerate your kids' swingset. I don't think she will cast the first stone.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

People sometimes use the guise of "invasion of privacy" to cover the fact that they are doing something illegal. If the CO law allows 2 plants per household, and they have more, it's illegal. Knowing that is something you can keep tucked away for a rainy day.

Have a friendly chat with the woman. Let her know you are willing to tolerate her little illicit pot farm if she is willing to tolerate your kids' swingset. I don't think she will cast the first stone.

Just looked closer at our city regulations regarding this and it says you can have 6 plants/household so they are probably at that limit. However it says the plants must be grown in your house, these are outside so thats still something.