Over the past few months we have been silently battling the neighborhood high school boys over trash in our yard. It seems that when the boys wait for the bus in the morning and especially when they get off the bus after school they use our yard as their trash can. A couple of times a month (and recently more frequently) Patrick and I come home to find a soda bottle or two thrown in our upper yard. We have not officially confronted the teens about it yet because we aren't normally home when it happens. The only reason we know it's the teens is Patrick happened to see the boys once as he was turning onto our street. I have suggested more than once that we set up our video camera to record the boys "in the act". Our other alternative to actually catching the boys is for one of us to take time off of work to be home when the bus gets here. That seems awfully silly.
We've been patiently steaming and picking up the bottles for a while now. My fuse finally reached the end when I arrived home today to find 2 soda bottles in my yard. And as I opened my mailbox I found a bag full of trash stuffed inside WITH my mail! What's a girl to do? I am really at a loss. Do I call the school and complain with no "solid" proof? Do I actually stay home from work to catch the boys, only to have them retaliate with something more serious than trash (like vandalism, loss of our mailbox, or other even worse possibilities)? Do I put up and shut up?
I am really trying to stay off my soapbox of parents and the lack of discipline and respect for other people and other people's things that is plaguing America. I just hope, as a parent, that I teach my child(ren) how to respect other people, other people's property, and ultimately to respect herself by acting like a good citizen. So to avoid taking that final step to the soapbox, I'll go get the mail...
สล็อตเว็บตรงยุโรป
2 years ago
3 comments:
I would call your post office (the one that services your mailbox) and tell them that you're experiencing problems with vandalism with your mailbox, and would they mind if you moved your box to your front porch (or got a mail slot type box for your porch). If they say you can't do that, or if it is against your county regulations, ask the PO what to do about the vandalism. They may be unhelpful, but it would be worth a shot.
I'd also contact the school about the bus stop issue. Tell them you're having this vandalism problem and you require that it stop immediately or that they move the bus stop to another area. You are NOT RESPONSIBLE for policing the public school system or bus system. You should absolutely NOT have to take time off of work or even the time to set up your video camera.
I would also call the police and tell them about the vandalism. They may be able to schedule patrols that happen to be in front of your house while the teens are there.
If you know what houses the teens live in, I would also write a short but firm letter to the parents of EVERY kid who rides that bus and put it in their mailbox, stating the problem you are having with vandalism and the fact that you are sure the parents will want to deal with this themselves so that you don't need to press charges. Of course you probably aren't going to be pressing charges, but it's amazing how effective phrases like "press charges" are in written communication. If you don't know where the kids live but you have a general idea how big the neighborhood is, I'd put the letter in every mailbox with a note that this is addressed to parents whose children ride the bus that stops near your yard.
Can you tell I'm not in a very patient mood right now? I should probably go eat some chocolate before I hurt anyone! :)
Great ideas! I will certainly talk to the post office and call the school. Perhaps they can just move the bus stop.
I'm so sorry you are experiencing this! How frustrating! Catherine has great ideas!
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