slant eyes

we live in a house and we have curbside mailboxes. about 1 foot away, stands my neighbor's mailbox. and 2 feet in front of that, my neighbor frequently parks her car. when i say frequent, i mean damn near everyday.

our mail carrier is driving the mail truck and we can't expect him to get out everytime some car is blocking the boxes, because then he would never finish his routes. as a matter of fact, according to the local post office, you are supposed to leave the boxes unblocked during post office business hours.

so she's been parking there in excess of a year now. and the mail carrier has left numerous messages on her windshield asking her not to park there. well, she still does. the worst case, i got a dump of mail with 4 days of back mail all at once. meaning she had her car there for at least 4 days straight.

i've spoken to her and she's laughed at me once for it. chuckling and making snide remarks like, 'hey mom, he thinks we're not gettin mail cuz i park there'. recently, she has finally admitted that her car there is the problem, but comes up with the bullshit that 'it's not my fault.' or 'i can't help it, i think i'm going to leave early, but i don't'. problem with that, she comes home from who knows where at 4 am and the mail is delivered near 10 am.

her mom has yelled at her many a times to not park there cuz they are expecting bills and what not. and as it turns out, we do expect bills as well.

there's plenty of room on the street, as a matter of fact, there are no cars in front of her or behind her on either sides of our driveways. hell, there's room across the street, but her fat lazy ass won't park there.

so i figure i had to do something and called the local post office to see if i could pick up the mail there. apparently i can't because that's a service they offer to customers who pay 1200 bucks a month.

we are after all neighbors so i don't want to call the cops as the post office suggested. i've tried talking to her. and i've tried talkin to the post office. any one have any ideas short of me pulling out 2 floor jacks and moving her car?

the latter of the options would be difficult cuz we live on a hill. thanks

__________________
no man or woman is worth your tears - and the one who is, won't make you cry

question authority, don't ask why, just do it!

MooseMan3000

Why not call the police? She's breaking the law. And it makes your life suck. Police are there to fix that. Seriously.

Anything else you do beyond talking would most likely also be breaking the law... then you're the jackass.


It sounds like the offending driver is a teenage girl, right? Have you talked to the parents? It sounds like you have; so they're obviously inept parents, raising a child too stupid to realize that parking in front of a mailbox doesn't constitute rebellion, it just makes you look like a tool. So no dice there.



So call the police. It's clear that she holds no love for you anyway, so what kind of relationship is there to salvage? Or just say "don't park there, or I'll call the police." They'll come, ticket the car for a hundred dollars or so, and leave. If it happens again, call again. They'll come ticket it again. After a while, they'll give the car a boot. Then the girl will be forced to do something about it.

Also, make sure the parents don't pay the tickets... from the sound of things, that sounds very much like something they'd do.

maleficent

Agreed - -calling the police is really your only option... well that and picking your mail up at the post office... which would suck.

Check your city ordinances on the legality of parking in front of a mailbox...

__________________

Rlyss

Agreed. You hardly have to worry about keeping things civil between you, so go for it. If I were in your position I'd see if the police could just give her a warning first. Perhaps that's all that is needed, maybe a fine is a bit extreme. If a warning is good enough, then perfect, and if it happens again, don't bother asking them to go easy on her.

Cynthetiq

I'm all for the police, and you can also file a complaint with the Local PostMaster.

She's breaking a federal law by inhibiting the post carrier from doing their appointed duty.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

uncle_el

you've gone through all of the measures you should have gone through. the only other thing i could say to do would be to get a post office box... but that's ridiculous given that you have a functional mailbox, and it would cost money you don't need to spend.

you may want to try talking with the girl again, better yet her parent(s). if that doesn't work, i don't really see what choice you have other than to see what the police can do.

i understand not wanting to do it, but it seems that you've tried everything in your power.

__________________
An individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the penalty of inprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

The media's the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that's power. Because they control the minds of the masses. - Malcolm X

snowy

Call the police. And if she fails to move her car after receiving a ticket...keep calling. The police will be glad for the income from her tickets.

__________________
If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Grancey

These types of situations are difficult. Calling the cops should be a last resort, because once you do that you have reached a point of no return. Is there any way you could move your mailbox?

__________________
Quiet, mild-mannered souls might just turn out to be roaring lions of two-fisted cool.

present_future

With all due respect, moving your mailbox just makes you a part of "the pussification of America." Fuck that. She's the one causing the problem, ultimately she should be the one to resolve it. I agree with the others, filing a complaint with the police or the postmaster is your best bet.

__________________
The only thing I'll ever ask of you... you gotta promise not to stop when I say when.

TexanAvenger

I'm going with the popular opinion here of bringing the fact to the police's attention. However, expect her to be pissed and possibly start pointing fingers for it...

Heh... I don't suppose she drives an old VW bug...

lindseylatch

Fuckin' kids...SLASH HER TIRES! Oh, wait, then she can't move the car...
I guess the police is the best option. I mean, you've done everything else that doesn't actually cost you money, and getting bills late CAN cost you money. The only unfortunately thing is that if the girl is underage, her parents might get stuck with the bill...but then they can just sell her car to pay it.

__________________
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities"
"If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him."
"It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong."
-Voltaire

ShaniFaye

you've already done the neighborly thing and asked her not to do it. The mail person has already warned her....If it were me I would tell her parents....one more time and you ARE calling the police. There is only so much that "nice and polite" is going to do when you're dealing with a total airhead who cant respect the authority of the USPS.

__________________
I want the diabetic plan that comes with rollover carbs. I dont like the unused one expiring at midnite!!

slant eyes

thanks for all the advice fellow tfp'ers.

so here is what happened and i hope it works. she called me out to do a favor so i went out there to talk to her. i asked her nicely....

'could you do me a favor?'
her...'yeah'
me...'could you not park your car there until the mail gets here? my parents are gettin on my ass for it. i've even called the post office to see if i can get mail there, but they say it'll cost me 1200 bucks. they said i could call the police and they'd give you a ticket, but i really don't want to.'
her...'ok'
me...'unless you want me to call the cops and get you a ticket'
her...'no'
me...'ok, so park in the driveway or something, but leave the mailbox open, please'
her...'ok'
me...'thanks'

so, so far it seems ok. we'll have to see what happens. so i took the advice of everyone here and used the cops. although i still want to resort to that as lastly as possible, i used it to threaten her and i'll cross my fingers. thanks all for the input.

__________________
no man or woman is worth your tears - and the one who is, won't make you cry

question authority, don't ask why, just do it!

Cynthetiq

glad that maybe you made headway.

I was just thinking about what other options you have.

Contact your local town hall. If you happen to live in a small county or township, let them know that it's an issue. They may be able to realign the street area and make it 1-2 hour parking or even no parking from 8AM - 5PM so that it's equitable and useable for everyone.

I recall the neighbor doing this when I lived in Long Island. Was really annoying when it first happened and they didn't even give me the "courtesy" of telling me that there was an issue and I got a ticket. There wasn't with me, but they just didn't like my landlord for some reason.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

lindseylatch

I don't think changing the parking laws on the street just for one person is a good idea. I mean, she just needs to park a few feet further away.
Making it 1-2 hours or even no parking could inconvenience a lot more people.

__________________
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities"
"If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him."
"It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong."
-Voltaire

maleficent

according to postal regulations, the mailbox is supposed to be accessible to the post person. If it's not the postmaster reserves the right to cancel mail delivery.

It should be enforcable. You can't park in a bus stop, you can't park in front of a fire plug, you'd be ticked and towed for that offence, ticket and tow the car for parking in front of a mailbox.

__________________

Grancey

You have to pick your battles carefully. And, honestly, when dealing with a not-so-bright neighbor the possible retaliation that may ensue if you call the cops is not something I would want to face.

__________________
Quiet, mild-mannered souls might just turn out to be roaring lions of two-fisted cool.

lurkette

I think you handled it very well - you asked her politely and told her diplomatically what the next step would be. Well done! Hope it works.

__________________
"If ten million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing."

- Anatole France

ratbastid

And you can bet the parents will actually DO something once there's ticket money involved.

Demeter

Man, I may just be a bitch, but after all you went through, I would have called the cops. Sometimes a kid needs a harsh lesson in reality to grow up.
How many of us as teenagers had people bend over backwards for our moronic ways. Not me. A little smackdown makes a kid think fast.

Wow, I am rather venomous today.

__________________

I am not bound to please thee with my answers.
William Shakespeare

iccky

You did the right thing though by threatening to call the cops first. Most people will respond to a threat like that, probablly saved you some pissed off neighbors.

You rock

slant eyes

thanks for the support guys. ok, so progress report. i came home from school today, and my neighbor's car was parked on her driveway and guess what?! WE GOT MAIL!

seems to be working, hope it continues.

__________________
no man or woman is worth your tears - and the one who is, won't make you cry

question authority, don't ask why, just do it!

warrrreagl

I sure as hell hope most of you never move anywhere near me. Did you ever hear of trying to foster relationships with people? Trying to bargain or negotiate? Trying to maintain some civility with your neighbors? Geez, with the exception of Grancey, I don't think most of you know how to relate to real live human beings anymore.

Life ain't like a video game, kids. The people you fuck with stay that way for a long time, and you have to live with the results. You don't get to just hit RESET and start over with your pissed off neighbors. Try acting civilized, for God's sake. What could it hurt to keep trying to work it out?

__________________
Living is easy with eyes closed.

billege

I'm glad you were able to get her to listen. I really hope she did. Neighbors are tough nuts. If they're great, it's great! If they're not, it's all sorts of tough.

I really hope she does keep up her end.

If she doesn't, I hope you talk to her again. And agian if necessary. Each time, kill her with kindness. Tell her how MUCH you'd APPRECIATE it if she'd help you out. You're getting yelled at for the late mail, and you KNOW how HARD it will be for her to act, but oh wouldn't she just be so kind?

Some people call it kiss assing, others realize that killing someone with kindness is ever so much more usefull than force.

__________________
I can sum up the clash of religion in one sentence:
"My Invisible Friend is better than your Invisible Friend."