A request to parents

[Marigold2]

Dear Neighbors,
I have just returned from working 10 hours at the Dr’s office answering 150 phone calls. I have dealt with everything from eye cancer to contact lens, glaucoma to glasses, your senile mother with macular degeneration to the four year old who screamed when drops were put into his eyes. I am tired and hungry.
I still have to make dinner and do a load of laundry, plus take care of my fur babies, spend time with my daughter and husband and say hello via phone or e-mail to my three boys. Tomorrow will be another long day.
I have put dinner in the oven, fed and watered the pets, started the wash. It is now 8pm and I am taking my decaf coffee outside to sit on my swing and enjoy the flowers I spent months planting, weeding and growing.
And then here come your kids…………………..
They are cutting across my lawn, front and back. Yelling, screaming, fighting and the girls are screeching so loud my ears are actually ringing. Shut up shut up shut up I want to yell at the kids but of course that would be rude. You the parents seem to be already deaf or are able to turn out the incredible screeching that only a seven year old gaggle of girls can produce. I am near tears. I just want a few quite moments that’s all. That can’t be too much to ask………………
I heard noise all day, answered so many phone calls, listened to so many problems, questions such as, I had surgery Sat can I wash my hair, can I fly, bowl, swim?
Why won’t my insurance pay this bill? I didn’t bring my checkbook, I can’t pay for this. I want to see the Dr. NOW. I have lost sight in my right eye two days ago, should I make an appointment? Yes you should, unless you want to be blind for life I want to say but don’t.
And there I sit on my swing; cup in hand and the screeching begins with the girls trying to out do each other. The boys are yelling and mom and dad, well I just don’t know what the hell is up with them. They have either tuned the whole thing out; become deaf or just don’t care.
I have actually thought about taping the noise and going up to the neighbors and making them listen to it. I just don’t understand, either way my evening is ruined. I have to go inside and close my windows, can’t hear the TV above the screaming and now have to turn the air on.
I raised three kids. My oldest Slacker was hyperactive. I understand that kids are not going to be quite BUT at the same time parents need to teach their kids that yelling, screeching, cutting through people’s lawn is not allowed.
Just a nice evening sitting and relaxing, listening to the birds and wildlife, smelling my roses is that too much to ask? I just hate living in a development. Hate it. I would prefer living next to a field. I really think it is time to move. But on the other hand, why should I have too?

[Whisk_Luva]

Sorry you are having such a stressful time Monica

I don't have any solutions to offer, so I will just send you lots of ((Hugs))

[Cataholic]

Maybe you could try the tactics you use on here? Honesty with little tack?

"Your kid is bothering me. Please tell them to shut the hell up."

[caseysmom]

Sounds like your in the wrong line of work (working with people) and in the wrong neighborhood (near people).

[pomtzu]

Oh my...........

[Karen]

I don't think she's in the wrong line of work, caseysmom, I just think she had a bad day. It happens to everyone.

Marigold, please talk with your neighbors. Explain that you don't want to be a "grumpy old lady" but that they are yelling so loud that it really does hurt your ears. Explain that the loudest yells should only be used for real danger, as of now, someone could be trying to abduct their kid and no one would react because they yell so much all the time!

Explain that you don't want to call the police or anything, but they really are disturbing the peace, and if they could just tone it down a few decibels after 6 p.m. (or whatever time you usually get home), you would truly appreciate it. Sometimes a simple conversation is all it takes.

Then, if nothing changes, you could try talking to the kids, if you are up to it, maybe while holding a kitty that would be amenable to being petted and fussed over, and that might work.

It is worth a shot, after all!

[momoffuzzyfaces]

I so totally relate to you! Thankfully for me, my neighbors with the yelling kids finally moved. I still have a neighbor who seems to know when I'm about to drop from pain and exhaustion and need to got to bed. Then he blasts me out with his stereo.

I call him. He says, "oh, sorry". Shuts down for a while, then at 1 am he's at it again. I want a deserted island some times. sigh

(((HUGS))) to you!

[Bonny]

Marigold, Karen has some good ideas there to try. Then once again there are the busy body negative rude people on here. Ignore them! Tomorrow will be a better day. You maybe have post traumatic vacation disorder, just hit you with a snow ball. (((HUGS)))

[Twisterdog]

Indeed, sounds like a bad day at work. And true, we all have them once in a while. I would suggest that it really depends on how many "bad days" there are, though, whether or not it's really a bad day, or a bad job, or a bad fit. Only you can answer that.

As for noisy neighbors ... I personally enjoy silence a lot. I would love to live miles from anyone. Can't afford it though. Sometimes my neighbors are quiet, sometimes they are noisy. And OTOH, sometimes my kids and dogs are quiet, sometimes not so much. And different people have different levels of noise tolerance. What is "screeching" or "screaming" to you or I might be "laughing" and "playing" to your neighbors. There really isn't a "right" or a "wrong".

Legally, most towns have noise ordinances, which kick in after a certain time, generally about 10:00 pm. So, if people are indeed screaming loudly after that time, you probably could call the police. But at 6:00 pm or 8:00 pm ... highly doubtful. They cannot legally cut across your grass. But is that really the battle you want to pick to start the war?

As Karen said a polite conversation - when you are not angry or frustrated - might work. Worth a shot. But if the parents think their kids are simply playing and laughing like kids normally do, there really isn't much you can do at 8:00 pm. It is outdoors after all.

[Marigold2]

I have been here for 15 years and have never said anything to my neighbors about the noise problem. One neighbor has been here with me the whole time, another is new with two little girls 5 and 7. This development has mostly stay at home moms. I have a neighbor who is a lawyer, dentist, another owns a computer company, one neighbor is a scientist, one works for a bank, another owns a movng, company, there is a retired detective down the street and of course my good friends the retired Dr and his wife. Mostly however it is stay at home mom's with young kids. The mom's shop, go to lunch, take their kids to lessons and hang out. Most have lawn care company's and in the morning the entire development is filled with the sound of lawns being moved and trimmed.
Today was actually my day off. It was however the last day of school my neighbor with the two screaming girls informed me. So it made me sad because I knew any quite evenings I had were gone.
As for cutting across my lawn I own a huge corner lot and kids cut across all day lawn, their baseballs fly across, their dog comes across which I don't mind, little girls stamper across in bathing suits to go to one anothers pools to avoid the hot sidewalk etc etc etc. The old neighbor had a trampoline in the backyard next to mine and there were tons of kids on the darn thing screaming for hours. What ya gonna do? Kids will scream in pools and that is life, they have short memories, five minutes later it continues to eye splitting levels. Show me a kid that doens't scream in a pool and I will be shocked.
And it's not that I am a fuddy duddy. I still go to nightclubs to hear blues, R & R dance and hang out. I am the women who is laughing her head off at the party because I find so many things funny and I don't take offense at of color jokes, BUT a little peace and quit in ones own backyard is a right.
Bonnie I didn't see any negitive comments. I have several people on ignore, it's like their posts don't exist.
Karen excellent advice which I might try yet I understand small kids playing, I don't understand parents who don't want the volumn turned down.

[caseysmom]

You claim to put me on ignore yet you reply http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=160821 to my posts???

[catnapper]

I sooo understand your frustration. We had to put up a fence to avoid people walking through our yard. That's what sidewalks are for!

We have neighbor's dogs who potty on our yard. Nursing home employees smoking on our sidewalk. The WEIRD nieghbor kid who stands on our lawn and talks to tools (YES, TOOLS.... hammers, screw drivers, etc.... creepy little kid). McDonald's cups and wrappers all over our lawn.

I tell you my neighborly woes, not to outdo yours, but to show you how much I understand. I want to throw poop on the doggy's home. I want to throw up on the people who smoke and make me, well, throw up. I want to call the nuthouse to take care of that weird child (I bet you we'll be seeing him on the news in about 15 years for some creepy stalking issue). I want to scream at Micky D's to provide a trash can on my property

But we were raised to be polite and deal with it. Because if we actually said something to our neighbors, we'd be the ones with an attitude problem.

[chocolatepuppy]

I work in a noisy factory all day long. Some days, when I get home and take my dogs out, the neighbor ties his dog out and and it barks non stop!!! Not the way I want to spend my home time. Some days it bothers me more than others. I can see where you're coming from Monica.

[snakemama]

How frustrating. You are nicer than I am....but I genuinely dislike kids!

I've found a sound machine to be a very worthwhile investment since my new next-door neighbor's kids like to play soccer and my bedroom window is in exactly the wrong place. -_- A little white noise in the evenings is quite soothing, and drowns out a lot of the screeching.

[Sirrahsim]

wow. Heaven forbid happy children run outside and play and holler when mandated quiet hours are not in effect. Perhaps we parents of youngsters should shut them up in the house and give them each a video game to keep them quiet and docile (and fat). There is a reason that volume levels are referred to as "indoor" voice and "outdoor" voices. Griping about children playing outside is completely ridiculous and as a mother I am ridiculously offended that you would be offended.
Put up a fence and earplugs if you don't want to hear children play.
*rant over*