Pavement Chalk

[tiredandsadmum]

Lived in my house 18 years. Good relations with all the neighbours. Just had my 1st complaint tonight. DS (age 8) and several children (similar ages) in the road have been drawing on the road and pavement with pavement chalk. They had a blast. Neighbour has complained on the grounds it looked unsightly and apparently other neighbours are also not keen.

There is drawing outside her house, so I apologised, said I would ask DS not to draw there ( I don't think he did but was part of the gang). I did make it clear though that I was happy for DS to continue to draw outside my house. She was really grumpy about it. I did then explain that it was pavement chalk and would wash away the minute it rained. She said it isn't raining now and walked off . I feel I have been polite, have said its not OK for them to draw on her frontage and would deal with that but want them to have safe fun outside mine. AIBU?

(She was also really fed up with my cat following her back down the road and being over friendly but that would be another thread!)

I can't understand the issue either really. Surely there are bigger things in the world to get annoyed about

What a grump! You've been kind enough making sure your ds won't draw in front of hers next time so what more does she expect?!

YANBU

Just ensure it is outside houses that don't mind, nip out with a hose or bucket when there done and wash it away.

Some folk just like o complain and forget they were once children (chalked hop scotch was a very popular game in the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and now )

I think I'd make the effort to chuck a bucket of water over the chalk outside her house to wash it off, but I wouldn't stop the chalking outside my own house.

Do you have a drive? My dc and friends spent ages chalking the bricks on the block paving of our drive in a geometric pattern - we've had quite a few compliments on it!

Pavement chalk is very common over here (The Netherlands) and I have never heard anyone complain about it. If it really bothers the neighbour why doesn't she wash it away with some water? Some people look for any excuse to complain.

There are kids' chalk grids on a pavement near me when I walk to the supermarket. Makes me grin.

She's a colossal grump.

YANBU
My DS chalks on my patio, when he's done I just get my hose or pour a Bucket of water on it then brush it with a stiff broom. Gone!

Your neighbours sounds like a miserable old bag.

Last time I let my DC join in with pavement chalk outside my house (we're semi detached) they spent a lovely time drawing flowers and handwriting patterns, I thought it was lovely harmless fun playing outdoors and all that. After they'd all gone in I spotted NDN (attached side) supervising her DH scrubbing the pavement with a yard broom to scrub it all off. I didn't think they were doing anything bad but it obviously offended her. I haven't let them out there with chalk since and they've now grown out of it anyway. How can anyone take offence at a chalk daisy on the path outside their property that will either wash away with the next rain shower or scuff away with foot traffic?
NDN can be a bit funny about strange things but that could be a whole other thread, perhaps I'll start it one day.

Yanbu parent chalks are fab, the madthings lI've them.

All the kids in our cul de sac use them and I think one neighbour was a bit grumpy but got over it. Interestingly my mil hates it, says it lowers the tone... And dp has obviously picked up his mother's thoughts as he moans about it looking messy. I just told him to get a grip, rain or a bucket of water and it's gone.

Pavement chalk are just normal chalk but bigger, they sell them in pounbland and hobbycraft etc, cheap and fun and keep the madthings entertained for hours!

Nothing wrong with chalk on the pavement, so long as it's not on other peoples' drives/walls (as the children on our road did several weeks ago- it still hasn't washed off!).

What a joyless old bag your neighbor must be. Chalk away - it's not like it never rains in England.

Thank you for feedback. I hadn't thought about washing it off, so I think tomorrow eve we'll take a bucket of water over and clean up her pavement. I will check her drive and garage doors. Shows goodwill hopefully :) Lovely to hear that most people's children love it too :)

She is only a bit older than me but was widowed a couple of years ago so I am trying to be sensitive. The other neighbour who doesn't like it actually has a child the same age who has been out with the others, so I do think that is snobbery.

Whaaaaaat? Is your neighbour iactually the child catcher out of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang?

Unless your children were drawing smutty diagrams, there's nothing to be pissed off about.

Definitely NBU. I have been known to hopscotch on the chalked grids when walking down the street despite being a childless 25 year old

Is this going to turn into "Chalk-gate"?

OP...go on I dare you to ask her, did she ever chalk on the pavement when she was DS's age? (because, I bet she did)

Miserable sods. Are they the kind of people who sweep the pavement outside their house even if it's not covered in leaves (which is understandable)?

We never had proper chalk so we'd find stones which did the same job. Chips from red bricks were especially good as most stones you find on the ground only made white markings so having red colours was special!

YANBU, I wish someone would cheer my street up like that!

Unless they are drawing genitalia or swearwords, there is nothing wrong with it. Your neighbours are fusspots. Ignore.

YANBU.

What a joyless old bag!

'D'M accused ds (6 yrs old) of 'vandalism' when he chalked a single line down the pavement in front of her (and her equally prissy neighbours) house/s. Wanted him to go out and wash it off himself as punishment. He just wanted to see how long a line he could draw with a single stick of chalk.

However DM is crazy and this wasn't untypical behaviour.

As said already, so long as it's not offensive, what's the problem?

We love chalking.
Next time give DC spray paint?

Some people obviously don't have very much going on in their lives if they are bothered by a bit of chalk on the ground. Does she just like having a moan?
Children have done this for decades - it's fun and it doesn't hurt anyone. Personally, I'd just leave it. If it disturbs her that much she can brush it off herself.