A woman says she was pretty ticked off when she headed up to her apartment complex's shared swimming pool only to find her neighbours flouting building rules, and so responded by wrecking their child's birthday party.
According to this 32-year-old woman, their complex has a rule that any non-residents have to check in at the office before using the pool. Nobody pays much attention to that rule, however, and she doesn't think it's really enforced.
As relaxed as this rule is, however, she felt her neighbours had crossed a line when she headed to the pool at around 2 pm to find it absolutely "packed" with party guests.
Taking to Reddit, the indignant woman recalled how there were around 25 to 30 people gathered around the pool to celebrate her neighbour's child's birthday party.
Knowing "they couldn't all be residents", she was further infuriated to see they'd broken other rules too, including drinking alcohol from glass bottles, using both patio grills and playing loud music.
Recalling the scene, she wrote: "The entire pool was filled with kids. It doesn't specifically say no parties but it says to be respectful of others' spaces and not to hog items like the grills, hot tub, and umbrella tables.
"My boyfriend and I tried to lay out in the corner but it wasn't working. After another couple told us how displeased they were with this party too, my boyfriend suggested we say something. We left and stopped by the front office and told them about the party."
She continued: "About an hour later we started seeing all of them leaving the pool. It looked like the party was shut down. This morning we got a note on our door from the hosts of the party.
"I don't know how they knew it was us or what unit we lived in but that's beside the point. The note called us a******* for what we did and now said they are under a 'lease review' where the office could decide to evict them if they want.
"So they thanked us for potentially getting a poor, small family kicked out. I said we weren't the only ones who had a problem and if we didn't do it they would have eventually gotten caught. I also told them that whatever happens is their own fault for blatantly breaking the rules."
Many fellow Reddit users felt she should have just left it alone, and felt she should have spoken with the family directly before making an official complaint.
One person commented: "This is one of the grey areas. Legally you are alright. Morally? You had so many options. You could have talked to them. You didn't. Instead you put in an official complaint. Housing is a nightmare right now, you have given them more to worry about."
Another remarked: "It would have just been one afternoon. I feel not only bad for the guests and parents but also for the kids. A few years ago my neighbour's kid was having a loud a** party with fireworks which is not legal etc. I went over instead of calling the police.
"She was celebrating her 18th. Let her know that since she is now a legal adult fireworks are very illegal and she would be held liable but to proceed having fun. Are the neighbours inconsiderate? Yes. Is it inconsiderate to ruin a child's birthday? YES."
Do you have a neighbour-related story to share? Email me at julia.banim@reachplc.com
