Today the baby turns 8! Simon brings so much joy to all our lives. He is our Chief Cuddler and is very loving to everyone. He snuggles and plays with both Jude and Jolene.
As the youngest, Simon rarely appears for coworker shifts. Usually, if he is in the office, that means it is getting close to mealtime or quitting time. His internal clock also tells him when work is over, and it turns to family time for cuddles.
Simon tends to be the indicator for when it is time to turn the heat on in the fall. Simon sleeps with me every single night. He is always right next to me, on top of the covers. When Simon is under the covers, it is time to turn on the heat! I made the mistake of turning the heat off this spring when we still had some 40F nights, and he indicated his displeasure by burrowing under the covers with me. I did turn the heat back on.
Simon rides well in the car and is perfectly behaved at his vet visits. Everyone that meets him loves him. Of the three, Simon is the shyest. He always hides under the kitchen sink if anyone comes in the house. However, the staff at the vet office always comment on how sweet and loving he is, once he comes out of his shell.
We are all kept young by Simon’s playful antics. He plays equally with both Jolene and Jude. They take turns chasing each other through the house and wrestling. Simon’s favorite toys are small toy mice, that are often found under the refrigerator. Every week I use a yard stick to fish out all the cat toys he has gotten under appliances.
Simon also loves catnip bananas and can often be found “calling his friends” on the nana phone. He is an avid bird watcher and loves doing his Hedgewatch out the kitchen window.
He embodies pure sweetness, kindness, and love. Whenever I get down about what is going on in the world, all I must do is look at Simon to see a beautiful soul.
We are so blessed to have Simon in our home. A phrase I often say is “Simon is a good baby.” It is true. Simon is the sweetest young man. Happy 8th Birthday, Simon!
Books can be a contentious topic. There are people who guard their personal libraries fiercely and say that is the one area of their life they will not downsize. I understand that. I felt that way about my CD collection. We all have one area that we won’t touch when it comes to minimalism. That Is okay. Everyone does minimalism differently.
For me, I was able to downsize my book collection to 5 books. Some of you may consider that extreme, but here are some of my reasons for choosing five books.
When I moved, I used boxes from the local liquor store. If you go by the liquor store in the morning, they put boxes outside for people to take that have been emptied from restocking their shelves. For me personally, empty wine boxes are the perfect size for moving. They are easy for me to carry, and you can fill them up without having them be too heavy to move.
I filled wine boxes with books for moving and the weight was just right to carry. Anyone who has moved can attest to how quickly a box of books can get heavy. While the number of books people enjoy in their personal library varies, I’m sure that everyone will agree that no one likes moving books. They get heavy fast.
For me, downsizing to 5 books is a perfect number because I can fit 5 books in a small boat and tote. I don’t have to worry about packing up boxes of books to move. All I must do is pick up my boat and tote, put the strap on my shoulder and off I go. My collection is curated to ease portability.
How did I decide on five books? For many people, books are like potato chips – there are so many that we like, it’s hard to choose just a few.
For starters, I am a big fan of libraries. I love being able to borrow a book, read it, and then return it for someone else to enjoy. I do not necessarily need to keep every book I read. For many books I read, once is enough. The book can move on to bring someone else enjoyment.
If there is a book that I particularly enjoy so much that I have checked it out of the library to read twice, then it meets my criteria to purchase. If I’ve gotten it out of the library more than once, then it needs to be in my personal library. If you check the same book out of the library multiple times, it’s probably one you should own.
Of all the books I own that meet the “twice out of the library” criteria, how did I decide which ones deserved a permanent place in my set of five? I looked at how many times I have re-read the book once I own it.
If I have re-read the book three or more times, then it earns a spot in my personal curated collection. Really, if you’ve read a book three or more times, you must really enjoy it. Those novels are the keepers.
Books I have gotten rid of have been donated to either Little Free Libraries or library book sales. They can bring someone else joy. I do purchase “new” books. Books I cannot find at the library, I purchase used from a site called Thriftbooks. You can get used books on Thriftbooks for $5 or less. They are in great shape. Purchases often support libraries, as some books are library discards. I typically place an order for 5-10 books at Christmas.
Once I have read a book, I will donate it. If I decide it is a book I may want to re-read, then I keep it. In this way, books flow in and out of my life.
My current book collection of 5 books is not a fixed set. Some books come into your life for a season. If there is a book that has particularly resonated with me that I have read more than three times, then I will look at the collection of 5 to decide if I need to add a book and if a book has fallen out of the season of my life.
It is possible for a book in my collection of 5 to leave. Different books speak to us at different points in life.
The next time I move, it will be very easy to move the books. I won’t have to worry about wine boxes full of books and how heavy they are to carry. My personal book collection fits in a boat and tote that easily goes on my shoulder, leaving my hands free to carry other things.
While 5 books may seem extreme to some, it works for me. I get plenty of exposure to books through the library. I do a Thriftbooks order every year for Christmas. I am not in want of reading material, nor am I bored with re-reading the same things.
What criteria do you have for establishing a favorite book? How many times have you re-read your favorites?
Sometimes I think my life has been defined and can be explained by the prevalence or lack of toilet paper. In previous installments, we have discussed how access to toilet paper is often a function of poverty. Being able to purchase toilet paper in bulk in a privilege. There is a cost savings to buying a package of 20 rolls compared to a package of 4 rolls.
I am going to take this one step further and think big: imagine a case of 48 rolls. Now, imagine a case of 48 rolls delivered to your home. You don’t even have to go to the store, perform the acts of tetris required to load it in the car, bring it home and then unload it.
To make this even more exciting, for an ultra-posh, super-rich experience, imagine said box of 48 rolls being delivered to your home on a SCHEDULE. It’s like magic! A case of toilet paper appearing on a regular basis so that you never run out.
This is the ultimate fairytale luxury.
Speaking of luxury, another vivid toilet paper memory I have from my childhood comes from my grandparent’s house. As you’ve read in previous installments, I grew up in poverty. We often did not have any toilet paper or would use other items to substitute like paper towels or Kleenex.
However, I remember that my grandparent’s house always had toilet paper. I loved going there. I also vividly remember that my grandmother always had a roll of “super fluffy” toilet paper that was for her use. Grandchildren would get spoken to if we used too much of it. As a child, I never understood the whole super fluffy toilet paper. Why did she need super fluffy? What was the point?
Now that I am an adult of a certain age, I completely understand why my grandmother had super fluffy toilet paper. When you reach a certain age, fluffy toilet paper becomes something on which you need to splurge.
The past few years I have been splurging on 12 packs of super fluffy toilet paper. I have noticed over the past 2-3 years or so, that even the super fluffy toilet paper is not so fluffy anymore. Quality of toilet paper across the board is declining. However, I need the super fluffy for a comfort issue.
Recently I heard about bamboo toilet paper. Bamboo is a grass and not a tree. It’s supposed to be more sustainable, as grass grows faster than trees. I heard that bamboo toilet paper is supposed to be soft, but is it “super fluffy” soft?
Back to this fairytale luxury of having 48 rolls of toilet paper delivered to your house…
It’s called a toilet paper subscription, and it is a real thing.
I ordered a box, just to try. I am in love. Yes, I did get the bamboo toilet paper. Unlike all other toilet paper that has declined in quality the past few years, bamboo toilet paper is on par with the high-quality toilet paper I remember.
In fact, I will say that bamboo toilet paper is even better than “super fluffy” toilet paper. Believe it or not, bamboo toilet paper is SOFTER than super fluffy toilet paper. It is also the strongest toilet paper I have ever encountered.
Now, I have tried items on subscription before and it is just not for me. For a while, I had shaving razors on subscription. I ended up with way too many razors. I canceled the subscription. I am still using razors I received through the subscription program 2 years later. Other than having our cat food on subscription, there is nothing that I use enough to have on a repeat order.
Enter toilet paper. I now have a toilet paper subscription. Given my personal history with toilet paper, I am thinking this is a subscription that may work for me, we will see if I need to make any adjustments to the frequency or have any issues with it. For now, I have a box of 48 rolls of the best toilet paper I have ever used in my life.
With all the challenges I have had in life, I can now say I have achieved the ultimate luxury of not only not running out of toilet paper but having amazing bamboo toilet paper on subscription. This is truly hitting the jackpot in my life.
Have you tried subscription toilet paper? Thoughts?
I have never had cable. As a child who grew up poor, we had a black and white TV set with bunny ears. As an adult, cable TV is a luxury I could never afford. Not to mention that working 2-3 jobs 60-70 hours per week, I didn’t have time to watch TV.
When my grandfather passed away (now over 20 years ago), I inherited his TV set. It was my first TV set in my adult life. It was my first color TV. I got bunny ears and had a few channels. I would turn the TV on when I got home from work at night just to have it on while I was getting ready for sleep. For Christmas that year, I got a DVD player. I could then watch DVDs on the TV also.
I had my grandfather’s old TV set for a few years. One day, I went to turn it on and instead of turning on, it just did this continual blinking – like it was trying to turn on but couldn’t. I called a friend who happened to work in radio at the time and asked if she could come over to fix the TV.
It was a few weeks before my birthday. When my friend came over to “fix the TV,” she surprised me by giving me a new TV set that she said was for my birthday. That TV set is the same TV that I have today. If I remember correctly, I will say that TV is now about 17 years old. Since I had originally inherited a TV set from my grandfather and then received a new TV set for my birthday, I can honestly say I have never purchased a TV set in my life.
Over the years, I have had a few different DVD players. I have gone through at least 3 DVD players that I can think of. They don’t seem to last as long as TV sets.
I primarily grew up on radio. I still prefer radio to TV. I would rather listen to baseball and hockey games on radio than watch them on TV. I listen to old radio shows on my cell phone. Back before TV, there were radio shows, much like those on TV, but without the visuals, obviously.
The bunny ears do not work in the house in which we now live. They don’t get reception here. I still use the TV, but only with the DVD player. Cable is too expensive. It’s a luxury item. I still prefer radio.
The past few years, I have been downsizing my DVD collection. I now have them minimized to the point where all the DVDs fit into the cabinet below the TV set. I no longer have an entire bookcase full of DVDs. Of course, they are curated so that I only kept my absolute favorites. I do have some World Series on DVD so I can watch baseball if I want to see it, in addition to listening to games on the radio.
Given the age of my current TV set, I have decided that when this TV set breaks, I will not get another one. When this TV set dies, I will get rid of all my DVDs and just go without. Yes, I am using the TV set and DVD player since they are here. However, I do not feel it necessary to replace them when they are gone. I am just as happy listening to radio and reading. TV has never been a big focal point in my life.
Maybe that is why I am so horrible at trivia. I miss a lot of popular culture references, as I have never had cable TV. I do not subscribe to any TV streaming services. It just doesn’t seem worth the money to me. I have so many other things I would rather do with my day than park myself in front of a screen to watch something.
That’s not to say I don’t have my moments. I do have some favorite TV shows on DVD – Cheers, Highlander, Mash, the Golden Girls. I’m just not one to “Netflix and chill.” I listen to radio almost all day long. The TV set is not a daily habit. It’s one I can take it or leave it.
I will enjoy the TV set and DVD player for as long as they continue to work. However, once this TV set dies, that’s it. I won’t get another one. My life does not revolve around it.
Today is Jude’s 12th birthday. It is also his Gotcha Day. Jude has officially been with me for a decade now. Every single day he truly lives up to his name by taking a sad song and making it better. Jude brings so much joy to our home.
Jude is my lead coworker. He knows when I am working and typically sleeps in the cat bed next to me. The past few months he has even started to sit in my lap. Jude has been having health issues since the fall and has been sitting in my lap since he became unwell.
The vet office has not yet been able to pinpoint a cause for his issues. He was having trouble eating and stopped eating. I changed his food, which has helped. He has had dental care at the vet office. He is scheduled for another procedure later this month to see if that will help him. To be honest, I kind of think that Jude is older than we all think and that he is showing signs of advancing age.
Jude is the man of the house. He is definitely in-charge. That is, unless something involves Jolene. Jude treats Jolene much the same as he treated Kitty the last few years he was alive. Kitty and Jude were together for 3 years before Kitty passed away from cancer. Jude treated Kitty with respect. He cuddled him, groomed him, and would play with him. Somehow, Jude seemed to know when Kitty had enough playing and would stop.
Jude is quite similar with Jolene. He plays with Jolene, but you can tell when he does that he thinks twice about it. He will play with her a little bit and then stop. Basically if Jolene does something “back” to Jude, he will stop and run away.
Jude plays more with Simon. Sometimes, I worry that he plays too rough with Simon. However, there are plenty of times I find Jude and Simon cuddling together and grooming each other. The play is two-sided. Simon does batt back at Jude.
Jude was an only child for 7 months after Kitty passed away. I had not been ready to adopt again, but Jude was acting like he was lonely and needed another friend. I remember when I adopted Simon to be Jude’s friend. I kept Simon separate at first to do the slow introduction I always do with a new cat. However, Simon had only been home for a day when they were already playing “paws” under the door. Jude accepted Simon quite readily into the household.
I worry about Jude’s health issues. We never know how long we have on this earth. I am so privileged to have had this decade with Jude. He has completely taken a sad song and made it better. I am hoping that Jude is with me for many more years. Of course, he is getting all the vet care he needs. But you never know how things are going to go.
Based on his attitude, Jude is a fighter. He is not letting his increasing age get him down. He is still very much in charge of our home. As he ages, Jude has become even more loving with me and with his siblings. He has come a long way from the scared cat that was rescued from a hoarding situation that had 30+ cats crammed into a tiny trailer. Jude is now confident, loved and loving.
I am so grateful to have Jude in my life. Happy Birthday, Jude. I love you.
My minimalism journey is now entering its 12th year. That’s a long time. For those of you feeling discouraged with your decluttering efforts, it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. That’s how much stuff I had to get rid of. I spent over 30 years accumulating, and over a decade trying to pare it all down.
The one area of my house that I am still working on minimizing is my CD collection. As you know from previous posts, this is the most difficult area for me due to my love of music. For the longest time, I would declutter anything in the house EXCEPT the CDs.
My thinking now is that I only want to keep albums I truly enjoy. Those CDs where you pop them in the player and truly enjoy the entire disc. I’m not keeping a CD if there is only one or two songs on there that I like. We have YouTube for things like that. I’m not a huge fan of digital music, but I find it easier to just Youtube one song on the rare occasion I want to hear it instead of holding onto an entire CD for just one song.
One strategy that I use frequently in my decluttering efforts is that I will only keep items that fit in the space available. For example, if I don’t have enough room in the cupboard for all the coffee mugs, then it is time to declutter the coffee mugs and only keep what fits in the cabinet.
In decluttering my CDs, I have done the same thing. However, with CDs, I used to have 3 different pieces of furniture holding my CD collection. I am now downsizing my CDs to the point where there is only one piece of furniture holding my CD collection. That is two pieces of furniture I can get rid of also.
Once my CDs are minimized, I will be at maintenance minimalism. Maintenance minimalism is all about being a good gatekeeper. At this point, my goal is to only bring into my home consumables (food) and things I absolutely need.
Do I have some items that are completely unnecessary to the point they could be considered” clutter?” Yes, I do. I have 5 squishmallows. Do I need 5 squishmallows? No. They are probably considered clutter. However, they bring me joy and have use as pillows when needed. I enjoy them, so they stay.
There is still a room full of donations upstairs. Everything in that room needs to leave and be donated. It will have to wait until spring when the weather is better and when I can find places to donate items. Some larger pieces, like the bookcase and extra outside chairs will just go out front with a “free” sign. They are too large to fight with to transport in my car to take someplace to donate. I could fit them in my car if necessary, but I don’t want to deal with it.
Apart from emptying the donation room and completing the minimizing of my CD collection, I am done. I am officially at the maintenance phase of my minimalist journey.
There are a few random items that will be donated or trashed when I move. Some things in this house I am using now but will not take with me when I leave. However, I feel that I have now downsized this house to the point where I am either actively using everything here or the item brings me so much joy (hello, squishmallows) that they are staying.
My biggest challenge right now is going to be getting rid of everything in the donation room this spring. Donation centers in my area have closed. It is extremely difficult trying to figure out how to get rid of things, so they do not end up in the landfill. I also have a small box of electronics that I must figure out how to recycle.
While I may be approaching the maintenance phase of my minimalism journey, this blog will continue. There are always things to minimize in life including routines and digital items.
My goal with minimalism is to make this house and my surroundings as easy to care for as possible so that I can enjoy life. I don’t want to spend all my time cleaning. I want to spend my time with those I love.
That’s the true goal of minimalism – not a set number of things. The goal is to make life about love and not about stuff.
There is often a lot of research that goes into purchasing new items. Granted, some things we buy are impulse buys. We don’t think, we just add to cart. However, for large, expensive, or important purchases, there is some amount of research involved. We want to be sure we are purchasing items that are going to meet our need and bring enjoyment.
Let’s use the example of purchasing a recreational vehicle (RV). This is a big-ticket item that I’m sure we can agree most people would research. It would not be an impulse buy. When purchasing a RV, we want to be sure there is enough sleeping space for the family. Do we need a kitchen area? A shower? Heat and/or air conditioning? Not to mention, once the parameters for the perfect RV are set, I’m sure that people will shop at least two RV stores to be sure they are getting a good price.
There are other costs involved with an RV other than purchasing the item itself. Do you have a vehicle to tow the RV or will you have to rent one? Where will the RV be parked? Can it be parked at your home, or will you have to rent a storage space for it? Will it be in a long-term camp site? Are you able to weatherize it and make repairs yourself, or are those services for which you will have to pay?
With all the research involved with such an item, one thing that is often overlooked is disposal. If not overlooked, then disposal is acknowledged with only a fleeting thought. What happens when you no longer want the RV? Well, I will sell it, is probably the fleeting thought.
The disposal of items we purchase is not something we typically think about when bringing new items into our homes. Well, maybe you do think about disposal. For me, this is something that has recently become a point of focus as disposal is becoming increasingly difficult.
There are many minimalist blogs and articles that talk about downsizing and then donating your items. Take them to Goodwill! Take them to the Thrift Store / Salvation Army / insert name of charitable organization here.
What if you live in a place that does not have a Goodwill, a secondhand shop, or other place to donate items? This is the situation in which I now live. The secondhand shop we had that took donations closed recently. It is becoming increasingly difficult to get rid of things.
If you do not donate items, another idea is a garage sale. However, people do not want to pay for things anymore. Have you held a garage sale recently? They are more trouble than what you get in money. I have put items outside with a free sign only to have them sit there all day, untaken. Sometimes you cannot even give things away.
I am now consciously thinking of disposal whenever I purchase something. How will I get rid of this once it has outlived its use? What will I do with this item if we move? If it does not move with me, it will need to go someplace.
The nearest Goodwill or secondhand shop to me is now an hour away. That’s quite a drive to donate items. If I’m going to do that drive, it better be a good day with a car packed full of items.
Some soft items are easier to dispose. Old blankets, sheets and towels can be donated to the animal shelter for reuse there. Old clothes and other soft items can go in donation bins in town that accept textiles. Books and DVDs can be donated to Little Free Libraries.
However, for home décor or other large items such as furniture, sports equipment, or basically anything not soft, there is no place for those items to go to keep them out of a landfill. Last spring, I put some large items out (including a bookcase) out front for free and it took all day for them to be taken. This spring I will be putting two Adirondack lawn chairs and some other large items out front for free. I’m hoping they will be taken. It’s getting increasingly difficult to get rid of things now even when you are giving them away for free.
Something to think about when making a purchase is how you will dispose of an item. For those of us who live in rural areas without many resources, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep things out of landfills when even the secondhand stores go out of business. People just don’t have money to spend anymore.
Most of what I am purchasing now tends to be consumables (meaning: food). I am trying to minimize the house as much as possible for a potential move or for when we must flee the house due to increasing violence from the neighbors. The less stuff I must move, the better.
For those who have a Goodwill in your area, they are great places to make donations when you are downsizing and minimizing. For those of us in areas without secondhand stores, we must really think of disposal when purchasing new items.
Happy Gotcha Day, Simon! Simon has been with me for 6 years. He is 7.5 years old. I purposefully waited until November 1 to bring Simon home, despite being approved to adopt him the last week of October. Halloween is a very dangerous time for cats, as evil people often torture them. I decided to bring Simon home on November 1 so that he was safe in the shelter on Halloween. (Many pets go missing on Halloween.)
Simon is the baby of the family and our Chief Cuddler. Everyone loves Simon. Simon sleeps with me every single night, right next to my pillow. Simon is very gentle and shy. He is afraid of fireworks and loud noises. He is a homebody and has never expressed any interest in going outside or leaving the house.
He hides in the cupboard under the kitchen sink when he gets scared. While he is terrified of the upright vacuum cleaner, he tolerates the robot vacuum. Simon no longer hides when the robot vacuum is working.
Simon plays with both Jolene and Jude. He tends to play more with Jolene. They chase each other up and down the stairs and wrestle on the floor. Simon cuddles with both Jude and Jolene, which is why he is Chief Cuddler.
Being the baby of the family, Simon does not think he needs to perform coworker duties. Simon very rarely makes appearances in the office as coworker. Typically, when Simon appears in the office, it’s because it is close to a mealtime. At mealtimes, Simon sits and waits patiently for his food to be dished (as opposed to his siblings who prance about).
Simon loves playing red dot and with small toy mice. He often picks up the toy mice and flings them through the air. He enjoys watching birds play in the bushes outside the window.
Simon brings so much joy to all our lives. I am so glad he is part of our family. Simon is so sweet, gentle, and loving. We love you, Simon. Happy Gotcha Day!
Putting like with like can be very challenging. Houses are meant to be lived in, so of course stuff is spread out all over the place. In the first like with like post, we discussed the benefits of corralling items together to be able to minimize them. It is helpful to look at clothing, books, DVDs, and other items as a group. That way you can ascertain what you have and what you need.
A second aspect of like with like has to do with rooms. For example, I had my stereo system in my kitchen for a few weeks last year. Does a stereo system belong in the kitchen? For some people, it does. If you have a stereo system in your kitchen, that is okay. For me, my stereo system belongs in my living room. So, with the stereo system in the kitchen, it was in the wrong place. Only kitchen items should be in the kitchen. The stereo was out of place.
I currently have stuff all over my house because of the harassment from the neighbors. I have taken almost all my belongings, regardless of which room they should technically be in, and piled them against one wall to try to block noise. (Pro tip: this doesn’t work at all against concert level noise). I have had to empty an entire room after they drove into the front of the house and caused damage to my front doors.
While I may have all the CDs together, books together, clothing together, etc, stuff is not necessarily in the right room.
The bedroom is a prime example. The bedroom should be a tranquil sanctuary for sleep. It is hard to get a good night’s sleep if you are surrounded by clutter and things that do not need to be in the bedroom. If an item does not belong in your bedroom, it should leave. Every item needs a place. Items should not be stuck wherever they fit. Items should be in the appropriate room.
If you have too many items to fit into your living room, then that is a clue that things need to be minimized. If items cannot fit in the space available, do you really need all those items or do some need to leave?
Every item should be in the appropriate room. Would you put your blender in your bedroom? Of course not. Blenders belong in the kitchen. It’s a wild example, but you get the point. Bedrooms especially should be places of calm. A living room is naturally going to contain more items than a bedroom. Bedrooms are for rest. Living rooms are just that – for living and doing fun family activities.
For my next minimalist challenge, I will be focusing on making sure that items are in the correct room. Piling everything against one wall does not work to block excessive noise coming from the neighbors. Since that does not work, I can take my household items and either move them into the rooms where they belong or get rid of what I don’t need.
Making sure that items are in the correct room is helpful for organization and for minimizing. It helps you to see what you have, what you need, and what fits in your space.
Today is our 5 year House-iversary. Five years ago today, we bought this house to keep us together and prevent us from becoming homeless (again). Purchasing this house was the first time I have ever lived in a house.
It’s been a long 5 years. I do love the house. However, I was unaware when I bought it that the house is in a horrible location. The sellers had inherited the house from a deceased relative and failed to do the “bad neighbor disclosure.” I have to do the bad neighbor disclosure when I sell the house. If the disclosure had been done when I was buying the house, I would have looked twice about my purchase.
When I say the neighbors are bad, I must clarify that by saying this is the worst place I have ever lived in 40 years. I have been homeless and lived on the streets. I had better “neighbors” while homeless than I have right now.
Here is a very short, abbreviated list of highlights of what the neighbors have done over the past 5 years:
Taken a baseball bat to the siding on the side of the house
Broken my bedroom window
Punctured my ear drum with their loud music (yes, it was that loud to puncture ear drums)
Caused me to lose my job due to excessive noise
Drove their vehicle into the front of the house twice, almost killing us while sleeping
Caused over $4,000 in damage to car and house with repeated illegal firework displays
Smeared feces all over my front door
Blocked driveway so I have been unable to leave the property for medical appointments or to escape them
Pointed a gun in my face and threatened to shoot me when I knocked on the door to ask them to stop blocking my driveway so I could go to a doctor appointment for chemo
Found used condoms in my garage, as well as installed an outhouse right next to my garage because they cannot afford to repair their indoor bathroom
That is just a very short list of highlights of the extremely long list of things they have done. The local sheriff department refuses to do anything about the behavior. They claim that all of this is legal. I am no longer allowed to call the sheriff department when any of this happens, as they said my complaints are considered “harassment.” I now have two rooms in my house I am not able to even use due to damages that happened when they drove their vehicle into the front of my house, and yet I am the one “harassing” them by reporting it?
The goal of all of these actions by my neighbors is that they want me to sell the house. You see, the perpetrator is the mayor’s brother. Of course, the mayor is above the law. The mayor’s brother is trying to buy up properties in this area and is low-balling all of the prices due to the bad neighbor disclosure. I’ve heard that he was pissed when my offer went through on the house over his low-balled offer five years ago.
The logic in all of these events is that if they harass me enough, I will sell the house. Not only will I sell the house, but they will be able to buy it at a really low price because the neighborhood is so horrid.
As much as I would love to sell the house to escape these neighbors, I can’t. If I sell this house, we will be homeless. We have no place to go. You see, this house is the only thing keeping us together. So we need to stay here.
The best solution would be for the neighbors to stop harassing us. It’s absolutely terrifying to have a gun shoved in your face when you try to ask someone to stop doing what they are doing. However, the sheriff department insists that all of this is legal. If you go onto someone else’s property to talk to them, they are allowed to shoot you. Welcome to America.
Honestly, I love this house. I hate the neighbors.
There are 5 reasons why I fell in love with this house. One of those reasons is for the living room which I can’t even use anymore because that is the room the neighbors have driven into twice now with their car. I don’t feel safe using the living room anymore. It’s possible that the third time they drive into the living room, we will be killed. So I completely emptied all the furniture out of the living room and no longer use that room. They have driven into the house twice in five years. I’m sure it will happen again.
For the record, the house is set back from the street. So they drove over a strip of grass and a sidewalk to drive into the front of the house. They went completely off road. We do not live on a curve or on the end of the street. This was deliberate. The house has been here for over 100 years. No one has ever driven into the front of the house until now. It is being done deliberately to either kill or terrify us. You see, if I die, then they can buy the house cheap as well.
They noise is deliberate also. If I lose my job due to noise, I can’t pay the mortgage and they can buy the house in foreclosure. If they puncture my ear drums enough to cause hearing damage so I can no longer work, they can force me out of the house too. Their actions are all deliberate.
So this year is House-iversary 5. This house is keeping us together. It is preventing us from being homeless.
I am grateful for the house, but the neighbors are horrible. I just wish they would stop so I could enjoy being a first time homeowner and enjoy living in our “forever house” that I will probably die in (hopefully not prematurely from being murdered by the neighbors).
When I bought this house 5 years ago, it was the answer to a prayer to keep us together and not be homeless. Over the past 5 years the dream has quickly turned into a nightmare due to the neighbors.
As much as I want to leave and as bad as it is, I am more scared of being homeless. This house is the only thing keeping us all together.
So here is hoping that the neighbors stop with the harassment. I have no recourse for their actions, as the sheriff states everything they are doing is legal. I never knew it was legal to purposefully damage people’s property and physically hurt them. I always thought those types of actions were illegal, but this is America after all. This is the country in which we live.
Here’s hoping the next 5 years will be better than the last 5 years. (I doubt it, but there is nothing I can do to change the situation.)
rewindliveslow 