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Person Doesn’t Want Neighbor Sitting In Their Garden, The Internet Has Thoughts
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Person Doesn’t Want Neighbor Sitting In Their Garden, The Internet Has Thoughts

Person Doesn’t Want Neighbor Sitting In Their Garden, The Internet Has ThoughtsPerson Asks If They're A Jerk For Being Irritated About Neighbor Wanting To Sit In Their GardenPerson Can’t Understand Why Neighbor Won’t Just Go To The Park Instead Of Being In Their GardenPerson Wonders If They're Being Unreasonable To Not Want Their Neighbor Sitting In Their GardenPerson Is Annoyed Their Neighbor Wants To Sit In Their Garden, Asks If They're Being Unreasonable“Why Can't She Just Sit In The Park?”: Person Annoyed By Neighbor Asking To Stay In Their GardenInternet Can’t Decide If This Person Is A Jerk For Wanting To Ban A Neighbor From Their GardenWoman Wants To Sit In Neighbor’s Garden While Her House Is Being Shown, They Take Issue With That“Why Can't She Just Sit In The Park For An Hour?”: Person Upset Neighbor Chooses To Sit In Their YardPerson Wonders If They’re Unreasonably Upset Over Neighbor Sitting In Their Garden
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Being on good terms with your neighbors is not a bad idea. You never know when you might be in need of a helping hand or a favor from someone living nearby.

Mumsnet user ‘mackthepony’ told the community about the time their neighbor asked for a favor, as she wanted to spend an hour in their garden. The OP was somewhat annoyed considering that there was a park right nearby, which is why they asked the Mumsnet community if they were being unreasonable for feeling this way.

Being on good terms with your neighbors can come in handy

Image credits: Samson Katt (not the actual photo)

This woman asked her neighbor if she could sit in their garden for an hour

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Image credits: mackthepony

Image credits: Eugene Chystiakov (not the actual photo)

People seem to be split into camps about trusting their neighbor

Some people in the comments suggested that the situation depended a lot on how close the neighbors were. If they were on good terms, the woman’s request might not be that big of a deal, even though the reasons for her choosing the neighbor’s garden instead of a nearby park are unclear.

However, if they weren’t really close, her wanting to spend time in someone else’s private property might not be well-received. Pew Research Center (PRC) revealed that people in the US seem to be divided when it comes to trusting their neighbors. (Though, the majority—52%, to be exact—say they do.)

The center’s data suggested that it’s the people who don’t feel safe in their neighborhood for one reason or another that are less prone to trusting the people living around them. It also showed that younger Americans are less likely to do so than their older counterparts, suggesting that the younger generations nowadays are less trusting in general than the older ones used to be.

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Image credits: J King (not the actual photo)

Not everyone enjoys having others in their home

It’s difficult to determine whether people simply don’t trust their neighbors with certain matters or they don’t feel fond of them in general. Because even though PRC’s data suggest that half of Americans don’t feel trust, PR Newswire’s statistics reveal that the vast majority—86%—seem to like them.

The 2022 survey pointed out that the ones who don’t have their reasons for feeling this way. They often feel people residing around them are too noisy (the reason half of Americans dislike their neighbors), while others believe they are unable to respect boundaries or are simply too nosy.

The latter two reasons might also be why the OP was far from cheerful with their neighbor asking to spend time in their private property. Research suggests that home—which can entail the entire residential area and other aspects in addition to the house itself—plays a fundamental role in people’s lives, which is why an outsider entering it is not something everyone equally enjoys.

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The CEO of the UK Council for Psychotherapy, Sarah Niblock, suggested that for many, home is a comforting place to which they seek to return, which evokes feelings of security and safety. A neighbor they are not well familiar with in their home might alter the feeling, consequently possibly even annoying the owner at the thought of it alone.

Image credits: Alex Green (not the actual photo)

People shared different opinions in the comments

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Miglė Miliūtė

Miglė Miliūtė

Writer, BoredPanda staff

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A writer here at Bored Panda, I am a lover of good music, good food, and good company, which makes food-related topics and feel-good stories my favorite ones to cover. Passionate about traveling and concerts, I constantly seek occasions to visit places yet personally unexplored. I also enjoy spending free time outdoors, trying out different sports—even if I don’t look too graceful at it—or socializing over a cup of coffee.

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Miglė Miliūtė

Miglė Miliūtė

Writer, BoredPanda staff

A writer here at Bored Panda, I am a lover of good music, good food, and good company, which makes food-related topics and feel-good stories my favorite ones to cover. Passionate about traveling and concerts, I constantly seek occasions to visit places yet personally unexplored. I also enjoy spending free time outdoors, trying out different sports—even if I don’t look too graceful at it—or socializing over a cup of coffee.

Justinas Keturka

Justinas Keturka

Author, BoredPanda staff

Read more »

I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

Read less »

Justinas Keturka

Justinas Keturka

Author, BoredPanda staff

I'm the Visual Editor at Bored Panda, responsible for ensuring that everything our audience sees is top-notch and well-researched. What I love most about my job? Discovering new things about the world and immersing myself in exceptional photography and art.

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Angieeee
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This was... barely post worthy. Also what's wrong with your neighbour wanting to sit in your garden? She can't sit in her house..it's not like she's asking to sit in your living room or sleep in your bed.

Nice Beast Ludo
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I read that wrong..like what the hell is wrong with your neighbor? How dare she ask to sit in your garden?? Every time I see "garden" I think of rows of vegetables so I just pictured this woman sitting among the corn stalks and sunflowers lol even though I know garden means yard

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Heather W
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Depends. Do I get to play with the dog? If not, then that's a no from me.

Molly Whuppie
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Does the park allow dogs? that might be a reason why she can't go there. Or it might be the dog doesn't get along with people or other dogs. OP said the neighbour got rid of her car in the comments, maybe the park is too far to walk to for any number of health related reasons. I'd probably let her sit in my yard as long as she cleaned up after the dog. But, its OPs property so I guess they get to decide who sits in their yard no matter how unreasonable it makes them.

Ron Baza
Community Member
1 year ago

This comment has been deleted.

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Angieeee
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This was... barely post worthy. Also what's wrong with your neighbour wanting to sit in your garden? She can't sit in her house..it's not like she's asking to sit in your living room or sleep in your bed.

Nice Beast Ludo
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I read that wrong..like what the hell is wrong with your neighbor? How dare she ask to sit in your garden?? Every time I see "garden" I think of rows of vegetables so I just pictured this woman sitting among the corn stalks and sunflowers lol even though I know garden means yard

Load More Replies...
Heather W
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Depends. Do I get to play with the dog? If not, then that's a no from me.

Molly Whuppie
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Does the park allow dogs? that might be a reason why she can't go there. Or it might be the dog doesn't get along with people or other dogs. OP said the neighbour got rid of her car in the comments, maybe the park is too far to walk to for any number of health related reasons. I'd probably let her sit in my yard as long as she cleaned up after the dog. But, its OPs property so I guess they get to decide who sits in their yard no matter how unreasonable it makes them.

Ron Baza
Community Member
1 year ago

This comment has been deleted.

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