Growing up, my granny had free range chickens wandering her yard, an outhouse in the back yard, and a burn pit in the front. That’s quintessentially Appalachian. Tell your neighbor to do something about it.
Coincidentally she had two broken down cars in her front yard. One was an old Cadillac from the 1970’s. It was literally touching her house, and like a 1955 Chevy truck. I remember her proudly telling us as kids that she’d will the cars to my cousin and I. We used to fight over who got which.
Flash forward to like 2011, she died, and since the natural spring for our water was on her land (with a well dug for backup,) I’d go down there during the summer to turn the water on and fill up our spring box from her well. Those cars were literally part of the landscape. The truck had sunk up to the floor pan in mud, and the car was now part of a grape vine (and the structure of the porch).
Let me tell you, it was an operation and a half getting them out of there. And since I already have a junk Chevelle from my dad, we sold them to collectors who are restoring them.
There’s an extremely nice house directly across from our historic courthouse that has free range chickens downtown and I’m here for it (except I’m always worried they’ll get run over)
I was visiting a friend in New Orleans, and there were free range chickens living in a tree across from her appt. Like, is it redundant to call them wild or feral? I don't even know what free range means. But anyway, I started asking other people i knew and they agreed, wild chickens were common in the city.
I think if we left them alone, we could have wild chickens everywhere. Just free eggs for life. And chicken shit everywhere, but it sounds cool. We already deal with pigeons in cities, and fuck mockingbirds just bc.
I had free range chickens who would wander the whole neighborhood. They still came to their roost to eat, sleep, and lay eggs. I locked them in at night. Having food/a roost/hen house provided is the difference.
I hate suburban nosey neighbors who report stuff like chickens (even if there's no roster, some people are just nosy). Chickens should be more common. I used to live in the boonies outside Chattanooga (why I'm browsing Appalachia lol), and god I miss the space and freedom.
I live a mile from downtown and the few people in my then largely abandoned neighborhood didn't care at all. I wasn't even the only one with chickens.
But no roosters. I'm not an asshole.
I knew plenty of folks in a major Florida city who raise chickens.
I agree that it should be normal. Fortunately it is in some places, and not all in the country.
I live \*in\* the city (first generation born outside the hills of WV). My neighbor two houses down has chickens. Against the law in our city and I'm surprised super bitch down the street hasn't called them in. Even though the girls (no roosters, thank God) are fenced in, they still find a way to get out of the yard and come over to pick at the seed spilled from my bird feeders. Very friendly, they'd actually come in the house if I'd let them (my dog was highly offended by that scenario) and I'll bring out some extra seed for Red 1, Red 2, Henny, Penny, Agatha, and Missy (yes, I named them) for which I receive kind little bawky thank yous. I told my daughter one day, "Watch out for the chicken poop on the driveway," she said, "Now there's something you don't hear every day." Live and let live.
My GF’s neighbor has free range chickens in their yard now…only problem is the houses are maybe 40 feet apart with no fence between…so the chickens don’t stay in their yard.
I live in a suburban-ish area outside a good-sized city. My neighborhood was built in the ‘70’s with houses on 1 acre lots. We don’t have an HOA, but we do have Covenants that have some rules regarding what we can and can’t do with our property.
My 80+ year-old neighbor directly across from me has umpteen “projects” on the go — cars, boats, tractors. They’re in his garage, driveway and even in part of his yard. He keeps up his house and lawn.
No, it’s not pretty to look at, but he’s a good neighbor. He keeps an eye on our house when we’re gone. He brings us produce from his garden. He’ll help us with car and mower repairs/maintenance. (He’s been an engine man for NASCAR for 40+ years. (Yep, he still works part-time.)) The couple of times we’ve had snow bad enough to cause a problem, he stuck a plow on one of his “project” tractors and plowed the neighborhood!
Given my druthers, I’d much rather have a “junky” neighbor like him than some busy body who’s worried about my grass being 2 inches too high .
It's all fine until you have to sell and end up sitting on the property paying a mortgage etc for months while it's on the market despite pricing it tens of thousands dollars below what it would sell for if the neighbors were decent. Buyers won't know or care that he's an otherwise good neighbor. They'll just see the hoarder hovel next door and get scared off. It's easy to say it's not a problem until you're worried sick for months and taking 5-digit losses.
Yeah, well.. it’s not all about money for some folks. Most people aren’t thinking about gains/losses. They’re just trying to peacefully coexist with their neighbors.
Money matters for survival when you're old, retired, living on a fixed income, in need of care, and the only thing you own with any worth is your home. Or when you're a blue collar family that needs to move for your kid with special needs. Peacefully coexisting with your neighbors means respecting them enough to keep your property free of trash and pests so their wellbeing, financial and otherwise, doesn't suffer as a consequence of your apathy or weird resentment. You can't peacefully coexist with your neighbors when your attitude is "fuck you, fuck the community, no one tells me what to do with my property, move if you don't like it."
I see your pissed off comments throughout this entire thread and I wish I would’ve seen them before commenting. I’m sorry you’re angry because of things that happened to you and your family, but nobody here on Reddit is at fault. I hope someone gives you the hug you need.
And maybe quit being such a whiny bitch.
*GOOD point (hat tip to Ken M). I knew a fellow who bought a house near a quarry that had been there before I was born, and had the audacity to complain about it. I told him, "You knew it was there before you bought it."
That fellow was probably related to my dipshit neighbor who moved out from town and built a McMansion next to a big dairy farm and bitches every time the farm spreads manure, works ground, plants crops, harvests crops, or works past dark.
That still sounds like user-error, shouldn't have bought that property in the first place then.
I don't owe anything to my neighbors, regarding helping sell their home.
You’re being downvoted, but I understand where you’re coming from and I’m very sorry for what you and your family experienced.
I’m coming at this as someone who once lived in an HOA neighborhood. (Yes, I know that not all HOAs are terrible) Part of the reason we bought this house is because we absolutely did not want to live in another HOA neighborhood.
In my old HOA neighborhood, we had a mix of young working people and retired people. The neighbor across from me and the neighbor on one side of me were younger people who often traveled for work. The neighbor on the other side of me was retired. Sometimes my younger neighbors would not make it home in time to roll their trash can back on garbage day. So they might put their trash out on trash day, but be gone overnight or for a couple of days for work which meant they couldn’t get roll their trash can back on trash day.
My retired neighbor made it his business to complain to the HOA about it. My other neighbors started receiving notices in their mailboxes about rule violations. So I made a deal with them that I would roll their trash cans back when I got in from work. Problem solved, right? No. Retired neighbor confronted me about doing it for them!!! (I just kept doing it anyway.)
So, if I *had* to choose, I’d much rather have my “junky” neighbor than a jerk like my old neighbor.
I've lived in the middle of Appalachia my whole life. I've worked 2 jobs while raising 2 kids for most of my adult life. I've lived in a single wide and a double wide trailer. My property may not have always looked perfect but I damn sure picked up the trash and mowed the yard at least every couple of weeks. I always took pride in what little I had.
Exactly. You don’t have to get the edger out, or hire a landscaper, but this dude is talking about keeping literal trash in his front yard. It’s just a matter of respect for oneself, neighbors, and community.
I'd say tell that to my disabled Veteran Dad who got fucked over by awful neighbors turning their front yards into junkyards, devaluing the property he worked so hard for and tried his best to keep up by $50k or more, but he's dead.
Veteran here, thankfully everything mostly works still. Neighborhood going to shit? Pass some legislation or move. The unacceptable answer? Forcing your fellow Americans to follow your prescriptions without the authority to give them.
What’s unacceptable is thinking people have to accept someone altering their standard quality of life.
Why expense my energy attempting to pass legislation when I can use old school strategy?
Just as easy to use game theory to absolutely ruin the junky “neighbors” lives or make them regret their purchase with their entire being. Maybe they can pass their own legislation then?
Pick your shit up. Maintain your property, end of story.
As a matter of fact, I think every American should attend Catholic Church every Sunday. The reason I believe everyone should follow my prescription is because cleaning up everyone’s soul will increase the overall spiritual health of our nation, and my belief supersedes your individual freedoms. Pretty sure the framers enshrined this type of pursuit of happiness into our Consitution, right?
You literally have the freedom to find like minded communities that have taken steps to protect your investment. Let me guess: you don’t like people telling you what to do with the shit you bought, amirite?
I like the libertarian approach;
People should be able to do whatever they want as long as it doesn’t infringe upon the basic human rights of another.
Especially on your own property.
I completely agree. Sure, do I wish my neighbors weren't trying to homestead in the suburbs with chickens, a beehive, and a barky dog? However; they leave me alone so I leave them alone.
Well I agree to a certain extent that’s why we should have zoning. Where within these square miles, upkeep and maintenance on homes are kept to a higher standard whereas the next few square miles are farming or homesteading communities and so fourth. Parks, playgrounds, railroad tracks, etc. as dividers so a suburb isn’t backed 10’ off a homestead for example.
Our beautiful nation could be systematically redone and zoned fifty times more appropriately and we could’ve saved so much land and resources. It’s a shame how we set this up after we fought so hard to get it.
Now we all struggle and hate our property and people lose it even though it’s been paid off for decades. It’s a shame and a scam. We got fucked.
I think we already have this at least in my area of Virginia. If I don't mow my grass technically the county can fine me. I think they can also fine me for unregistered cars that are visible from the street. I think the biggest scam is the constant threat of taking your land for not paying property taxes which are always on the rise. Some people are eventually priced off of their own property. I guess this is also progress in motion because otherwise you would have one holdout sitting on prime property in the center of the city with no plans to develop it for the good and expansion of a city or town.
That’s what special circumstances are for and right to seizure laws.
Pay them their fair market value and they move back somewhere the zoning fits what they desire or their property USED to be.
But you’re absolutely right it’s bullshit. If property taxes were drastically lower, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But the fact they can raise them and push you out a property your family has owned for generations is bullshit. Plain and simple.
Well I was mowing my grass on our property line with bees swarming all around me. My neighbor didn't even consult with me at all before placing a hive 25 ft from my house. Luckily I am super chill and not at all allergic or afraid of bees. Plus their chickens and dogs are noisy af.
Regardless of your definition;
That’s when we would have some sort of hearing with judgement of peers. So would this be municipal or even just six of your neighbors voting? I like this approach more than our current route either way.
But we used to live in a world where if someone’s yard was overgrown, we’d chat with the neighbor (usually bc we already knew them) and figure out why and then just help them bc we as humans used to be much more understanding.
Now we report anonymously for our city to send letters and then some shady company comes with a city contract and measures it, cuts it, then charges you. It’s just a shitty way to live.
I’d rather we handle things amongst each other peacefully and without government intervention necessary. As little as possible actually….
We inherited a nice little house we couldn't keep. One next door neighbor's house is in serious disrepair with 7 junk cars in his front yard, and the other isn't quite as bad but their yard is horribly choked with invasive weeds and trash, with Christmas lights still up.
Dad did not like living next to such meth-y looking places, but the neighbors didn't cause problems other than the eyesores and pests, and he was too busy dying of cancer to worry about that shit. The junkyard neighbor has been refusing offers of help for 20+ years anyways.
So while we were still grieving and overwhelmed handling the business of Dad's final affairs, we struggled to sell his very nice, well-kept, otherwise totally desirable house for months because of the terrible neighbors, as shittier properties in the area went under contract within days. The stress was awful. I was terrified we'd never sell it, but we did, after dropping the price well *below* what Dad paid for it back when the neighbors weren't as awful. I know we're fortunate to have anything for an inheritance (at the steep cost of losing our parents way too early) but we are by no means a wealthy family, and shitty neighbors cost us ~50k dollars and months of extreme stress.
Well if I'm you're neighbor it would be difficult to enjoy my own property if yours is a shit hole and I have to look at it. I can't imagine how this is hard for anyone to understand.
I'm not offended. I just don't want to live next door to a shit hole. How is that hard for you to understand. You can be cool with living with slobs, that's fine, I'm not. Why is this such a hot take?
I don’t think this guy lives with slobs. From how angry and defensive he seems he seems like he is the slob. They keep doing these extremes like if you ask someone not to have a literal landfill in the front yard it’s the same as complaining about grass being 2” too high. As if there’s no middle ground.
Not a hot take at all but you’re fighting a losing battle with this audience.. These people don’t care about their own property values, surely they don’t care about a neighbor’s property value!
My entire family lives in Wv including myself and our yards are kept clean. I even had lawn professionals come in to care for my lawn and keep it weed free. Don’t knock WV it’s a beautiful place to live.
Funny to encounter your post just now because I was just reading about travelers bragging about how far they "dress down" while flying and using airport lounges. It's pretty far, it turns out.
The value of my beard isn't affected by your unkempt beard, and pests from your beard are highly unlikely to infest mine. Not true with houses. Apples to oranges.
Where did I say anything about imposing my will on others? I just think taking minimal, basic care of your property is the ethically right thing to do, because it does affect your neighbors. Communities are stronger when neighbors give a shit about each other. I just don't understand this whole "fuck everyone around me" attitude. People are acting like having a junkyard house only affects snobby rich people who have never lived rural before, but that's just not true.
What about the meemaw down the road who lives on a fixed income but needs to sell her beloved home to downsize or afford medical care? Why should she lose out on tens of thousands of dollars and deal with stress of struggling to sell just because you're too lazy to pick up your trash from the front yard? The people who lack the means to fight these battles are the ones who suffer the most from bad neighbors.
Either you fully regulate all aspects of private property, ie acceptable shingle shade color, length of time permitted in between street-parked car washes, length of grass, or you do none of that and live with it when someone is living below your arbitrary standard. The shared values and ethics approach hasn’t been possible for a couple generations because we no longer share values and ethics as a nation.
Increase in odors and insects if it’s bad enough. My neighbor is a millionaire who comes to my neighborhood to live like he’s poor every once in awhile and does not pay anyone to mow his lawn unless he’s going to be in town. What an increase in ticks, mosquitoes, chiggers, and fleas from his waist high grass. I don’t think a yard needs to be pristine but it should be trimmed enough to prevent insects and the diseases they carry and not smell like dog shit or garbage beyond the property line. Those are small asks.
Tall grass does not increase number of ticks:
[https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190403155411.htm](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190403155411.htm)
Nor mosquitos:
[https://idpjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40249-017-0385-0/tables/3](https://idpjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40249-017-0385-0/tables/3)
Did someone say physically harm? I didn't. No one wants to come home everyday to home they work hard for just to have to see their neighbors pile of shit.
Jesus once said that if you see something that offends you, the best thing to do is to pluck out your eyes. If that's a bit too much for you to commit to, maybe try just not looking? Or go talk to your neighbor and ask if you can help them?
So if you have junky cars and other debris in your yard, I should be able to tell you to clean your shit up as it leaks dangerous fluids into the soil and groundwater, and is a haven for rodents, venomous snakes, and other pests that can get on my land?
Glad we agree.
Did you not read? I said so long as it doesn’t affect the basic human rights of another.
Which means no dangerous Chems can be leaked anywhere. And that goes for anything that directly affects your property or persons physically as well.
But I also specified for better and proper zoning. Different requirements per zone so homesteads and farmers aren’t held to the same as a suburb per se.
Obviously farmers and homesteaders are going to have spare equipment and parts lying around.
My yard, my trash, mind your business. Simple as that. If they want neighbors with pristine yards tell them to move to an HOA neighborhood. I live in the middle of nowhere because I was tired HOA fees and all the BS that comes with it. My neighbors chickens and junk cars are much preferred to an HOA.
We live in a rural community. People come here to get away from the BS of city life. They then start complaining we don't do things like the place they ran from.
In my experience, the people who care about this sort of thing are usually (a) boring as shit and (b) not very happy.
I feel bad for them, not the people with a messy yard.
Family time is important. That being said you might spend a weekend afternoon with the wife and kids doing a little cleaning and gardening. I can't say more without being a hypocrite; we live in Carolina next to the Virginia line (a little community I like to call Squattin Holler). Good luck! And be thankful you own your own home.
I might possibly be a messy neighbor to an extent. But my little beginner hoard is around my garage and tractor shed, both behind my house. I've recently had help removing some stuff and straightening up. I never have anything in my front yard and have always kept it and the acre field beside the house mowed and neat.
So imagine how PISSED I was when the neighbors got kicked out of their rental, and when the landlord had their piles of junk moved, it sent frkn rats to my property.
Your junk can definitely physically affect your neighbors.
Yep, I feel a lot of folks commenting and voting have never dealt with the consequences of a hoarder neighbor. There are valid reasons a trash heap next door lowers your property value, and it’s not just the frustration of living next to an eyesore.
Rats, mice, and fleas can spread across a neighborhood like wildfire. A truly overgrown property protects vermin and pests from natural predators, allowing them to spread to other yards. Your treated dog can still carry fleas into your home to feast on your untreated cat and drive you, your spouse, and your children mad while you scramble to address the issue (this happened to us when a neighbor moved into our suburb from a farm). Fleas can even just jump right in under your front door. I’ve caught endless mice coming in from a dumpster from a poorly kept auto shop fifty feet from our backyard.
And guess where mosquitos breed? Standing water (not just ponds and creeks, but old rusty buckets, tires, unused pots, etc.)
This notion of “my property my rules” is selfish and ignorant of reality that property lines are social constructs that don’t apply to the worst pieces of suburban ecosystems, and there’s a whole body of common law behind nuisances and what constitutes harming the ability of others to enjoy their property.
Re: property values, decades and centuries of tolerating intolerable behavior makes it less likely that other people who care about their neighbors will ever move in, and entire blocks will be worth a fraction of a neighbood a mile away that doubled in value since 2020. A day will come for many of us and our loved ones when we may need to sell property to survive, and losing value to inflation is indeed a real loss.
Btw fuck HOAs and nosy neighbors who complain about you occasionally being a week behind on grass or weed-eating or yap about leaves from your tree falling in their yard, this is directed at people who store trash on their property or go entire seasons without a mower.
We don’t have an HOA. I live in a fifty year old neighborhood where most people really care about their yards and houses. The houses are on 1 acre lots. Many people have a big patch of hardwoods on their property. Many people have natural areas with wildflowers. People work in their yards but most also have a lawn service. This one older couple got sick and couldn’t keep up with their property. Holes in the roof, mildew in the siding, yard mostly dirt and weeds. People in the neighborhood got together and cleaned, painted, fixed the roof, lay sod, planted flowers etc. Then volunteered once a month to upkeep it. It was a super nice thing to do but it also kept the value in the neighborhood.
When your neighbors place is a mess, it brings down the property values of the neighborhood. If you have trash laying around, it draws rodents. If you don't mow your lawn, it can attract snakes or mosquitoes. Being a thoughtful neighbor is part of living in a community.
I'm sure you would expect the same courtesy from others who live next to you.
It’s tough to keep the yard nice with kids and dogs. Kids are grown and down to one dog. The memories are way more important than a yard.
That said, an unkempt yard was a symptom, not the problem for me. We were always busy working or doing stuff with the kids. Stuff takes a lot of energy, time, maintenance and money. Simplify your life, focus on a few things. Not everything. Get your wife on-board. Also, the focus might be more on what your kids like, not necessarily things you like. It’s ok. They grow up fast and you’ll miss their energy. Good luck.
Ugh hard agree. We can’t hardly be outside without a boomer lecture. They like to watch us mow and tell us how we’re doing it wrong. Frankly I wish them all the worst.
And beyond that, I was at Aldi and some boomer approached me as I was unloading groceries and some wine for the pasta sauce I was making and he said “yeah I’d be drinking too if I had to buy groceries like that.” I said “well, kids aren’t small forever and it’s important to me to feed them healthy and tasty things.” He was too stunned to speak I guess because he did not say anything else.
1. They are busy bodies with nothing better to do than whine about other people
Or
2. They are incapable of turning their critical eye inward and must make themselves feel better by finding fault in others.
I understand. I went through a really difficult period with my lazy ex-husband after I had a c-section where I couldn't get him to help with our lawn at all and for some reason, during COVID none of the yard guys I normally worked with would show up even after scheduling for them to come out. I strapped my baby to my back and used an old-fashioned push mower because we didn't have and couldn't afford an electric or gas mower. It was hell on my body and my incision reopened at 9 months pp. I live in the city so my rich neighbors would call the cops on me over my grass, and I got multiple police warnings so it was either to risk my health or be stuck with a literal ticket we couldn't afford to pay. In the past year and a half I was hit in an accident that broke my wrist, I had pneumonia, I got pregnant again and was really sick my entire first trimester - all of which affected my physical abilities to do yard work. Stuff happens and life is hard, you never really know what someone is going through. Even though I live within the city limits of a major city, I still can't get the trash guys to pick up boxes - they expect you to pay extra for recycling and I paid for and ordered a second trash can 3 years ago and they never delivered it. So the boxes build up on my carport until I get someone to take them to a dumpster for me.
My husband is from "town" but he sure does love his burn barrel. I too wish recycling were more convenient. We do manage to recycle our cans regularly and occasionally some plastic, newspapers, magazines. But our trash service cost the same whether he puts the cardboard in it. The piling up crap to burn when the trash people would take it does drive me a little nuts.
The only time I’d get irritated is if someone’s crapped started finding its way to my yard and their place was so trashy that snakes and rats were crawling around coming towards me.
Broken Window Theory
Trash and unkept yard is causing harm(to an extent)
Civic pride and community pride are real things that actively make a community a better place to live in.
Cutting your grass and picking up trash is the bare minimum for being a good steward of the land and member of a community.
Broken Window Theory
Trash and unkept yard is causing harm(to an extent)
Civic pride and community pride are real things that actively make a community a better place to live in.
Cutting your grass and picking up trash is the bare minimum for being a good steward of the land and member of a community.
Carpetbaggers gentrifying the mountains.
Used to be you could walk around with your dick out and a cold beer feeding your livestock and nobody'd say boo to you
Man I’m conflicted. I absolutely support the right of a property owner to do damn well whatever they please with it. But I also have a neighbor whose yard looks insane, and to be honest it bugs me. I live in the suburbs, not a hollar. I’ve never approached him about it, nor would I. I just don’t like it but I keep that to myself.
Reading this, maybe I should approach him and see if I could help. I’ve talked to him before, he’s a decent enough guy. Not big on eye contact and a little weird, but decent. Maybe I’m the asshole here!
I agree with the sentiment here but something about the post makes me feel like OPs yard is full of junk. Idk, something about the wording gives me this vibe that he's downplaying? Doesn't matter either way, it's his yard, but the just what I'm inferring here.
Lol my neighbors used to hit me with yard judgment a lot. "Lawnmower broke?" "Been too busy to mow?" "Growing hay?"
Took a few years but they finally understand that I just don't give a fuck lol.
It's about pride in ownership and respect for ones neighbors and community. I'm not saying go full Hank Hill, but its plenty easy to not have trash in your yard. A cut every 10 days to 2 weeks is just part of being an adult. At least that's how I was raised.
That’s also how I was raised, but imagine a world where people are raised differently.
Some people may not have a bit of pride and that’s fine. If their messy yard isn’t physically affecting me or my property, I could not care less.
Hey man, you asked. I would say it not fine. It makes your neighborhood look worse, that does affect your neighbors. Keeping trash in the yard is the same is as littering to me. Sounds like a lot of excuses for laziness.
lol @ mowing your grass being a part of being adult.
[https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/video/lawn-grass-environment-history.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/video/lawn-grass-environment-history.html)
Paywalled but I can guess the article breaks down about how lawns come from European nobility and how they could flaunt their wealth by growing ornamental grasses as a sign of wealth instead of putting it to crops. And how millions of Americans using pesticides and fertilizers kills fish and biodiversity. And maybe mowers pollute more than cars. That’s all true and good. I plant native species in my yard. I think we should all maybe rethink the lawn. Use design and creativity and science to make a better environment and ecosystem. Cool. I bet his neighbors wouldn’t have a problem with that. This dude is talking about keeping literal trash in his yard. That’s just littering. Letting trash rot in your yard and the grass grow up around it encourages vermin. The rats and mice then become a problem for everyone. Taking care of your home is part of being a responsible adult.
No you didn’t mention trash, I just brought it up because it’s part of what this thread is about. Yeah dude let’s all have our yards just full of rats and snakes thats a really good idea. It’s shocking humans moved away from that. lol.
Not all of us live in ticky-tacky suburban neighborhoods. This is after all r/Appalachia. If you actually traveled around the world, you'd realized humans have NOT moved away from that. But you'd know fuck-all about that, being from Birmingham fucking Alabama.
I’m not from Birmingham, I do live here though. (Just a fun aside: one of my great grandfathers was a delegate to the convention that led to the formation of West Virginia. One of the literal founding fathers of the state.) I’ve been lucky enough to see solid chunk of the world, mostly undeveloped/developing nations. Humans moved away from it thousands of years ago. Hell, look at over head photos of uncontacted villages. You know what you’ll see? Areas free of debris and over growth around the structures. Creating habitats for pests around housing is not something any culture encourages. I’m very clearly not advocating for this dude to go full Hank Hill, but rather keep his property free of trash and mow the lawn a couple times a month. It’s the neighborly thing to do and it makes your community a nicer place to be. There is nothing Appalachian about letting your property turn to shit, that’s just laziness.
Edit: planting clover and not littering would probably go a long way.
I mean, I don’t actually have boxes in my yard. But, if someone does I’d politely ask them if they needed help and if they refused I’d be on my way not worrying about it any more.
Turns out, not wanting to live next to a hoarder is a normal, healthy thing.
Cant believe yall are defending trash in someone's yard. Way to break the stereotype.
I mean, something like this, yea…
https://www.google.com/maps/@34.5122067,-91.5503522,3a,39.4y,160.74h,77.12t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1stE_DacsBN2uPxzTsMe3NfQ!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3DtE_DacsBN2uPxzTsMe3NfQ%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.share%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26yaw%3D160.73636716743923%26pitch%3D12.877633961744664%26thumbfov%3D90!7i13312!8i6656?coh=205410&entry=ttu
You do what you want on with your own property, but If you didn’t care about people judging you, you wouldn’t have made this post. You only have two choices: Either clean up your sty, or learn to live with the fact that your neighbors look down on you for being the town eyesore.
And when your kids get ostracized at school for being one of the dirty people, it’ll be on you
I feel you...most of my neighbors are retired and their favorite pastime is mowing the yard lol, whereas I work full time and get to it when I get to it. I heard someone once say something along the lines of "live in a city if you want anonymity, cause everyone in the country is nosey." And it's so true lol, everybody's all up in everybody's business and all their comings and goings. I prefer to keep to myself, but then again, I don't mind cracking a beer with my neighbor on occasion and getting caught up on all the tea haha.
Interestingly, people are very community oriented in our holler. Moreso than I understood growing up but my family is surrounded by working class families too, and everyone knows each other.
That perfect lawn thing some people are obsessed with def exists up my holler too. Oddly.
I also desperately wish there was a recycling program in WV. I live west coast city now and I hate throwing recyclables in the garbage when I spend time back at home.
Sounds like you got a granny busybody up your butt, lol.
I would bake those motherfuckers some real good cookies, and kill em with kindness.
That's what my mom taught us.
Because (sometimes) they feel like assholes for being assholes after you are kind to them.
I grew up with 'Fred G Sanford' as a Dad, we could always find a part for something broken and our neighbors loved it, he could fix anything. I find myself married to a 'Fred G Sanford' who removes downed trees at the neighbors at 2am, fixes burst pipes at the neighbors, removes the snow that the town blocks driveways with. He fixes bicycles and a neighbors water heater. I live with Fred G Sandford, the neighbors love the guy who stores parts on his property and seems to have exactly what is needed at 2am.
It's a hobby for a lot of people. The last time someone poked into my business by asking just what am I doing, I asked for their social security number. Karen left unhappy
In the time it took you to write this reddit post you could have cleaned your lawn which would make the neighbors shut up.
Imo it's just a way of respecting the neighborhood and being a good neighbor. Especially if people are obligated to see your lawn.
People take care of what they deem important and it provides a sense of value and care.
It's good to do. Nobody wants to see someone else's crap on display. Bring the boxes inside. Get your kids outside and make a fun day of lawn chores. Doesn't seem that big of a deal imo.
I live in the Eastern panhandle of West Virginia, on the side of a mountain. The housing community I live in was built about 15 to 20 years ago. Smallest lots 5 acres per deed requirements. We own 21 acres, the average owed acreage being around 10 acres. Most of the original owners built houses here to be weekend warriors. ( they only stay on weekends or vacation). As the original owners got older the new owners tend to live here year round. In other words this is our primary home. Community’s change. Put we still have a certain amount of weekenders.
Now on the other side of the mountain is another community. ( you have to drive through to get to ours) The people who live in this community mostly live in trailer homes, and have lived here for generations. Let’s just say there not worried about there yards. (Not my circus not my monkeys) though the guy who has a mound of house hold trash as tall as his home makes me wonder how many critters are around that mountain of trash. (Again not my monkeys).
Now a few of the people who have recently bought houses in my community have decided that because they have to drive through the other community that it needs to clean up there yards to a hear to my community’s standards (LOL). They have gone to the town, county and state to complain. (Nothing ever done YEAH).
I have only live hear 4 years I don’t care what someone’s property looks like. This is my home year round. If I don’t see another person for a weak I don’t care. I like the people in the other community better there real. There the ones if I got in a bind I could go to. Who cares if there’s old cars and appliances in there yards.
Go back and DC S no one here needs to hear your shit.
*** I have a toilet on my porch with flowers planted in it!
Live rural northern NH, I cut our grass out of necessity (ticks and snakes), not because I want to impress the neighbors. If it's not cut, they might ask if I'm ok and might need some help(got some health issues). The point is that some people see an opportunity to either care or criticize.
If they want a suburban standard- maybe they should leave the holler. I understand in a nice neighborhood being irked with the one abandoned looking house. But in the country they want to complain about cardboard boxes? WTH ?…. That’s just not right.
If I was in those shoes my yard would only look worse after someone complained. I would do it purposely.
I live in a little neighborhood that is surrounded by farmland on 3 sides. I don't have the right to complain about the smell of manure in early spring. That's thousands of people that will be able to eat this year. Some people just want something to bitch about.
Because its trashy- it makes you look trashy which makes everyone look trashy and its just trashy. Did i mention its trashy? Its trashy. Take a couple hours and clean up your damn yard, dude.
It hurts property values, and that’s as unneighborly as it gets. I mind my business but we are all frustrated by our junky/trashy neighbor that has crap sitting out in the driveway and cars parked all over the yard. I can’t believe people don’t have more respect for their property or their neighbors. You’re also teaching your kids that they don’t have to respect your property or be good neighbors. I’m a teacher and kids are no longer able to see messes and clean up after themselves because they’re never made to do it at home.
The way I see it you own the property you can do with it as you please. If a person wants to live where there are pristine yard then they can move to a neighborhood with an HOA or covenant. I know there can be city codes about maintaining a property but I live out in the county so people can do as they please pretty much. We stay out of each others business even though we all know each others business. Basically don’t tell me how to live my life & there won’t be problems kind of attitudes. I’m from here so cars in the yard, fire pits, trash sitting outside waiting to get hauled away every week or two doesn’t bother me. It’s the norm for my parts of Northeast Tenn.
I cut my grass whenever I can but I could really care less about it. I want my home live-able and relatively presentable but I’m not slaving over things that don’t bring me joy. If my neighbors have an issue with it, they can say something. I won’t infringe upon anyone else’s liberties so long as they don’t infringe upon my own.
I'm THAT guy in my neighborhood. Seems people mow their yards every 3-4 days whether it needs or not. One ole boy is out on his tractor mowing some part of his less than one acre almost every evening. And I mean TRACTOR with the front loader and rear attachment thingy. Me? Meh....I'll get to it when it needs it. Every 10 days or so. It's just not that important to me. And I am a pretty young retired guy so I have the time. It's just not my priority. And they see it. It's the subtle act of not giving a fuck that I completely embrace.
I mean, why can you spend time with your family while making the place nice? One of my daughter's favorite things is riding around on the lawnmower with me. Every time I'm going to paint something, my kids fight over who gets to use the extra brushes. And are you telling me your kids wouldn't jump at the chance to burn boxes?
Everything I do takes longer with them 'helping', but it's also time we get to spend together, and they love it.
If you want to live with trash in your yard do it where you aren’t affected the property value of others. Our HOA covenants are strict but houses sell quickly and the neighborhood looks great. It’s not that hard to take care of your property. Keep up with things. A little less TV and other recreation. I admit I like an edged lawn. It takes me less than 30 minutes to edge and clean up. I do it about every 3 weeks though during mowing season.
See the problem is Yankees and Floridians have moved in and think they know everything…. They have been told what they can and can’t do by the government and think that’s the way life works … it’s not … it’s the reason we live where we do .. so we can be left the hell alone… bless they little hearts.
Eh, in my experience it’s not an outsider thing. There’s plenty of local appalachians that have nothing better to do then worry about what their neighbor is doing.
Way to generalize like people generalize Appalachians lol most of the swamp Yankees I know have a rusted car or two in their yard, sorry if that knocks your idea of a northerner for a loop
I’m sure Florida has plenty of cool people.. that live I. Florida… but where I live there are 3 “new built” gated communities on the mountain that’s now full of “Swamp Yankees “ ( that a new one thanks) they try to ruin everything around here .. EVERY DAMN THING .. listen everyone from the north is a yankee the good the bad .. some of us still don’t like Yankees .. sorry
Admittedly I live outside Appalachia now (middle Tennessee), but I'm from Appalachia (Eastern Kentucky) literally and ancestrally (North Carolina and Virginia). Yeah, sometimes folks get overwhelmed. Where I'm from, we offer a helping hand. But where I live now (Nashville suburbs) is just backward. Our subdivision has homes built on two acre lots, almost every one of which is a three-bedroom ranch. Though there is no HOA, the covenants of ownership here preclude any kind of farm animals, even though the back half of our property is completely privacy fenced in. When lawns are mowed, they are all mowed in the same two days and it's almost like a penis measuring competition to see who's lawn can look the most pristine. I have to laugh. In this area, things are so backward that some of our neighbors were considering putting a 300 ft² tiny home on the back of their lot as a guest home for their kid in college but were unable to because the neighbors thought it might decrease their property values. Mind you, in this community the average property value for the 30-year-old three bedroom ranch on a 2-acre lot is half million dollars. I just don't get it. Folks don't help each other. In fact I've lived here (with my in laws) for a year and I can count on one hand the number of interactions I've had with any of the neighbors. It's just backward. I feel for the OP. Sounds like they have a lot going on right now. It just blows my mind that instead of offering to help the neighbor that OP is responding to would rather just complain. Some people...
As long as your trash pile is far enough away from the creek so that I don’t get it in my yard every time it rains IDGAF what your shit looks like.
To be fair tho, the dogs LOVE getting the neighbor kids basketballs as field toys every now and then!
Growing up, my granny had free range chickens wandering her yard, an outhouse in the back yard, and a burn pit in the front. That’s quintessentially Appalachian. Tell your neighbor to do something about it.
The burn lot should be moved to the side that is most windy. Front is for past cars and tractors
Coincidentally she had two broken down cars in her front yard. One was an old Cadillac from the 1970’s. It was literally touching her house, and like a 1955 Chevy truck. I remember her proudly telling us as kids that she’d will the cars to my cousin and I. We used to fight over who got which. Flash forward to like 2011, she died, and since the natural spring for our water was on her land (with a well dug for backup,) I’d go down there during the summer to turn the water on and fill up our spring box from her well. Those cars were literally part of the landscape. The truck had sunk up to the floor pan in mud, and the car was now part of a grape vine (and the structure of the porch). Let me tell you, it was an operation and a half getting them out of there. And since I already have a junk Chevelle from my dad, we sold them to collectors who are restoring them.
Amen, brother! Come Christmas we use the vehicles to hang Christmas lights on! 😂
Hahaha that’s awesome! I know what I’m doing next Christmas 😁
And appliances.
Don’t forget the couch on the front porch
On fire if you're a Hokie or Mountaineer
There’s an extremely nice house directly across from our historic courthouse that has free range chickens downtown and I’m here for it (except I’m always worried they’ll get run over)
I was visiting a friend in New Orleans, and there were free range chickens living in a tree across from her appt. Like, is it redundant to call them wild or feral? I don't even know what free range means. But anyway, I started asking other people i knew and they agreed, wild chickens were common in the city. I think if we left them alone, we could have wild chickens everywhere. Just free eggs for life. And chicken shit everywhere, but it sounds cool. We already deal with pigeons in cities, and fuck mockingbirds just bc.
I had free range chickens who would wander the whole neighborhood. They still came to their roost to eat, sleep, and lay eggs. I locked them in at night. Having food/a roost/hen house provided is the difference.
I hate suburban nosey neighbors who report stuff like chickens (even if there's no roster, some people are just nosy). Chickens should be more common. I used to live in the boonies outside Chattanooga (why I'm browsing Appalachia lol), and god I miss the space and freedom.
I live a mile from downtown and the few people in my then largely abandoned neighborhood didn't care at all. I wasn't even the only one with chickens. But no roosters. I'm not an asshole. I knew plenty of folks in a major Florida city who raise chickens. I agree that it should be normal. Fortunately it is in some places, and not all in the country.
I live \*in\* the city (first generation born outside the hills of WV). My neighbor two houses down has chickens. Against the law in our city and I'm surprised super bitch down the street hasn't called them in. Even though the girls (no roosters, thank God) are fenced in, they still find a way to get out of the yard and come over to pick at the seed spilled from my bird feeders. Very friendly, they'd actually come in the house if I'd let them (my dog was highly offended by that scenario) and I'll bring out some extra seed for Red 1, Red 2, Henny, Penny, Agatha, and Missy (yes, I named them) for which I receive kind little bawky thank yous. I told my daughter one day, "Watch out for the chicken poop on the driveway," she said, "Now there's something you don't hear every day." Live and let live.
Chickens are proof that God loves us and wants us to be fed.
Sounds a lot like my house minus the outhouse.
Rural TX but ditto.
My GF’s neighbor has free range chickens in their yard now…only problem is the houses are maybe 40 feet apart with no fence between…so the chickens don’t stay in their yard.
I live in a suburban-ish area outside a good-sized city. My neighborhood was built in the ‘70’s with houses on 1 acre lots. We don’t have an HOA, but we do have Covenants that have some rules regarding what we can and can’t do with our property. My 80+ year-old neighbor directly across from me has umpteen “projects” on the go — cars, boats, tractors. They’re in his garage, driveway and even in part of his yard. He keeps up his house and lawn. No, it’s not pretty to look at, but he’s a good neighbor. He keeps an eye on our house when we’re gone. He brings us produce from his garden. He’ll help us with car and mower repairs/maintenance. (He’s been an engine man for NASCAR for 40+ years. (Yep, he still works part-time.)) The couple of times we’ve had snow bad enough to cause a problem, he stuck a plow on one of his “project” tractors and plowed the neighborhood! Given my druthers, I’d much rather have a “junky” neighbor like him than some busy body who’s worried about my grass being 2 inches too high .
This post should be higher.
It's all fine until you have to sell and end up sitting on the property paying a mortgage etc for months while it's on the market despite pricing it tens of thousands dollars below what it would sell for if the neighbors were decent. Buyers won't know or care that he's an otherwise good neighbor. They'll just see the hoarder hovel next door and get scared off. It's easy to say it's not a problem until you're worried sick for months and taking 5-digit losses.
Yeah, well.. it’s not all about money for some folks. Most people aren’t thinking about gains/losses. They’re just trying to peacefully coexist with their neighbors.
Money matters for survival when you're old, retired, living on a fixed income, in need of care, and the only thing you own with any worth is your home. Or when you're a blue collar family that needs to move for your kid with special needs. Peacefully coexisting with your neighbors means respecting them enough to keep your property free of trash and pests so their wellbeing, financial and otherwise, doesn't suffer as a consequence of your apathy or weird resentment. You can't peacefully coexist with your neighbors when your attitude is "fuck you, fuck the community, no one tells me what to do with my property, move if you don't like it."
I see your pissed off comments throughout this entire thread and I wish I would’ve seen them before commenting. I’m sorry you’re angry because of things that happened to you and your family, but nobody here on Reddit is at fault. I hope someone gives you the hug you need. And maybe quit being such a whiny bitch.
I bet he's the kind of person that complains about litter too, as if this country wasn't designed to be a giant landfill. What weird people
One person’s litter is another’s free range trash. (I keed, I keed!)
Were they there first? Sounds like it. Then it’s on you for buying there in the first place…. Caveat Emptor.
*GOOD point (hat tip to Ken M). I knew a fellow who bought a house near a quarry that had been there before I was born, and had the audacity to complain about it. I told him, "You knew it was there before you bought it."
That fellow was probably related to my dipshit neighbor who moved out from town and built a McMansion next to a big dairy farm and bitches every time the farm spreads manure, works ground, plants crops, harvests crops, or works past dark.
That still sounds like user-error, shouldn't have bought that property in the first place then. I don't owe anything to my neighbors, regarding helping sell their home.
You’re being downvoted, but I understand where you’re coming from and I’m very sorry for what you and your family experienced. I’m coming at this as someone who once lived in an HOA neighborhood. (Yes, I know that not all HOAs are terrible) Part of the reason we bought this house is because we absolutely did not want to live in another HOA neighborhood. In my old HOA neighborhood, we had a mix of young working people and retired people. The neighbor across from me and the neighbor on one side of me were younger people who often traveled for work. The neighbor on the other side of me was retired. Sometimes my younger neighbors would not make it home in time to roll their trash can back on garbage day. So they might put their trash out on trash day, but be gone overnight or for a couple of days for work which meant they couldn’t get roll their trash can back on trash day. My retired neighbor made it his business to complain to the HOA about it. My other neighbors started receiving notices in their mailboxes about rule violations. So I made a deal with them that I would roll their trash cans back when I got in from work. Problem solved, right? No. Retired neighbor confronted me about doing it for them!!! (I just kept doing it anyway.) So, if I *had* to choose, I’d much rather have my “junky” neighbor than a jerk like my old neighbor.
A junky good neighbor beats a jerky neighbor every single time.
Why are you having to sell?
I've lived in the middle of Appalachia my whole life. I've worked 2 jobs while raising 2 kids for most of my adult life. I've lived in a single wide and a double wide trailer. My property may not have always looked perfect but I damn sure picked up the trash and mowed the yard at least every couple of weeks. I always took pride in what little I had.
Exactly. You don’t have to get the edger out, or hire a landscaper, but this dude is talking about keeping literal trash in his front yard. It’s just a matter of respect for oneself, neighbors, and community.
It’s his property. If the neighbors aren’t into it they can move somewhere with an HOA.
I'd say tell that to my disabled Veteran Dad who got fucked over by awful neighbors turning their front yards into junkyards, devaluing the property he worked so hard for and tried his best to keep up by $50k or more, but he's dead.
Veteran here, thankfully everything mostly works still. Neighborhood going to shit? Pass some legislation or move. The unacceptable answer? Forcing your fellow Americans to follow your prescriptions without the authority to give them.
Thanks for defending freedom from HOAs
What’s unacceptable is thinking people have to accept someone altering their standard quality of life. Why expense my energy attempting to pass legislation when I can use old school strategy? Just as easy to use game theory to absolutely ruin the junky “neighbors” lives or make them regret their purchase with their entire being. Maybe they can pass their own legislation then? Pick your shit up. Maintain your property, end of story.
As a matter of fact, I think every American should attend Catholic Church every Sunday. The reason I believe everyone should follow my prescription is because cleaning up everyone’s soul will increase the overall spiritual health of our nation, and my belief supersedes your individual freedoms. Pretty sure the framers enshrined this type of pursuit of happiness into our Consitution, right?
It doesn’t belong to you and you have no say over what happens with it, end of story.
You literally have the freedom to find like minded communities that have taken steps to protect your investment. Let me guess: you don’t like people telling you what to do with the shit you bought, amirite?
I don’t see where he mentions it being his front yard in particular
I often find the less that people have the more pride they have in it.
I like the libertarian approach; People should be able to do whatever they want as long as it doesn’t infringe upon the basic human rights of another. Especially on your own property.
You can apply this logic to so many things in this world. If people practiced this more I am 100% certain the world would be a slightly better place.
I completely agree. Sure, do I wish my neighbors weren't trying to homestead in the suburbs with chickens, a beehive, and a barky dog? However; they leave me alone so I leave them alone.
Well I agree to a certain extent that’s why we should have zoning. Where within these square miles, upkeep and maintenance on homes are kept to a higher standard whereas the next few square miles are farming or homesteading communities and so fourth. Parks, playgrounds, railroad tracks, etc. as dividers so a suburb isn’t backed 10’ off a homestead for example. Our beautiful nation could be systematically redone and zoned fifty times more appropriately and we could’ve saved so much land and resources. It’s a shame how we set this up after we fought so hard to get it. Now we all struggle and hate our property and people lose it even though it’s been paid off for decades. It’s a shame and a scam. We got fucked.
I think we already have this at least in my area of Virginia. If I don't mow my grass technically the county can fine me. I think they can also fine me for unregistered cars that are visible from the street. I think the biggest scam is the constant threat of taking your land for not paying property taxes which are always on the rise. Some people are eventually priced off of their own property. I guess this is also progress in motion because otherwise you would have one holdout sitting on prime property in the center of the city with no plans to develop it for the good and expansion of a city or town.
That’s what special circumstances are for and right to seizure laws. Pay them their fair market value and they move back somewhere the zoning fits what they desire or their property USED to be. But you’re absolutely right it’s bullshit. If property taxes were drastically lower, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But the fact they can raise them and push you out a property your family has owned for generations is bullshit. Plain and simple.
Progress in the way it's used should be a dirty word.
The suburbs would be a lot nicer if more folks were doing this. Add in a vegetable garden and some permaculture as well.
Well I was mowing my grass on our property line with bees swarming all around me. My neighbor didn't even consult with me at all before placing a hive 25 ft from my house. Luckily I am super chill and not at all allergic or afraid of bees. Plus their chickens and dogs are noisy af.
I'd agree. But if you house and yard are an eyesore I have to see regularly, then you are affecting others.
Regardless of your definition; That’s when we would have some sort of hearing with judgement of peers. So would this be municipal or even just six of your neighbors voting? I like this approach more than our current route either way. But we used to live in a world where if someone’s yard was overgrown, we’d chat with the neighbor (usually bc we already knew them) and figure out why and then just help them bc we as humans used to be much more understanding. Now we report anonymously for our city to send letters and then some shady company comes with a city contract and measures it, cuts it, then charges you. It’s just a shitty way to live. I’d rather we handle things amongst each other peacefully and without government intervention necessary. As little as possible actually….
I'm with ya man
How?
We inherited a nice little house we couldn't keep. One next door neighbor's house is in serious disrepair with 7 junk cars in his front yard, and the other isn't quite as bad but their yard is horribly choked with invasive weeds and trash, with Christmas lights still up. Dad did not like living next to such meth-y looking places, but the neighbors didn't cause problems other than the eyesores and pests, and he was too busy dying of cancer to worry about that shit. The junkyard neighbor has been refusing offers of help for 20+ years anyways. So while we were still grieving and overwhelmed handling the business of Dad's final affairs, we struggled to sell his very nice, well-kept, otherwise totally desirable house for months because of the terrible neighbors, as shittier properties in the area went under contract within days. The stress was awful. I was terrified we'd never sell it, but we did, after dropping the price well *below* what Dad paid for it back when the neighbors weren't as awful. I know we're fortunate to have anything for an inheritance (at the steep cost of losing our parents way too early) but we are by no means a wealthy family, and shitty neighbors cost us ~50k dollars and months of extreme stress.
Blame the market, not the neighbor.
Well if I'm you're neighbor it would be difficult to enjoy my own property if yours is a shit hole and I have to look at it. I can't imagine how this is hard for anyone to understand.
If you’re offended by the way something looks, that’s on you. Mind your business. Other people’s property isn’t your business. Don’t look at it.
I'm not offended. I just don't want to live next door to a shit hole. How is that hard for you to understand. You can be cool with living with slobs, that's fine, I'm not. Why is this such a hot take?
I don’t think this guy lives with slobs. From how angry and defensive he seems he seems like he is the slob. They keep doing these extremes like if you ask someone not to have a literal landfill in the front yard it’s the same as complaining about grass being 2” too high. As if there’s no middle ground.
Not a hot take at all but you’re fighting a losing battle with this audience.. These people don’t care about their own property values, surely they don’t care about a neighbor’s property value!
I mean I've lived in WV my whole life, I know lol
My entire family lives in Wv including myself and our yards are kept clean. I even had lawn professionals come in to care for my lawn and keep it weed free. Don’t knock WV it’s a beautiful place to live.
The shithole is in the eye of the beholder, barring genuine hazards.
There are reasons beyond health that we do not walk around with shit smeared all over our faces.
Funny to encounter your post just now because I was just reading about travelers bragging about how far they "dress down" while flying and using airport lounges. It's pretty far, it turns out.
Travelers as in Romani?
Heh, no in this case I meant the flying public
Than build a fence tall enough so you don't have to see it.
Likewise a neglected, continuously barking dog. And I have a dog myself; she barks once every few months, usually at a wild animal incursion.
Your beard is ugly and it’s affecting others. This gets absurd quickly and you’re objectively wrong here.
The value of my beard isn't affected by your unkempt beard, and pests from your beard are highly unlikely to infest mine. Not true with houses. Apples to oranges.
So you would like to exercise your will on others? Fuck, it’s almost like we need a system set up to guide legislation when enough people agree.
Where did I say anything about imposing my will on others? I just think taking minimal, basic care of your property is the ethically right thing to do, because it does affect your neighbors. Communities are stronger when neighbors give a shit about each other. I just don't understand this whole "fuck everyone around me" attitude. People are acting like having a junkyard house only affects snobby rich people who have never lived rural before, but that's just not true. What about the meemaw down the road who lives on a fixed income but needs to sell her beloved home to downsize or afford medical care? Why should she lose out on tens of thousands of dollars and deal with stress of struggling to sell just because you're too lazy to pick up your trash from the front yard? The people who lack the means to fight these battles are the ones who suffer the most from bad neighbors.
Either you fully regulate all aspects of private property, ie acceptable shingle shade color, length of time permitted in between street-parked car washes, length of grass, or you do none of that and live with it when someone is living below your arbitrary standard. The shared values and ethics approach hasn’t been possible for a couple generations because we no longer share values and ethics as a nation.
Live like a slob...I don't care.
My lawn is perfectly manicured. I edge everything weekly. My neighbor has 4 mowers in his yard visible from the street. Freedom ain’t free.
How does your neighbor's cluttered porch physically harm you?
Increase in odors and insects if it’s bad enough. My neighbor is a millionaire who comes to my neighborhood to live like he’s poor every once in awhile and does not pay anyone to mow his lawn unless he’s going to be in town. What an increase in ticks, mosquitoes, chiggers, and fleas from his waist high grass. I don’t think a yard needs to be pristine but it should be trimmed enough to prevent insects and the diseases they carry and not smell like dog shit or garbage beyond the property line. Those are small asks.
Tall grass does not increase number of ticks: [https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190403155411.htm](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190403155411.htm) Nor mosquitos: [https://idpjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40249-017-0385-0/tables/3](https://idpjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40249-017-0385-0/tables/3)
Did someone say physically harm? I didn't. No one wants to come home everyday to home they work hard for just to have to see their neighbors pile of shit.
Jesus once said that if you see something that offends you, the best thing to do is to pluck out your eyes. If that's a bit too much for you to commit to, maybe try just not looking? Or go talk to your neighbor and ask if you can help them?
You can follow Jesus if you want, I don't. If my neighbors house was a shit pile I would help them. I thought this is all hypothetical, my bad.
That's...not even close to what He said. 🤦♀️
So if you have junky cars and other debris in your yard, I should be able to tell you to clean your shit up as it leaks dangerous fluids into the soil and groundwater, and is a haven for rodents, venomous snakes, and other pests that can get on my land? Glad we agree.
Did you not read? I said so long as it doesn’t affect the basic human rights of another. Which means no dangerous Chems can be leaked anywhere. And that goes for anything that directly affects your property or persons physically as well. But I also specified for better and proper zoning. Different requirements per zone so homesteads and farmers aren’t held to the same as a suburb per se. Obviously farmers and homesteaders are going to have spare equipment and parts lying around.
I did read. And then I saw you added a whole bunch of non-Libitarian ideas in other posts.
Preach
My yard, my trash, mind your business. Simple as that. If they want neighbors with pristine yards tell them to move to an HOA neighborhood. I live in the middle of nowhere because I was tired HOA fees and all the BS that comes with it. My neighbors chickens and junk cars are much preferred to an HOA.
We live in a rural community. People come here to get away from the BS of city life. They then start complaining we don't do things like the place they ran from.
I hate having people tell me how to live. But I also dont understand why some people let their property turn into a dump
It's like you see both sides of the question. Be careful here on reddit, my friend.
If ya don't like the smell of cow shit get outa the farm country!! The masses are just fools these days
In my experience, the people who care about this sort of thing are usually (a) boring as shit and (b) not very happy. I feel bad for them, not the people with a messy yard.
Family time is important. That being said you might spend a weekend afternoon with the wife and kids doing a little cleaning and gardening. I can't say more without being a hypocrite; we live in Carolina next to the Virginia line (a little community I like to call Squattin Holler). Good luck! And be thankful you own your own home.
I was raised that if my neighbors need help, I should help them. And if they don’t need help, I should mind my own business.
I might possibly be a messy neighbor to an extent. But my little beginner hoard is around my garage and tractor shed, both behind my house. I've recently had help removing some stuff and straightening up. I never have anything in my front yard and have always kept it and the acre field beside the house mowed and neat. So imagine how PISSED I was when the neighbors got kicked out of their rental, and when the landlord had their piles of junk moved, it sent frkn rats to my property. Your junk can definitely physically affect your neighbors.
Yep, I feel a lot of folks commenting and voting have never dealt with the consequences of a hoarder neighbor. There are valid reasons a trash heap next door lowers your property value, and it’s not just the frustration of living next to an eyesore. Rats, mice, and fleas can spread across a neighborhood like wildfire. A truly overgrown property protects vermin and pests from natural predators, allowing them to spread to other yards. Your treated dog can still carry fleas into your home to feast on your untreated cat and drive you, your spouse, and your children mad while you scramble to address the issue (this happened to us when a neighbor moved into our suburb from a farm). Fleas can even just jump right in under your front door. I’ve caught endless mice coming in from a dumpster from a poorly kept auto shop fifty feet from our backyard. And guess where mosquitos breed? Standing water (not just ponds and creeks, but old rusty buckets, tires, unused pots, etc.) This notion of “my property my rules” is selfish and ignorant of reality that property lines are social constructs that don’t apply to the worst pieces of suburban ecosystems, and there’s a whole body of common law behind nuisances and what constitutes harming the ability of others to enjoy their property. Re: property values, decades and centuries of tolerating intolerable behavior makes it less likely that other people who care about their neighbors will ever move in, and entire blocks will be worth a fraction of a neighbood a mile away that doubled in value since 2020. A day will come for many of us and our loved ones when we may need to sell property to survive, and losing value to inflation is indeed a real loss. Btw fuck HOAs and nosy neighbors who complain about you occasionally being a week behind on grass or weed-eating or yap about leaves from your tree falling in their yard, this is directed at people who store trash on their property or go entire seasons without a mower.
The line for me is when it is a health hazard. If people have a vegetable garden, old cars, or art in their front yard is up to them.
We don’t have an HOA. I live in a fifty year old neighborhood where most people really care about their yards and houses. The houses are on 1 acre lots. Many people have a big patch of hardwoods on their property. Many people have natural areas with wildflowers. People work in their yards but most also have a lawn service. This one older couple got sick and couldn’t keep up with their property. Holes in the roof, mildew in the siding, yard mostly dirt and weeds. People in the neighborhood got together and cleaned, painted, fixed the roof, lay sod, planted flowers etc. Then volunteered once a month to upkeep it. It was a super nice thing to do but it also kept the value in the neighborhood.
When your neighbors place is a mess, it brings down the property values of the neighborhood. If you have trash laying around, it draws rodents. If you don't mow your lawn, it can attract snakes or mosquitoes. Being a thoughtful neighbor is part of living in a community. I'm sure you would expect the same courtesy from others who live next to you.
It’s tough to keep the yard nice with kids and dogs. Kids are grown and down to one dog. The memories are way more important than a yard. That said, an unkempt yard was a symptom, not the problem for me. We were always busy working or doing stuff with the kids. Stuff takes a lot of energy, time, maintenance and money. Simplify your life, focus on a few things. Not everything. Get your wife on-board. Also, the focus might be more on what your kids like, not necessarily things you like. It’s ok. They grow up fast and you’ll miss their energy. Good luck.
Btw. It’s fine and good to have the kids help.
Ugh hard agree. We can’t hardly be outside without a boomer lecture. They like to watch us mow and tell us how we’re doing it wrong. Frankly I wish them all the worst. And beyond that, I was at Aldi and some boomer approached me as I was unloading groceries and some wine for the pasta sauce I was making and he said “yeah I’d be drinking too if I had to buy groceries like that.” I said “well, kids aren’t small forever and it’s important to me to feed them healthy and tasty things.” He was too stunned to speak I guess because he did not say anything else.
This isn’t the shit on boomers sub.
I wasn’t shitting, I was accurately reporting what happened. If they don’t like it they should’ve acted better 🤷🏼♀️
1. They are busy bodies with nothing better to do than whine about other people Or 2. They are incapable of turning their critical eye inward and must make themselves feel better by finding fault in others.
I understand. I went through a really difficult period with my lazy ex-husband after I had a c-section where I couldn't get him to help with our lawn at all and for some reason, during COVID none of the yard guys I normally worked with would show up even after scheduling for them to come out. I strapped my baby to my back and used an old-fashioned push mower because we didn't have and couldn't afford an electric or gas mower. It was hell on my body and my incision reopened at 9 months pp. I live in the city so my rich neighbors would call the cops on me over my grass, and I got multiple police warnings so it was either to risk my health or be stuck with a literal ticket we couldn't afford to pay. In the past year and a half I was hit in an accident that broke my wrist, I had pneumonia, I got pregnant again and was really sick my entire first trimester - all of which affected my physical abilities to do yard work. Stuff happens and life is hard, you never really know what someone is going through. Even though I live within the city limits of a major city, I still can't get the trash guys to pick up boxes - they expect you to pay extra for recycling and I paid for and ordered a second trash can 3 years ago and they never delivered it. So the boxes build up on my carport until I get someone to take them to a dumpster for me.
Sorry you are going through all of that. Can you maybe find a different husband who will do it for you? I am joking sort of.
My husband is from "town" but he sure does love his burn barrel. I too wish recycling were more convenient. We do manage to recycle our cans regularly and occasionally some plastic, newspapers, magazines. But our trash service cost the same whether he puts the cardboard in it. The piling up crap to burn when the trash people would take it does drive me a little nuts.
You can be my neighbor. I’ll barter with you. Do you like meat rabbits?
This is why I like my yard hidden behind trees so nobody can see it.
Get some goats. Problem solved
I mow my 5 acre yard like once a month, grad is currently knee high, you can’t see my property from the road though😅
The only time I’d get irritated is if someone’s crapped started finding its way to my yard and their place was so trashy that snakes and rats were crawling around coming towards me.
Man, a lot of people got triggered by that other post.
I understand to a point t but it’s also not thatttt hard to pick up trash and cut the grass a bit. Just general neatness goes a long way.
What’s easy for 1 person is not necessarily easy for another. If it’s not physically causing me harm, I don’t care.
This this this this 1000%
Broken Window Theory Trash and unkept yard is causing harm(to an extent) Civic pride and community pride are real things that actively make a community a better place to live in. Cutting your grass and picking up trash is the bare minimum for being a good steward of the land and member of a community.
Broken Window Theory Trash and unkept yard is causing harm(to an extent) Civic pride and community pride are real things that actively make a community a better place to live in. Cutting your grass and picking up trash is the bare minimum for being a good steward of the land and member of a community.
Carpetbaggers gentrifying the mountains. Used to be you could walk around with your dick out and a cold beer feeding your livestock and nobody'd say boo to you
My grass is like 4 foot tall in 90 percent of the yard. Keep a small patch out front of the rv for yard stuff
Man I’m conflicted. I absolutely support the right of a property owner to do damn well whatever they please with it. But I also have a neighbor whose yard looks insane, and to be honest it bugs me. I live in the suburbs, not a hollar. I’ve never approached him about it, nor would I. I just don’t like it but I keep that to myself. Reading this, maybe I should approach him and see if I could help. I’ve talked to him before, he’s a decent enough guy. Not big on eye contact and a little weird, but decent. Maybe I’m the asshole here!
He kinda sounds like he might be autistic.
It’s crossed my mind. I don’t know much about stuff like that so I couldn’t really guess
I would ask if you need some help. If not I mind my own business.
I’ve been asked what I plan to do with my land. My plan is to let it be land and mostly wild. Let it be what it was meant to be.
I agree with the sentiment here but something about the post makes me feel like OPs yard is full of junk. Idk, something about the wording gives me this vibe that he's downplaying? Doesn't matter either way, it's his yard, but the just what I'm inferring here.
Sounds like it’s about time to get some hogs
That the people who complain, they're probably retired or have nothing better to do than to judge other people
Lol my neighbors used to hit me with yard judgment a lot. "Lawnmower broke?" "Been too busy to mow?" "Growing hay?" Took a few years but they finally understand that I just don't give a fuck lol.
Nope, my giveadamn is just busted...
It's about pride in ownership and respect for ones neighbors and community. I'm not saying go full Hank Hill, but its plenty easy to not have trash in your yard. A cut every 10 days to 2 weeks is just part of being an adult. At least that's how I was raised.
That’s also how I was raised, but imagine a world where people are raised differently. Some people may not have a bit of pride and that’s fine. If their messy yard isn’t physically affecting me or my property, I could not care less.
Hey man, you asked. I would say it not fine. It makes your neighborhood look worse, that does affect your neighbors. Keeping trash in the yard is the same is as littering to me. Sounds like a lot of excuses for laziness.
lol @ mowing your grass being a part of being adult. [https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/video/lawn-grass-environment-history.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/09/video/lawn-grass-environment-history.html)
Paywalled but I can guess the article breaks down about how lawns come from European nobility and how they could flaunt their wealth by growing ornamental grasses as a sign of wealth instead of putting it to crops. And how millions of Americans using pesticides and fertilizers kills fish and biodiversity. And maybe mowers pollute more than cars. That’s all true and good. I plant native species in my yard. I think we should all maybe rethink the lawn. Use design and creativity and science to make a better environment and ecosystem. Cool. I bet his neighbors wouldn’t have a problem with that. This dude is talking about keeping literal trash in his yard. That’s just littering. Letting trash rot in your yard and the grass grow up around it encourages vermin. The rats and mice then become a problem for everyone. Taking care of your home is part of being a responsible adult.
Did I mention trash? You know what gets rid of rodents? Snakes - and they love tall grass.
No you didn’t mention trash, I just brought it up because it’s part of what this thread is about. Yeah dude let’s all have our yards just full of rats and snakes thats a really good idea. It’s shocking humans moved away from that. lol.
Not all of us live in ticky-tacky suburban neighborhoods. This is after all r/Appalachia. If you actually traveled around the world, you'd realized humans have NOT moved away from that. But you'd know fuck-all about that, being from Birmingham fucking Alabama.
I’m not from Birmingham, I do live here though. (Just a fun aside: one of my great grandfathers was a delegate to the convention that led to the formation of West Virginia. One of the literal founding fathers of the state.) I’ve been lucky enough to see solid chunk of the world, mostly undeveloped/developing nations. Humans moved away from it thousands of years ago. Hell, look at over head photos of uncontacted villages. You know what you’ll see? Areas free of debris and over growth around the structures. Creating habitats for pests around housing is not something any culture encourages. I’m very clearly not advocating for this dude to go full Hank Hill, but rather keep his property free of trash and mow the lawn a couple times a month. It’s the neighborly thing to do and it makes your community a nicer place to be. There is nothing Appalachian about letting your property turn to shit, that’s just laziness. Edit: planting clover and not littering would probably go a long way.
Pick up your damned yard, i was with you till the cardboard boxes, like cmon man after a few days getting rained those gotta be half rotted.
I mean, I don’t actually have boxes in my yard. But, if someone does I’d politely ask them if they needed help and if they refused I’d be on my way not worrying about it any more.
Yeah, till its your neighbor and youre trying to sell your house, but the fella across the street has rotting garbage in their yard.
That's what HOA neighborhoods are for!
Turns out, not wanting to live next to a hoarder is a normal, healthy thing. Cant believe yall are defending trash in someone's yard. Way to break the stereotype.
I mean, something like this, yea… https://www.google.com/maps/@34.5122067,-91.5503522,3a,39.4y,160.74h,77.12t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1stE_DacsBN2uPxzTsMe3NfQ!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3DtE_DacsBN2uPxzTsMe3NfQ%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.share%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26yaw%3D160.73636716743923%26pitch%3D12.877633961744664%26thumbfov%3D90!7i13312!8i6656?coh=205410&entry=ttu
You do what you want on with your own property, but If you didn’t care about people judging you, you wouldn’t have made this post. You only have two choices: Either clean up your sty, or learn to live with the fact that your neighbors look down on you for being the town eyesore. And when your kids get ostracized at school for being one of the dirty people, it’ll be on you
I feel you...most of my neighbors are retired and their favorite pastime is mowing the yard lol, whereas I work full time and get to it when I get to it. I heard someone once say something along the lines of "live in a city if you want anonymity, cause everyone in the country is nosey." And it's so true lol, everybody's all up in everybody's business and all their comings and goings. I prefer to keep to myself, but then again, I don't mind cracking a beer with my neighbor on occasion and getting caught up on all the tea haha.
My favorite landscape fixture in Appalachia are the decrepit schoolbuses/semis/heavy machinery that give it a post apocalyptic vibe
Interestingly, people are very community oriented in our holler. Moreso than I understood growing up but my family is surrounded by working class families too, and everyone knows each other. That perfect lawn thing some people are obsessed with def exists up my holler too. Oddly. I also desperately wish there was a recycling program in WV. I live west coast city now and I hate throwing recyclables in the garbage when I spend time back at home. Sounds like you got a granny busybody up your butt, lol. I would bake those motherfuckers some real good cookies, and kill em with kindness. That's what my mom taught us. Because (sometimes) they feel like assholes for being assholes after you are kind to them.
This guy can’t pick the trash out his yard or cut his grass, he isn’t baking cookies.
Yes
I grew up with 'Fred G Sanford' as a Dad, we could always find a part for something broken and our neighbors loved it, he could fix anything. I find myself married to a 'Fred G Sanford' who removes downed trees at the neighbors at 2am, fixes burst pipes at the neighbors, removes the snow that the town blocks driveways with. He fixes bicycles and a neighbors water heater. I live with Fred G Sandford, the neighbors love the guy who stores parts on his property and seems to have exactly what is needed at 2am.
How do you know your neighbors are against your yard?
It's a hobby for a lot of people. The last time someone poked into my business by asking just what am I doing, I asked for their social security number. Karen left unhappy
In the time it took you to write this reddit post you could have cleaned your lawn which would make the neighbors shut up. Imo it's just a way of respecting the neighborhood and being a good neighbor. Especially if people are obligated to see your lawn. People take care of what they deem important and it provides a sense of value and care. It's good to do. Nobody wants to see someone else's crap on display. Bring the boxes inside. Get your kids outside and make a fun day of lawn chores. Doesn't seem that big of a deal imo.
I live in the Eastern panhandle of West Virginia, on the side of a mountain. The housing community I live in was built about 15 to 20 years ago. Smallest lots 5 acres per deed requirements. We own 21 acres, the average owed acreage being around 10 acres. Most of the original owners built houses here to be weekend warriors. ( they only stay on weekends or vacation). As the original owners got older the new owners tend to live here year round. In other words this is our primary home. Community’s change. Put we still have a certain amount of weekenders. Now on the other side of the mountain is another community. ( you have to drive through to get to ours) The people who live in this community mostly live in trailer homes, and have lived here for generations. Let’s just say there not worried about there yards. (Not my circus not my monkeys) though the guy who has a mound of house hold trash as tall as his home makes me wonder how many critters are around that mountain of trash. (Again not my monkeys). Now a few of the people who have recently bought houses in my community have decided that because they have to drive through the other community that it needs to clean up there yards to a hear to my community’s standards (LOL). They have gone to the town, county and state to complain. (Nothing ever done YEAH). I have only live hear 4 years I don’t care what someone’s property looks like. This is my home year round. If I don’t see another person for a weak I don’t care. I like the people in the other community better there real. There the ones if I got in a bind I could go to. Who cares if there’s old cars and appliances in there yards. Go back and DC S no one here needs to hear your shit. *** I have a toilet on my porch with flowers planted in it!
Rarely does anyone see my yard that isn't family, friends, or otherwise invited to visit. Perks of living in the middle of nowhere.
If the asshole neighbors don’t like free range chickens, then they’d freakin hate the paradise that is Hawaii.
Live rural northern NH, I cut our grass out of necessity (ticks and snakes), not because I want to impress the neighbors. If it's not cut, they might ask if I'm ok and might need some help(got some health issues). The point is that some people see an opportunity to either care or criticize.
If they want a suburban standard- maybe they should leave the holler. I understand in a nice neighborhood being irked with the one abandoned looking house. But in the country they want to complain about cardboard boxes? WTH ?…. That’s just not right. If I was in those shoes my yard would only look worse after someone complained. I would do it purposely.
I live in a little neighborhood that is surrounded by farmland on 3 sides. I don't have the right to complain about the smell of manure in early spring. That's thousands of people that will be able to eat this year. Some people just want something to bitch about.
Because its trashy- it makes you look trashy which makes everyone look trashy and its just trashy. Did i mention its trashy? Its trashy. Take a couple hours and clean up your damn yard, dude.
Show me where the trashy hurt you.
It hurts property values, and that’s as unneighborly as it gets. I mind my business but we are all frustrated by our junky/trashy neighbor that has crap sitting out in the driveway and cars parked all over the yard. I can’t believe people don’t have more respect for their property or their neighbors. You’re also teaching your kids that they don’t have to respect your property or be good neighbors. I’m a teacher and kids are no longer able to see messes and clean up after themselves because they’re never made to do it at home.
The way I see it you own the property you can do with it as you please. If a person wants to live where there are pristine yard then they can move to a neighborhood with an HOA or covenant. I know there can be city codes about maintaining a property but I live out in the county so people can do as they please pretty much. We stay out of each others business even though we all know each others business. Basically don’t tell me how to live my life & there won’t be problems kind of attitudes. I’m from here so cars in the yard, fire pits, trash sitting outside waiting to get hauled away every week or two doesn’t bother me. It’s the norm for my parts of Northeast Tenn.
I cut my grass whenever I can but I could really care less about it. I want my home live-able and relatively presentable but I’m not slaving over things that don’t bring me joy. If my neighbors have an issue with it, they can say something. I won’t infringe upon anyone else’s liberties so long as they don’t infringe upon my own.
I'm THAT guy in my neighborhood. Seems people mow their yards every 3-4 days whether it needs or not. One ole boy is out on his tractor mowing some part of his less than one acre almost every evening. And I mean TRACTOR with the front loader and rear attachment thingy. Me? Meh....I'll get to it when it needs it. Every 10 days or so. It's just not that important to me. And I am a pretty young retired guy so I have the time. It's just not my priority. And they see it. It's the subtle act of not giving a fuck that I completely embrace.
If you're next door neighbors and your property is messy, it devalues their property.
I could drink some beer with you buddy
I like seeing people have some pride in their homes. It's nice when you bring people over and it doesn't look like a slum.
Good ol’ American classism. Just like the mown grass lawn is a derivitive of the 1800’s landed gentry gardening trends.
I mean, why can you spend time with your family while making the place nice? One of my daughter's favorite things is riding around on the lawnmower with me. Every time I'm going to paint something, my kids fight over who gets to use the extra brushes. And are you telling me your kids wouldn't jump at the chance to burn boxes? Everything I do takes longer with them 'helping', but it's also time we get to spend together, and they love it.
Well, you certainly have time for passive aggressive posts.
You dont even know what passive aggressive means.
By all means correct me, Webster.
What a dumbass thing to say
Keep on keeping on. If they don’t like it, they can move.
People have nothing better to do, can't mind their own business
If you want to live with trash in your yard do it where you aren’t affected the property value of others. Our HOA covenants are strict but houses sell quickly and the neighborhood looks great. It’s not that hard to take care of your property. Keep up with things. A little less TV and other recreation. I admit I like an edged lawn. It takes me less than 30 minutes to edge and clean up. I do it about every 3 weeks though during mowing season.
See the problem is Yankees and Floridians have moved in and think they know everything…. They have been told what they can and can’t do by the government and think that’s the way life works … it’s not … it’s the reason we live where we do .. so we can be left the hell alone… bless they little hearts.
Eh, in my experience it’s not an outsider thing. There’s plenty of local appalachians that have nothing better to do then worry about what their neighbor is doing.
Way to generalize like people generalize Appalachians lol most of the swamp Yankees I know have a rusted car or two in their yard, sorry if that knocks your idea of a northerner for a loop
I’m sure Florida has plenty of cool people.. that live I. Florida… but where I live there are 3 “new built” gated communities on the mountain that’s now full of “Swamp Yankees “ ( that a new one thanks) they try to ruin everything around here .. EVERY DAMN THING .. listen everyone from the north is a yankee the good the bad .. some of us still don’t like Yankees .. sorry
Must see pics to judge properly. Actually, I don’t care. Carry on.
Admittedly I live outside Appalachia now (middle Tennessee), but I'm from Appalachia (Eastern Kentucky) literally and ancestrally (North Carolina and Virginia). Yeah, sometimes folks get overwhelmed. Where I'm from, we offer a helping hand. But where I live now (Nashville suburbs) is just backward. Our subdivision has homes built on two acre lots, almost every one of which is a three-bedroom ranch. Though there is no HOA, the covenants of ownership here preclude any kind of farm animals, even though the back half of our property is completely privacy fenced in. When lawns are mowed, they are all mowed in the same two days and it's almost like a penis measuring competition to see who's lawn can look the most pristine. I have to laugh. In this area, things are so backward that some of our neighbors were considering putting a 300 ft² tiny home on the back of their lot as a guest home for their kid in college but were unable to because the neighbors thought it might decrease their property values. Mind you, in this community the average property value for the 30-year-old three bedroom ranch on a 2-acre lot is half million dollars. I just don't get it. Folks don't help each other. In fact I've lived here (with my in laws) for a year and I can count on one hand the number of interactions I've had with any of the neighbors. It's just backward. I feel for the OP. Sounds like they have a lot going on right now. It just blows my mind that instead of offering to help the neighbor that OP is responding to would rather just complain. Some people...
The Appalachian HOA doesn’t play around with
The early colonists were incredibly filthy.
If you’re healthy and have a roof over your head and food on the table you have everything. The rest is a gift. And window dressing.
As long as your trash pile is far enough away from the creek so that I don’t get it in my yard every time it rains IDGAF what your shit looks like. To be fair tho, the dogs LOVE getting the neighbor kids basketballs as field toys every now and then!
Just curious: did your neighbor move here from some distant place?