“’You shall love your neighbor as yourself” is an often repeated line from the Bible, one that most people would recognize immediately. But knowing something and applying it in your own life are two pretty different things, as most of us have experienced our own, aptly named “neighbor from hell.”

One netizen discovered that her neighbors were basically using her trash cans for everything they didn’t want to place on their own, from old food to dog poop. Both the smell and the entitlement were giving her a real headache, so she decided that enough was enough and got a bit of well-earned revenge.

Trash can etiquette seems like it should be a no brainer

Image credits: Forest Service Northern Region (not the actual photo)

But one woman shared her experience with horrible neighbors that thought they could just leave rotting food in her garbage

Image credits: the blowup (not the actual photo)

Image credits: James Day (not the actual photo)

Image credits: CanadasNeighbor

Humans love revenge stories and like to see some measure of justice done

While some might be inclined to see this sort of revenge as a bit childish, the reality is that humans ultimately see some form of retribution as necessary. “Turn the other cheek,” while popularized by the Bible, was not and practically speaking, is not the standard method of dealing with conflicts. Revenge is a central theme in a variety of media, from “The Count of Monte Cristo,” to more modern variants, like the “John Wick ” movie series. The aforementioned Bible has examples and it features in a number of Shakespeare’s plays. In general, “revenge” is almost a trope for how often it shows up in some characters’ backstory or motivations.

It’s also worth noting that the concept of revenge contains a lot of different variations inside it. On the more negative side, there is revenge as an expression of anger over a slight or some perceived grievance. But humans do have a sense of justice and we tend to have negative emotions about someone “escaping” it. Both of these variants exist to some extent as coping mechanisms for difficulties in life.

Studies have shown that holding in feelings of revenge over a long period of time can produce symptoms similar to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This is not to say that one needs to act upon these feelings, rather, that it’s psychologically unhealthy to leave them untreated and unprocessed. But it’s just as important that some justice is done when there is a real offense. Humans’ sense of justice isn’t just an abstract concept, people “getting away with it” can actually cause real, measurable psychological issues.

Image credits: Keira Burton (not the actual photo)

Moving the trash cans was a masterstroke in pettiness

OP did mention that these neighbors had been causing issues for a while, which no doubt informed her decision to take some sort of action. While the subject literally is dog droppings and rotting food, symbolically, it’s an example of “what comes around, goes around,” as the smell, ultimately was caused by the neighbors, OP just moved the trash closer to them. The only thing holding this method back is the unfortunate reality that the neighbors will probably not connect their own actions to the smell descending upon them.

Others brought up ways to protect herself in the future, including a padlock on the garbage bin. While less escalatory, this most likely would also prove a hassle, as it would still need to be left unlocked before garbage day. Similarly, it would also not inflict any harm on the neighbors, who would no doubt continue bothering OP. In the grand scheme of things, her revenge really does fall into the category of petty revenge, which is quite popular online. People do enjoy these tales because they scratch that itch of annoying people and having bad things happen to them, all without excessive amounts of chaos or violence.

This last point, while purely psychological, is still important to consider. Being constantly victimized without taking action can wear down a person’s self-confidence and make them feel unhappy. Even taking small actions, like moving the garbage cans strategically, can alleviate this feeling and help her get back at these neighbors for what seems like a constant stream of annoyances. Now armed with the various bits of advice from the comments, OP should feel more confident at striking back whenever these neighbors do something annoying.

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Image credits: Dilara Albamya (not the actual photo)

OP gave some more details and answered questions

Some readers gave her additional ways to get back at these neighbors

Others shared similar stories with rude and entitled people

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