Have you ever had a neighbor that just couldn’t mind their own business to say their life? Here, people share what measures they took to finally have some personal space.
Make Some Noise
“My boyfriend and I moved into our first apartment a few years back. It wasn’t the best, but we were thrilled to finally have some independence after living with his parents for a while.
When we were moving in, we quickly became acquainted with our next door neighbors. It was an older couple who we quickly learned had recently moved into the building as well. The husband was kind enough to help my boyfriend move our larger furniture up the stairs. Afterwards we invited them over for dinner as a thank you. At first we were excited to have some new buddies, but that quickly changed when we realized they were absolutely insane.
It first started when my boyfriend and I were leaving our apartment one morning when the wife came out at the same time. She made small talk and followed us downstairs asking where we were going. Thinking nothing of it, we told her were meeting some friends for breakfast. That’s when she asked if her husband and she could tag along.
I was a little stunned, but my boyfriend had a lie at the ready and said that he didn’t think it would be a good idea. The woman laughed it off and said, ‘Okay, maybe next time!’
Then when we got back later that afternoon, the wife met us in the hallway again and asked us if we had fun. Then she said we should come by later for dinner. My boyfriend quickly said no and basically pushed me inside the apartment before closing the door in her face.
Then later that night, my boyfriend and I were being intimate when we heard a casual knock on our door. Annoyed, my boyfriend answered the door in shorts only to find the couple grinning casually. What the husband said next made me want to sink into the floor.
‘I hope you guys are keeping things PG-13 in there!’
I was super embarrassed because I just knew those creeps must have been listening to us. This went on for weeks. We couldn’t even take the trash out without one of them coming up to us to strike up a conversation. It was starting to become very annoying. We even thought about breaking our lease just to move back in with my boyfriend’s parents.
Then one day, my boyfriend and I woke up to find a note slipped under our door. We instantly knew it was from our nosy neighbors. I opened the paper and found a handwritten note that immediately made me want to throw up.
‘You guys really know how to have a good time. We love hearing you guys and wanted to know if you are interested in having an audience.’
There was a winking face as a final touch. Fed up, I told my boyfriend that if they wanted to listen to us, I’d give them something to listen to. We started blaring music and made sure to use our surround sound when watching TV or playing video games. We know we must have been disturbing the other neighbors, but no one ever complained. It didn’t take long for the couple to start slipping notes complaining about the noise we were making. Each time we left the apartment, we started ignoring them. All friendliness was gone out the window.
Eventually our neighbors got tired and got the apartment management involved. The representative that visited us was astounded when we presented the note our neighbors left us. I’m guessing she must have said something to our neighbors who were embarrassed because they stopped trying to talk to us and eventually moved out.
I will never forget the older couple who asked if they could watch us.”
I Spy
“My husband and I moved into a humble abode that was smack dab in the middle of a cul-de-sac. We had our doubts about the neighborhood because there was an HOA, but we were so in love with the home that we wanted to take a shot.
The HOA was nothing special. But the leader was extremely annoying and nosy. He had a pair of binoculars that he used to spy on everyone and I mean everyone in the cul-de-sac. At first, we dismissed his actions as harmless nosiness, but as weeks turned into months, the invasion of our privacy became unbearable. He had no shame in staring directly at us as he walked around the circle with his binoculars on. He would also bring up ‘concerns’ during our HOA meetings and mention his findings that he would only know by peering directly in our yards and our windows. Determined to regain control over our personal space, we concocted a plan to teach the HOA leader a lesson he wouldn’t soon forget.
One sun-drenched afternoon, while the HOA leader was peering through his binoculars, we set our scheme in motion. My husband used his camera to snap a picture of him on his porch in the act of spying on others with his binoculars. He also managed to get unflattering pictures of him doing yard work in his bath robe. We then printed the pictures and made posters of him that we posted on light poles and on our neighbors doors. It wasn’t much, but it did finally make the other neighbors realize how pretentious the HOA leader was.
It was definitely brought up at the next meeting. Some neighbors even suggested the HOA leader step down because they were ‘tired of his you know what.’
His embarrassment was palpable as he offered a heartfelt apology, but we all didn’t really buy it.
In the aftermath, the HOA leader retired the binoculars, choosing instead to engage in genuine conversations with everyone. We even took the steps necessary to form a neighborhood watch. Our logo is a pair of binoculars lol. Our neighborhood, once tainted by invasive prying, slowly transformed into a community defined by mutual respect.”
False Accusations
“My grandfather had a really nosy neighbor. I know because he begged my cousin and I to come over and help him put up a privacy fence to shut her out. At first the problem was solved, but the nosy neighbor complained to the HOA about the fence and claimed that she felt like my grandfather was hiding something.
My grandfather is a decorated war veteran. Knowing that his nosy neighbor was trying to control him deeply upset him, but he refused to let her win. Instead, my grandfather decided to beat the nosy neighbor at her own game. He started by making an anonymous report about her planting ‘suspicious plants’ in her yard. The HOA leader herself showed up the next day, clipboard in hand to issue a citation. My grandfather then said he posted himself in a lawn chair and listened to every word between his neighbor and the HOA leader. His neighbor had no idea who complained, but she proved that the plants were legal.
After watching her for a few more weeks, my grandfather then called in anonymous complaints about ‘suspicious people’ showing up to her house and that children were involved. The next day, my grandfather’s nosy neighbor was busted for running an illegal daycare in her home.
It wasn’t pretty and rumors says she wasn’t let off easy.
Satisfied, my grandfather was able to finally live in peace.”
