He Asked a New Neighbor to Keep the Building Door Closed—and Was Instantly Accused of Harassment
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Neighbors can sometimes turn small issues into bigger conflicts.
The following story is about a man who tried to be friendly to his new elderly neighbor, but he started noticing weird behavior from her.
Things escalated when she confronted him over parking and repeatedly left the door of the apartment building open.
Even after he politely asked her to keep it closed, she continued to behave irrationally.
Let’s take a closer look!
Neighbor keeps shared main door open all day/night
A 72-year-old lady moved in across the hall in November, but she did not start staying there until March.
I am like my father, so of course, I might say hi to introduce myself.
The first time I did this, she completely turned her head. I brushed it off.
I also want to preface that I have lived here for over a year now.
This man was vacuuming his car when the old lady showed up and called him out.
Every now and then, I will pull my car up close to the building to vacuum it out. It is cheap. It takes me 15 minutes. No one seemed to mind.
Well, I did this one day at around 9 a.m. on a Sunday.
The lady came out. She placed herself in the middle of everything I was doing and sat there for 5 minutes.
Then, she got up and told me to “stay on my side.” Mind you, it is a public parking spot. She does not have a car. Whatever.
She had been leaving the back door open.
For the past couple of months, she has been leaving the back door open.
It is a main entrance. We live in the woods, too.
It has been left open throughout the night and during a rainstorm. Many insects got in, as well.
I told management that the door was not getting properly shut. They addressed it.
When he told her to close the door, she reported him to the management.
A day later, she left the door open on purpose.
She was sitting out there.
I asked, “Ma’am, we have to keep this door shut.”
She then told management I was harassing her.
What? Is this neighbor for real?
It sounds like the neighbor was purposely looking for ways to annoy OP and other people in the complex.
OP stayed reasonable and respectful, but he shouldn’t have to keep tolerating the behavior just to avoid conflict.
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Sometimes, setting firm boundaries is the only way to protect your peace.
Let’s check out the comments of other people on Reddit to this story.
This user shares their personal thoughts.
Stop talking to her, says this person.
Here’s an idea…
Another person chimes in.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a man who stops helping his neighbors out with his snowplow after they complain about his farm.
Finally, people are coming up with good advice.
Good neighbors should make life easier not more complicated.
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