Mailbox Rant

**cutetexancowgirl2002** · 07-01-2008, 08:51 PM

I arrived home today and noticed that my mailbox had been run over! And to top it all off I had just put a cute little flower bed around it a week ago. Just as I was surveying the damage the neighbor from across the street arrived home...he had contractors parked in his driveway work who had obviously been there all day. I asked the neighbor if he could ask the workers if they had accidently bumped my mailbox as they backed out of the driveway and the workers start denying the whole thing and saying it must've been the mailman! Obviously it wasn't the postman..it was bent straight back toward my house were someone obviously backed into it. It was not bent to the side as if someone had driven down the street and rant into it. So...I said well if you didn't hit it, then I guess I'll have to file a police report. Then they were like ohhhh nooo we don't want to law involved and the homeowner paid me $40 for the mailbox. Obviously he felt like they must've hit it also or he wouldn't have forked over $40 bucks. So here's my worry....do you think they would try to get back at me for this? A little background on this...I'm the minority in my neighborhood, I'm single, and there has been rumors that the previous occupants in my house were arrested for drug dealings (I bought the property as a bank owned property, so I wasn't fully knowledgeable of it's history).

**sdrjeolsen** · 07-01-2008, 09:22 PM

They may try to retaliate, if they do, its a reflection of them, not you. I'd take action on your part to prove you are a good neighbor. Invite the homeowner over to dinner/dessert, take them cookies, garden produce, or whatever. Just because you are a good neighbor doesn't mean you can't speak up about the mailbox (it was nice of the neighbor to compensate you) and try to get to the bottom of it. But I would try to make peace at the same time, people can get funny over little stuff like that. Good luck.

**Momof3girls** · 07-01-2008, 09:29 PM

Oh no!
I wouldn't want them to retaliate. Eeek!

**Michelle68** · 07-01-2008, 09:34 PM

For the record, I think you are totally right about the whole thing. I'm sure one of the contractors probably backed over it, or else your neighbor wouldn't have offered the $40. As far as retaliation goes,I think your neighbor would have to have a pretty bad anger management problem to retaliate over something like that. I would think that he would be grateful to have a decent neighbor like you across the street instead of the drug-dealing scumbags he had before. If it makes you feel better, maybe you can bake a plate of cookies or something and take it over, explaining that you hope y'all didn't get off on the wrong foot as neighbors because of what happened and that you appreciated him making the situation right by what he did.

--Michelle

**cutetexancowgirl2002** · 07-01-2008, 09:53 PM

Ladies,

Thanks for the advice. I think the cookies will be a great idea!

**cissylu** · 07-01-2008, 09:53 PM

I totally agree with michelle!

**Holly** · 07-02-2008, 08:55 AM

I second the cookies or a pie.
Let us know how it goes.
Hope you can fix the mailbox and your flower garden.

**JPolito830** · 07-02-2008, 09:48 AM

Punch and pie is the way to go

**shoiji** · 07-02-2008, 11:41 AM

I really doubt anyone will retaliate. You were not accusing the neighbor. Also the neighbor just handed you the money. If anything you neighbor is probably aware now that he doesn't have to worry about who lives across the street compared to who lived there before. You are concerned about you property which you have every right to be. The cookies will be a great gesture. Hopefully later on you two will be able to joke around about how you met.

**cutetexancowgirl2002** · 07-02-2008, 07:16 PM

Update: I took the cookies over and everything went over well. He said that one of the other neighbors actually saw the bricklayer back into it, but it didn't look like he noticed it since his truck was so large. So anyways he was appreciative of the cookies and said he'd have to introduce me to the rest of the neighborhood sometime. Thanks for the advice ya'll, I feel a lot better now!

**scottVee** · 07-02-2008, 11:48 PM

I'm glad the cookies worked. It's a good idea to be nice to everyone in your neighborhood (and job), even the ones you don't like. Not the ones that are obvious criminals, of course, but at least be in the loop ... find some neighbors you can trust and try to figure out where the problems spots in the neighborhood are. We've met more nice people that way, and would rather make a good impression than be treated with suspicion (or worse). There are usually a few key people who already know most of the neighbors, and a few nuts and gossip-mongers to be avoided. Few things are as creepy to me as a neighborhood where nobody speaks to anyone. After all, that's where we live, and we should find some support there, or it just doesn't feel like home.