A woman has been left fuming after a neighbourly dispute turned sour. She “used to have a good relationship” with her neighbours until she “politely asked the husband to stop smoking” near her toddler’s window.
She complained that “the smoke was blowing directly into [her] son’s room”. But, following her request, “everything went downhill”.
The neighbours started “blast[ing] music at all hours,” leading to further complaints from her.
In a Reddit post, she detailed her ordeal: “I travel a lot for work, and after coming home from a six-hour flight with a migraine, I sent a very polite text to the wife asking if they could lower the volume”.
Despite making only a “handful of reasonable requests” over four months, the situation escalated when the wife “snapped back” accusing her of being “petty for asking them not to smoke”.
The original poster also noted that the neighbours have a toddler themselves but don’t seem bothered about smoking around the child.
The conflict worsened with the neighbours allegedly lodging false complaints against her, resulting in inspectors visiting her home for “illegal construction,” and to verify if her “pets were vaccinated,” which they were.
“It’s obvious they’re filing anonymous complaints out of spite,”, she expressed her frustration and pondered on possible ways to retaliate.
She also mentioned that as a homeowner, any complaints from her renting neighbours would ultimately be the landlord’s responsibility to address – a situation she wasn’t comfortable with.
“The husband is a total d**che, and for the first time in my life, I’m genuinely looking for petty but satisfying revenge ideas. I’m open to creative, LEGAL suggestions,” she wrote.
However, some advised against seeking revenge, pointing out that it might not be the best approach when dealing with people like that. They commented: “Revenge doesn’t work for professional a**holes.
“They get off on the fight, so they will do something 50 times worse to you. You can ignore them or take revenge, and it’s the same result, except that revenge gets a little more complicated with what they will do back.
“We also deal with monsters and it doesn’t end or go away. Get cameras, avoid interaction and change your schedule if you can. You have a toddler and monsters are relentless. Be careful and stay safe”.
Another suggested: “Use a little notebook to write down dates, times and what happens. Its good for your mental health to just jot it down, close it and think about something else. The police will be able to use it as evidence if need be.”
Someone else agreed, saying: “Couldn’t have said it better myself. I’ve tried nearly everything to try to deter or get ‘revenge’ on these types, including my current neighbour, calling cops, playing loud ‘annoying’ music, a loud leaf blower at 3am, and so on.
“It’s never worked, ever. They either continue with their bulls***, or it gets much worse. They’re completely immune to everything and anything.
“I keep thinking of trying loud, annoying wind chimes, but what’s the point? Everything else failed, why would that work?”.
Someone else agreed, saying: “Couldn’t have said it better myself. I’ve tried nearly everything to try to deter or get ‘revenge’ on these types, including my current neighbour, calling cops, playing loud ‘annoying’ music, a loud leaf blower at 3am, and so on.
“It’s never worked, ever. They either continue with their bulls**t, or it gets much worse. They’re completely immune to everything and anything.
“I keep thinking of trying loud, annoying wind chimes, but what’s the point? Everything else failed, why would that work?”