katiev
Member
I live in a second-story apartment, and my living room, dining room, kitchen, and balcony overlook a house in the adjoining subdivision.
I've deduced that the neighboring family consists of a stay-at-home mom, two young boys (maybe 4 and 8?), a father who is only home in the evening, and a nice, happy black Lab. They're, um...trashy.
AND THEY ARE DRIVING ME INSANE.
The mother and sons spend the majority of the day outside, either in their backyard or in their front yard. She's mostly on her cell phone; The older boy seems to be gone frequently, but otherwise seems well-behaved; The younger boy spends his time wreaking havoc. He screams constantly, throws rocks in the road, runs away from his mom (screaming simultaneously), screams at his brother, and antagonizes the dog. The dog seems to live outside entirely, and barks. And barks. And BARKS. I've lived here for a little over a month, and have only once heard her scold the dog, despite the roughly hourly barking sessions. For as much screaming as our dear little Gabriel does, I rarely hear her scold him, either. Mostly it's just, "Gabriel! Gabriel!" No corrective measures, consequences or punishment.
So my question is: What should I do? The woman is a bored housewife, and I think speaking with her would only give her "something to do," if you catch my drift, and make matters worse. I yell at the dog from my balcony sometimes, and it's quiet for a few minutes. I've yet to yell at the child, but if the day continues as it has been, that's next.
I understand noise and kids are part of a normal package deal, however, this is entirely abnormal. And unless there is some medical excuse for Gabriel's behavior (even then, there should be some kind of compromise, IMO), something needs to be done.
I'd like to call the police, but I wonder if they would even do anything? What preventative measures could they take? Can I even file a noise complaint against screaming children, barking dogs, and dumb parents?
Some help here, folks. :/
I've deduced that the neighboring family consists of a stay-at-home mom, two young boys (maybe 4 and 8?), a father who is only home in the evening, and a nice, happy black Lab. They're, um...trashy.
AND THEY ARE DRIVING ME INSANE.
The mother and sons spend the majority of the day outside, either in their backyard or in their front yard. She's mostly on her cell phone; The older boy seems to be gone frequently, but otherwise seems well-behaved; The younger boy spends his time wreaking havoc. He screams constantly, throws rocks in the road, runs away from his mom (screaming simultaneously), screams at his brother, and antagonizes the dog. The dog seems to live outside entirely, and barks. And barks. And BARKS. I've lived here for a little over a month, and have only once heard her scold the dog, despite the roughly hourly barking sessions. For as much screaming as our dear little Gabriel does, I rarely hear her scold him, either. Mostly it's just, "Gabriel! Gabriel!" No corrective measures, consequences or punishment.
So my question is: What should I do? The woman is a bored housewife, and I think speaking with her would only give her "something to do," if you catch my drift, and make matters worse. I yell at the dog from my balcony sometimes, and it's quiet for a few minutes. I've yet to yell at the child, but if the day continues as it has been, that's next.
I understand noise and kids are part of a normal package deal, however, this is entirely abnormal. And unless there is some medical excuse for Gabriel's behavior (even then, there should be some kind of compromise, IMO), something needs to be done.
I'd like to call the police, but I wonder if they would even do anything? What preventative measures could they take? Can I even file a noise complaint against screaming children, barking dogs, and dumb parents?
Some help here, folks. :/
