bad neighborhood

Trying to Stay Safe

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

Being attacked and physically injured by the neighbors in 2023 was a huge shock. I never expected something like that to happen when I bought this house. It was even more shocking and disappointing that when I reported the injuries and behavior to the village and the sheriff department, I was gaslit and experienced retaliation. Other people in the village have also complained about the boom cars and experienced retaliation. The difference between the other people in the village complaining about the boom cars and me is that those other people live on other streets. I live in the house directly across from and next to the houses with the boom cars. It’s worse for me.

In 2024, I decided I need to try to come up with a safety plan in case it happened again. It’s obvious that neither the village nor the sheriff department are going to keep us safe from physical injury. My plan was that we would just leave when they do the boom car behavior. 

This safety plan failed epically for multiple reasons. Emboldened by the fact that everyone who complained about the boom cars in 2023 experienced retaliation, they got worse in 2024. They were constant for 18-21 hours a day for at least 5 months. I cannot afford to live in a hotel, apartment, or a second residence for several months per year.

We did spend a night in the car on the side of the road like homeless people. We are not homeless. I own a home. I own property. But I was so exhausted after several months of only 3 hours of sleep per day and blood dripping out of my ears, we needed a break. We slept in the car. 

Mind you, the car smells like urine. That was not a pleasant experience. The neighbors have an outhouse directly against my garage, using my garage as the fourth wall to their outhouse. It gets daily use. Not to mention, their children came onto my property without permission and threw rocks at my car, trying to damage and disable it. I was told that their children were allowed to come onto my property without my permission and throw rocks at my car because “they own the street.” 

This fall, the neighbors also started blocking my driveway again. Often, I am unable to leave. Once, I went to the pharmacy and was blocked from returning home for three hours. I wasn’t feeling well. I wanted to lie down. I could not physically reach my house. 

It’s like playing Russian roulette trying to figure out when I can leave the house when the driveway is not blocked and hoping I will be able to return home. 

No, the police will not respond to this situation. I was told it is legal for people to park on the side of the road, even if they park directly in front of a driveway, completely blocking access to the property. 

The man who does my snowplowing was not even able to plow my driveway once this winter because they were blocking my driveway with their vehicle. They refused to move the car. I had to pay for snowplowing that did not actually happen because my driveway could not be accessed.

I have been told if I complain about the neighbor abuse again, my cats will be taken and used as bait for the dog fighting ring. I feel like I have used all my options. There is no way to make the behavior stop.

We need to be safe. I now have permanent hearing damage because of their actions. The cats (especially Jolene) do too. 

A new safety plan is needed this year, especially since leaving is not an option. They physically prevent me from leaving. 

I reached out to a sound engineering company in Pennsylvania run by a retired Navy veteran. I asked them to do an analysis about soundproofing the house – even just one room so we have a safe place. I provided them with photos, videos, and decibel reading of the noise from the boom cars.

The gentleman from the residential section of the sound engineering firm shook his head. He said what we are experiencing far exceeds what is normal in a residential setting. Boom cars are typically illegal, especially in residential areas. The vehicles are supposed to be impounded and the sound systems removed. 

I told him there is a NYS vehicle law that states that sound from vehicles is not supposed to exceed 70db at the property line. However, NYS laws do not apply in this village. The village encourages the boom cars.

The residential sound engineer referred me to the commercial sound engineer – this is the person who does soundproofing for things like gun firing ranges. 

The commercial person also said what I am experiencing far exceeds even a gun firing range in that the noise I am experiencing is constant, for hours. The noise at a gun firing range is intermittent. 

The analysis they provided is that the house cannot be soundproofed for this level of noise. It cannot be retrofitted. The noise I am experiencing far exceeds what people should experience in a home. 

They did suggest a room of new construction – new build – be built in the basement with shock absorbers in the walls. They suggested the basement since all the db readings I have recorded are on the first floor of my home. Although, the noise in the basement is bad too. If you set a glass of water on the workbench in the basement, the water in the glass “jumps” due to the level of noise they produce. It’s that loud. 

We end up stuck in this house with no way to leave and no way to make it stop. 

I feel helpless. No one can make this stop, and no one cares.

I don’t like feeling helpless. I feel like I need to do something to try to protect me and the cats.

We have been working on our tornado training as the result of the tornado we had last summer. The basement is our safe place for tornadoes. While the excessive noise from the boom cars is still excessive in the basement, it’s not as bad (not by much) as the first floor.

So, the basement seems to be the safest place in the house. I say that with a grain of salt. The basement is not safe either. The noise is excessive down there also. Not to mention, the radon in the basement is high. Radon levels are supposed to be 4 or below. Radon levels in our basement are well over 30. I had been saving money for radon mitigation, but all that money has been drained since the neighbors behavior prevents me from working. 

With both tornadoes and neighbor abuse in mind, the basement seems like the best bet. Jude and Jolene are trained to go to the basement on their own. Simon is still working on carrier training. He is scared of both the carrier and the basement. 

I decided to get two more carriers to put in the basement, that way there are carriers already down there. It makes things easier for me when there is a tornado – Jude and Jolene will go to the basement, I just need to grab Simon. If carriers are already in the basement, then I do not have to worry about trying to grab those too in addition to getting everyone down there for safety. 

I bought a roll of mass loaded vinyl and used it to put around the carriers. I also covered them with my old bed comforter. I know that mass loaded vinyl will not help at all with the level of noise we are experiencing from the boom cars, but I feel like I need to do something to keep us safe. 

I also got a pair of gun range headphones for me to wear in the basement. They are pretty much a waste of money. You can still hear the booming even with gun range headphones. The noise is that excessive. Still, if there is any way to prevent blood dripping from ears – it’s worth a try? 

This is our safety plan for 2025 since our safety plan for 2024 failed epically. In addition to subjecting us to excessive noise, the neighbors are now physically preventing us from leaving. I’m just trying to do the best I can to stay safe. I don’t know what more to do.

At the very least, it will be helpful to have the carriers in the basement for tornadoes. I can put the cats in the carriers once they are in the basement. It just makes it easier for me to get us all down there if there are some tornado supplies already there. 

Ride Around the Sun

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

Today is my birthday. It looks like I’ll be getting another ride around the sun. 

Birthdays are my favorite holiday. I love being alive. Every time I get a birthday, it’s like a giant middle finger to the world that I was able to survive another year of what life threw at me. 

This year, it’s going to be two giant middle fingers.

The past year has been especially hard. I love being alive. It’s hard living in a time of active eugenics when health professionals no longer take any infection precautions and actively promote euthanasia. I have lost count of the number of times this year I have said “no” to the suggestion of the euthanasia clinic.

I remember a time when it was frowned upon to tell people they should die. Now certain people (those with disabilities and certain medical conditions) are actively encouraged. People seem to think I am a burden on society. 

I am very happy to be alive. I love being here. I work full time and help the abused cats in my area that have been used as bait for the dog fighting ring. Yet, for some reason, I am one of the ones that is supposed to “fall by the wayside.” People frequently say things to my face like, “why aren’t you dead already?” 

The physical injuries and abuse from the neighbors escalated in 2024. I reported their behavior in 2023. Several other houses on neighboring streets made reports also. We were all retaliated against. Since anyone complaining about the boom cars has experienced retaliation, the people who are operating the boom cars got the green light that their behavior is not only acceptable, but welcomed, by the village. Their behavior in 2024 was worse than 2023.

I would like the behavior to stop. I have this expectation that I should be able to live in my home free from physical injury. This is a unreasonably high expectation for this village. The boom cars advertise drugs for sale, and we need to support local business, after all.

Some people have suggested that the way to deal with the neighbor abuse is euthanasia. If you don’t like being abused, you should die.

This does not make any sense to me. Again, I am happy to be alive. I feel like I give back to the community. I ran the book club at the library and served on multiple non-profit boards in the area.

For some reason, the village says that people who live in this area deserve to be abused by the 3-4 houses who do the boom cars. If you don’t like the abuse, have you considered euthanasia?

I would like the abuse to stop. 

In the past year, I have been prevented from sleeping for at least 5 straight months. I was purposefully kept awake and only allowed to sleep 2-3 hours a day. We slept in the car on the side of the road. I own a home, but we had to sleep in the car on the side of the road to get some sleep due to the boom cars.

Even then, the car smells like urine. They built an outhouse directly against my garage using my garage as the fourth wall to their outhouse. I smell human waste every single time I have to drive the car to go anyplace. 

That is if I am lucky enough to even be able to leave. The people across the street have started the practice again of actively blocking my driveway. They park cars 2-3 deep across the road. I can’t get out. They won’t move the vehicles. Some of the vehicles are not able to be moved, as they are torn apart in various states of dis/repair in the middle of the street. 

In addition to the lack of sleep and physical injuries, I missed over a month of work as a direct result of their actions. My employer is being understanding because they know I am experiencing harassment from the neighbors. There are recordings, photos, and witnesses. The sheriff department says videos and photos are not evidence. Witnesses have to be “approved village residents.”

My savings has been drained from all the work I’ve missed as a direct result of their behavior. On top of that, I have medical bills I have had to pay for injuries as a direct result of their actions. There goes money I had been saving for home improvements. 

I was planning to make improvements to this house to be a good homeowner and make the village a better place. The village doesn’t want people to upgrade their homes. If the neighbors harass you to the point you can’t work, they don’t care. 

All of this is legal, according to the village, We need to support local businesses. The boom cars advertise drugs for sale. If anyone does complain, they experience retaliation in the forms of more serious physical injuries and threats.

So yes, this has been a very hard year. Two very big middle fingers to the world.

I am happy to be alive. I love being here. I give back to my community and try to make the world around me a better place. I’m very glad to have another ride around the sun. 

My only wish for my birthday is for the physical injuries from the neighbors to stop. They need to stop with the boom cars. I can take people telling me to die to my face and asking me why I haven’t gone to the euthanasia clinic yet. Yes, that hurts my feelings. But they are only feelings.

Being hurt physically is worse. 

No, I can’t leave. The mortgage company will not allow a short sale. These people have tanked my property value due to the bad behavior. They are so bad, the real estate agent will only show houses here in pairs, and houses here are on the market twice as long as any other location in this entire county. 

People blame me for not being financially able to leave. They say it’s my fault. It’s my choice. If I do not want to be physically abused living in this house, I can choose to be homeless. I can choose to be euthanized. People have suggested that homelessness and euthanasia are both better options than living here being abused. I disagree. 

I love being alive. I do not want to be euthanized. I would not last long if I had to be homeless again. I should not have to be homeless to avoid being abused by people I don’t even know. With multiple homes on multiple surrounding streets complaining of the noise, you would think the village would make it stop. Instead, they encourage the behavior.

So here is to another ride around the sun. The only thing I want for my birthday is for the boom cars to stop. I want to be able to sleep, work, and live my life without having blood drip out of my ears and permanent hearing damage inflicted upon me by drug dealers. I don’t want my cats to be taken and used as bait for the dog fighting ring if I complain again. I’m pretty sure wanting this to stop is a pipe dream, as no one has been able to help. But it’s my birthday, I can dream. 

House-iversary 6

/ rachelgoes262 / 5 Comments

When I bought this house 6 years ago, I had such high hopes having finally achieved the American Dream. The very first thought I had was, “we will never be homeless again. This is our forever home.” I was very eager to integrate into my new community. I walked to one of the local churches, frequented the library and started the book club there. I drafted a business plan to open a new business on Main Street and was in the process of securing funding to start the new venture when the pandemic hit.

The American Dream quickly turned into the American Nightmare once it became apparent how horrible the people are in this village, and how dangerous the people are who live on this street.

Over the years, I have documented numerous incidents of property damage. I have filed police reports regarding the damages and have receipts for repairs. Every time I must pay to make a repair to my property due to intentional damage caused, it takes away from funds I use to make upgrades to my home. 

During the time I have owned this home, I have made numerous upgrades to the property. A real estate agent last fall (2023) told me that with the upgrades I have made to the home, I had added at least $10,000 in value to this house. However, that would only be if the house was in a nice, respectable neighborhood instead of the one in which I am located. 

When the real estate agent did the appraisal for how much I could sell the house for, the bad neighbors have driven down my property value by over $20,000. One of the questions the real estate agent asked me when coming to view the house for valuation was, “do the neighbors have indoor plumbing?” How am I to know? What kind of a question is that?

You see, the reason why the real estate agent asked this question is because last summer they built an outhouse directly against my garage. My garage is the “fourth wall” that makes up their outhouse. The outhouse receives regular use, and the smell of human waste is strong every time you are outside on this property. I have no idea if those people have indoor plumbing or not. At the very least, it is obvious they no longer have an indoor toilet. 

I had absolutely no idea things like that could drive down my property value. However, that is only one small item of the bigger issues driving down my property value. 

The real estate agent who came to do the valuation said I would need to do a “bad neighbor” disclosure if I sell the house. It should have been done when I bought the house. It was not. I think part of the issue is that the person who owned this house passed away and left it to his grandchildren who do not live here. They probably had no idea how dangerous this neighborhood really is when they sold the home that was left to them as an inheritance.

The real estate agent said that they only show homes in this area in pairs for safety reasons. There are numerous complaints from people on my street and surrounding streets regarding noise and other concerns.

Here is the root cause of the problem. Noise.

There is a possibility we may not even be in this house next year to celebrate another House-iversary. To be honest, today is no celebration. This house has turned into an American Nightmare.

While property damage is annoying and costly, I draw the line when someone physically injures me and those I love.

Last year I was physically injured as a direct result of the neighbors’ actions. One of the cats was also. We had to seek medical care. The cat had to go to the vet, and I had to go to the doctors. Our ear drums were ruptured. I am still having problems from it. It impacted my work and my everyday life. All my paid time off from work was used last summer dealing with our injuries as a direct result of their actions. I had to pay out of pocket for medical care and anything with ears and hearing is not covered. 

Without going into all the details of this dangerous situation, I have learned that there is no way to get these people to stop. They are sadists who enjoy causing pain and injury to other people and animals. I reached out to a lawyer last fall, in September, who said I have a very strong case for battery with plenty of third-party evidence. However, battery is not a crime in New York. A lawsuit will not stop them from continuing to injure us.

I don’t want.to be injured again. 

There is no noise ordinance here. The village does not feel the need for a noise ordinance. Their exact words were: “well, I don’t have to live there.”  They don’t want working people like me who are trying to upgrade properties and open new businesses in the village. I am the undesirable in this situation.

The bottom line is that we were injured. This is unacceptable. It is not safe here.

Since there is no way to get the behavior to stop, the only way to keep us safe from physical harm is to leave. That’s why I contacted a real estate agent about selling the house. How much can I get for the house if I sell it and move? I need to pay off the mortgage.

The problem is this neighborhood is so bad, they have driven down my property value. All the upgrades I have made mean nothing in a location this bad. The real estate agent told me to stop putting money into the house and making upgrades. They said any more upgrades I do is not going to make a difference to the selling price on a street this bad.

Unfortunately, they have driven down my property value to the point where I would have to do a short sale to sell the house. That means, I can no longer sell it for a price that would pay off my mortgage. The mortgage company would need to approve the sale at a price less than the house is worth (by about $30,000). The mortgage company will not approve a short sale. The real estate agent says it has been taking twice as long for houses to sell here than any other place in the county due to the bad neighborhood. There are complaints of excessive noise, cars doing burnouts, unattended children and drugs. (I have no idea about anything other than the noise). 

If this house was in a better neighborhood, I would have no problem selling it. The real estate agent says it has “curb appeal.” With the upgrades I made, I would be able to sell the house at a profit – if it was in a better neighborhood that did not have neighbors with this extreme noise problem that bothers everyone on the street and even on adjoining and parallel streets (it’s that loud). 

House-iversary is no longer an annual celebration of finding our forever home so we would never be homeless again. While I love this house, it is completely unacceptable for my cats and I to live in fear because we never know when we are going to be attacked and physically injured again. We cannot control the behavior of bad neighbors. The only thing I can do is leave to keep us safe.

This is the most dangerous place I have ever lived in my life. I can’t even enjoy my own property. I go outside to garden and am instantly hit by the smell of human waste. I never know when they will blare their music. There were 5 days in July where I got a grand total of 15 hours of sleep. I am starting a new work position also. It is very hard to go on 3 hours of sleep per day. Their behavior disrupts my life. 

Most of the music comes from cars. On highways, there are signs saying vehicle noise is not supposed to be above 70 decibels. I wish I lived on a highway. The motor vehicle law does not apply to the village in which I live. 

In this village, it is perfectly acceptable for music to be well higher than the 70-decibel state law at all hours of the day or night. 

Thanksgiving 2023 I had arranged everything with someone in a different time zone over zoom and we coordinated our meals. When we went to sit down to eat, the music started and lasted for hours. What was supposed to be a family celebration ended up being yet another nightmare. We could see each other, but there was no prayer before the meal, no conversation, no nothing. All that planning for a family event was ruined. The music was coming from a vehicle parked across the street. They must have had family over for their Thanksgiving that they hated and did not want to talk to. Nothing could be heard over the noise even if you screamed (which we tried). 

I do go outside, but I must be careful when I go out. I always must look to see who is out to decide if it is safe for me to go out. Many times, when they have these parties, there are well over 50 people. If I am attacked, there is no one to help me. No one would respond if I were attacked on the street. We had one set of neighbors next door who were friendly and who had the same problems with the noise as we do. They moved in June. They told me they could not spend another summer like the one we had last year with the noise. 

We may not be here next year. The hardest part is trying to figure out – where will we go? The mortgage company will not allow a short sale. So, once I figure out where we will go, we will have to leave the house, and I will probably have to voluntarily allow it to go into foreclosure. It will be the only way to get my name off the mortgage since the mortgage company will not approve a short sale. I cannot afford two residences, and we are not safe here.

When I think about allowing the house to go into foreclosure, it breaks my heart. It makes me feel like they have won. They have driven us out of our forever home by their actions. I have dreams of updating and improving this house and that will all be gone. I had wanted to be a valued member of the community by starting the book club and opening a business. The reality is that we were physically injured last year. There is no way to get their behavior to stop. 

This may be the last House-iversary post as the American Dream is now the American Nightmare. The future is bleak. The choices are homelessness or be physically injured again. Neither choice is appealing. 

Bad Neighbors 2

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments
Flower, the cat the neighbors kicked out when they had a baby that I have been trying to help.

Bad neighbors 2 sounds like a movie, but it’s not. It’s my life, and it is not funny. In the past 3.5 years I have owned this house, here is a short list of what the neighbors have done to me: taken a baseball bat to the siding on my house, repeatedly left dog shit on my front porch, repeatedly run over my mailbox, blocked my driveway with their vehicles so I am unable to leave for medical appointments, played their drums so loud during work hours I lost one of my jobs, played their drums so loud I had bleeding ears and doctor confirmed permanent hearing damage, repeatedly waived a gun in my face and threatened to shoot me if I asked them to move their car to stop blocking my driveway so I can get out again. 

I know, I know. You’re saying I did something to deserve this, right? What did I do to them to make them do this? 

Well, I feed the stray cat outside that they kicked out of their house when they had a baby. I called animal control on them when they left their dog outside on the porch with no food and water for three days surrounded by it’s own feces. I reported them for running a dog fighting ring in the village and using stray/neighborhood cats as bait. 

That’s what I did that pissed them off. I guess I’m a bad person and deserve to be harassed. 

This month, they not only ran into my mailbox, they drove their vehicle up on to the sidewalk and into the bushes in front of my house. This house has been here for over 100 years, but apparently all of a sudden, it is “in the way.” They are not able to back their truck into the street unless they cross the street, drive on the sidewalk and into the front of my house.

I have had the sheriff out numerous times to make reports. This was the second time they have driven on the sidewalk and into the bushes in front of my house. It was so bad that both the sheriff and I are now worried that the next time they do this (which will be the third time), they will actually drive into the front of the house and kill me.

I can no longer use my front porch. It’s not safe. I could be murdered.

That front porch is one of the reasons I bought this house. I love the front porch. Now I can’t use it because it is not safe for me. The neighbors need to drive into it because it is “in their way.”

I had to completely empty my living room and rearrange all of the furniture in my house. It is too dangerous for the cats and I to be in the living room. If the neighbors decide next time to hit the mailbox, drive on the sidewalk, drive into the bushes and into the front of the house, I could be killed in my own living room.

Again, the living room is a part of the house I love and part of the reason I bought the house. I now have two areas of my own house I cannot even use because I could be murdered by the neighbors. 

The house has been here over 100 years. I’m not sure why it’s in the way now. I don’t understand why the neighbors are not able to back their truck into the street. I guess the street is not big enough. They have to drive it across the street, over the sidewalk and into my house.

The sheriff seems to think they are either driving illegally without a license, driving while drunk/high, or all of the above. However, the sheriff claims they are unable to do anything until the do more damage or actually kill me.

I live in fear in my own house. 

I told the sheriff how they blocked my car and I could not get out for a doctor appointment and had to reschedule the appointment. Do you know how hard it is to get medical care in the pandemic? If you reschedule an appointment, you may be waiting a year before they can see you. 

However, if I even look at this neighbor sideways, they threaten me with their gun. Apparently, this is all legal in the USA. It is legal to threaten your neighbors with a gun. Their vehicle was on my property, but I’m not allowed to ask them to leave my property. They can waive a gun iin my face and there is no consequence.

Welcome to America.

The sheriff has said that when I do sell this house, I will have to do a “bad neighbor” disclosure when I sell. That means that it is driving down the value of my property and will make it harder to sell this house due to being in a bad neighborhood. There should have been a bad neighbor disclosure when I bought this house. However, the person who owned the house died here at age 90 and left the house to family who did not live in the area. I’m sure when they sold it they knew nothing about how bad this neighborhood truly is. Plus, to be honest, we were on the brink of homelessness when I bought this house. We need a place to live. As bad as it is here, we have no place to go.

Don’t get me wrong, I love this house. It’s just in a horrible neighborhood. Unfortunately, real estate is all about location, location, location. It’s just hard for me to love this house, have parts of it I cannot use, and to have to live in a state of fear of being murdered in my own home by the neighbors. Here we are. 

The sheriffs office has all of my reports. If something happens where the neighbors drive into the front of my house again, or I am murdered, at least they will know who did it. 

By the way, the neighbors may be mad that I reported their dog fighting ring, however, nothing has been done to break up the dog fighting ring. Apparently, it “brings in too much money” to be broken up. 

I’m still feeding three outside stray cats and waiting for the local no-kill rescue shelter to have space so I can trap them and get them off the streets. This is what I do that causes the neighbors to terrorize me in my own home. 

One good thing coming out of no longer being able to use my living room or front porch is that I am drastically downsizing in anticipation of a move. I have no idea where we are going or when. I just want to leave. Unfortunately, I bought this house as part of a low-income first-time homebuyer program. If I sell it, I have to pay a penalty of $10,500 in addition to whatever money I lose when I sell the house. 

We need someplace to go first. I bought this house to keep us all together. We were less than 24 hours away from homelessness when I got approved to buy this house. This house is the only thing keeping us together. We can’t leave without someplace to go where we can not only be safe but all stay together.

I’m not sure what to do about the bad neighbors. My goal remains the same as always: outlive the cats so I can keep them together. If that means I have to completely empty my living room and am unable to be in / use that room so that I do not get murdered in my own home when the neighbors drive into the house next time, then so be it.  

The cats and I have to stay together. Right now this house is keeping us together.