How to Tolerate Rude Neighbors

Sometimes goats make better neighbors than people do.

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Long gone are the days of welcome wagons and neighbors bringing you fresh-baked pies when you first move in. But that doesn’t mean you have to put up with living next to a bunch of jerks. You can tolerate rude neighbors with a few simple steps and an unrelenting positive attitude.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Step1

Let it go. When a neighbor is first rude, let it slide until it becomes a repeated and intolerable situation.

Step2

Go talk to the neighbors. Perhaps they don’t realize that what they are doing is rude, obnoxious and bringing you grief. Leave notes on their door each time they repeat a behavior.

Step3

Use humorous deterrents. When one neighbor’s friends kept parking in my driveway after I repeatedly asked him to tell them not to, I had a skull and crossbones sign made up that read: “No Parking: Tire Slashing Zone.” No one parked there again.

Step4

Fight back. After a loud late-night party that woke me at 3 a.m., I rang the neighbor’s doorbell at 9 a.m. the next morning just to thank them for the wake-up music in the middle of the night.

Tips & Warnings

Police usually look on neighbor disputes as civil matters and they won’t help. If your community has a mediation program, check it out for extra assistance.
When leaving notes or talking to the neighbors, do not go in with a confrontational attitude but rather a positive mindset.
Before you go talk to them, make sure your neighbors do not have a shotgun.