If we delve into the etymology of the word 'neighbor', we learn that it comes from the Old English 'neaghebur', which meant 'near-dweller' many centuries ago. However, some neighbors, unfortunately, behave so unceremoniously and loudly that it suggests that in their case, it comes from the verb "to neigh."
The most annoying thing is when the neighbors formally do not violate any rules or laws, but at the same time they obviously bring you a lot of inconvenience with their behavior. In such cases, when direct persuasion or requests do not help, only one thing remains - petty revenge. And the user u/jusebdelo, who originally told us this story, is planning to resort to it.
The author of the post and his girlfriend live in a huge apartment complex with many houses around
Image credits: Michael Coghlan (not the actual photo)
Recently a strange woman in pajamas showed up under the author's window and started talking on her phone loudly
Image credits: jusebdelo
The guy tried to ask her to leave but the woman returned soon after and went on talking
Image credits: Ivan Oboleninov (not the actual photo)
Image credits: jusebdelo
Moreover, the next evening she was there again, angrily claiming it's just public space and she's violating no rules there
Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)
Image credits: jusebdelo
Image credits: Design for Health (not the actual photo)
Image credits: jusebdelo
So the author and his girlfriend decided 'to choose pettiness' and asked people in the comments for advice
First, let's do a little setting. The Original Poster (OP), his girlfriend and their dog have been living for more than a year and a half in an apartment complex of around fifty six-story buildings with four apartments on each floor. "A lot," you may say, and you'd be completely right. Moreover, the entire territory between the houses is actually a public space, where the residents of the complex walk, communicate, play sports and talk on the phone.
Yes, our story will be about telephone conversations, and here's why. One fine evening, when the OP and his girlfriend were about to go to bed, someone's loud speech was heard outside the window of their bedroom (and the apartment is located on the ground floor). The OP raised the blinds and saw that some neighbor woman in pajamas was standing right under his window and talking loudly on the phone.
The surprised guy politely asked the neighbor to move somewhere else, because she was preventing them from getting ready for bed. She, without stopping the conversation, moved away, but then again returned to "her place," and everything went on. The OP's dog, sensing a stranger, started barking, and the evening, which promised to be so calm and peaceful, turned out to be completely ruined. Then the author turned the music on the speaker up louder, put it right next to the window - and the neighbor left. But there was a risk that this music would also ruin the evening for some of the other people around.
However, the next evening, that very neighbor in pajamas was again under the OP's window, and again led her endless loud conversations. When the author stepped outside and asked her to leave, the woman replied indignantly that this was a public space and she was free to be wherever she wanted. The most annoying thing, the OP notes, is that the neighbor is technically absolutely right - except for the simple fact that her conversations are really disturbing and annoying.
And so, realizing that from a legal point of view, there is practically nothing he can do here, the original poster decided 'to choose pettiness'. Among the options that he and the girlfriend discussed were to put several large flowerpots right under the window, or just pour plenty of water around everything so that the neighbor could not sit down. With that, the author's imagination seemed to be exhausted, and he asked for advice from people in the comments, who probably could be more experienced in this difficult matter of confrontation with entitled folks living next door...
Image credits: Will Fisher (not the actual photo)
So, if we classify all the many tips and ideas that the original poster received in the comments, according to the degree of their pettiness, then the most innocent were, for example, to sit right in front of her with a book, or go out and do something while she was talking. For example, watering the very flowers that the OP planned to plant under his bedroom window. And now we are moving to the next level.
Leave the house. Sit next to the neighbor. Get your own phone. Say: "OK Google, how do I keep people from sitting under my window talking while I'm trying to sleep?" Then just leave. Repeat as needed. Or here's another brilliant idea - to start some important and incredibly loud conversation on the phone next to her. The upside is that she could leave. The downside is the likelihood of being categorized as 'obnoxious neighbor' by other people living in the neighborhood.
Finally, the third category, smoothly moving from innocent pettiness to pure manifestations of the gloomy genius of revenge: record the neighbor's conversation and play it on the speaker, but at a higher or lower playback speed (sounds damn creepy, I checked it personally). Or download an application that generates sound interference to your phone, connect it to a speaker and broadcast it as loud as possible. And finally, the most hardcore option is to buy a vuvuzela.
If you don't know or don't remember what it is, then in 2010, the soccer world cup was held in South Africa, and these traditional wind instruments, common among local fans, then became famous and notorious all over the world. Just imagine a whole stadium filled with millions of buzzing bees - and then you will probably understand what a vuvuzela is. In general, the author of the post probably googled it, was definitely impressed - and promised to think about buying.
But seriously, I sincerely don’t know what else to advise the author of the original post, because from a formal point of view, his neighbor is really acting within her right in the legal field, and any complaint here will probably turn out to be completely fruitless. Perhaps some idea will come to your mind, our dear readers, so please feel free to express them now in the comments below this post. After all, one head is good, but several heads is King Ghidorah... sorry, a true and probably effective brainstorm, ain't it?
The result was lots of advice, from innocent and petty to gloomy and dark, and it turns out he is definitely not alone with this case
