Kids chalking on pavement

[Ritascornershop]

My best friend lives in a little estate of row houses with a grassed area in the centre and pavement around the edge with paths off to each of their houses.

Her idiot ex-partner lives with her (for the most part never paying rent or contributing to food and bills). They are just past 50 and never had kids.

The neighbours’ kids are aged around 5-6 and have taken to drawing pictures in chalk on the pavement; animals, houses, and hopscotch squares. They do this in front of a number of houses. My friend’s idiot ex partner has been hosing it off and telling the kids not to do it (& given how often she tells me he shouts about other things I suspect he’s not telling them nicely).

I told her I thought he was mean to hose away their harmless drawings, that she used to chalk draw when she was little, that he fancies himself an artist, and that I think he’s being awful. AIBU?

There is something very seriously wrong with you if you think that it's a problem to have little kids drawing pictures out of chalk on the pavements. You have definitely taken a wrong turn in life somewhere if you believe this. What kind of priorities do you have in your life? Where is your inner child gone? It is possibly the most inoffensive thing a child could do, rain washes away every bit of it!!where is your sense of joy or fun or even delight in seeing little kids play outside instead of being stuck in on computer games. Seriously get a grip 🙄

What a miserable arse. If their drawings were offensive I could understand him hosing them down and asking them not chalk but for innocent drawings there really is no harm done.

As usual the people here with the 'controversial' opinions are the ones who appear to be in a different world to the rest of us.

This thread is bonkers. It's chalk FFS. I cannot believe some of these batshit responses!!

My parents were always very against this and very scathing of the parents who let their children do it. It is, apparently, one step away from graffiti and a life of drugs.
When we moved, pretty much the first thing that DH came home with was a box of chalks to draw on our balcony tiles with. Now there are several kids in our block and they spend their time outside drawing pictures, race tracks etc on our communal path. IL’s were really shocked I’d never had any. I must admit I haven’t advertised the fact to my parents!

I’m glad I’m general that people agree with me on this. I think she’s unfortunately kind of gotten used to him, and used to making excuses for him as well. But I also think she asked as she knows it’s out of order. I keep coming back to it in my mind and thinking “wtf? Who objects to kids having innocent fun?”

And, as someone asked, her ex is living with because he moved out, didn’t like supporting himself, spun her a sob story that it would be short term, a year later he’s firmly back in the spare room. I think he’s her life project.

@Orphlids

Quite frankly, I think anyone who objects to children chalking on the pavement must either be completely deranged, or thoroughly unpleasant. Unless the kids are drawing massive penises, I cannot begin to imagine anyone actually objecting to it. And yet, here are people in this thread who think it shouldn’t be allowed. My eyes have been opened!

Completely agree.

You really have to wonder about how sad and pathetic they must be to get upset/angry about children doing chalk drawings.

There's quite a few people around that seem to think children shouldn't be seen or heard - forgetting that they used to be one too.

It doesn't matter what a child does, sometimes someone will be there with a 'cats bum face' - just because the children are enjoying life, I think.

It's possible that some of them are people unhappy in their own lives so they don't like seeing happiness in others.

Let the kids chalk on the pavement! It's very temporary in the British climate.

I find this so weird. We live in Germany and the pavements/paths especially near parks, but also car parks / garages / steps in residential areas are absolutely covered in chalk art throughout the whole summer. Big, massive pieces, scribbles, writing (never anything offensive that I've seen) it's just normal and completely commonplace to see kids doing chalk art. They bring big buckets of chalk and share it with strangers. We did the same yesterday.

I would not let my DC crayon on somebody's private property but public spaces absolutely.

It washes off as soon as it next rains.

I love seeing chalk on the pavement and round here people were drawing rainbows and messages of support for the nhs. Why not? It washes off its harmless. Much prefer to see kids outside playing and using their imaginations then nose down in a screen any day of the week.

Getting upset about children drawing with chalk on the pavement is a whole new level in 'pointless things to get worked up'. Bloody hell.

I remember doing it as a kid - we all did it! 25 years later, I imagine it's washed away by now. DD loves doing it in the garden, and she is welcome to do it out the front on the pavement when she's old enough!

Bring them indoors 😆

I think maybe your friend needs help getting him out. I'd turn the conversation round to that.

Suggesting it might "put off potential buyers" is so utterly depressing and snobbish. Who gives a fuck honestly? If potential buyers are put off by a safe, fun activity for kids then I wouldn't want them anyway.

God the crap kids have had to go through over the past 18 months (no school, play dates, parties, seeing family) and some people begrudge them a bit of fun chalking on the pavement. My god.

I live in the sticks so no neighbours to annoy but pavement chalks are great fun. We’ve always got a box on the go. It goes in the rain. I always thought it was quite environmentally friendly as the chalks last ages and you’re not using reams of paper.

Can't stand it

Our neighbours have 2 young kids and they've been doing chalk drawings on the street during lockdown. It's been so quiet here it's quite safe for them to do so. I just love seeing what they draw, even if it's cats with 5 legs. Takes me back to my youth and drawing hopscotch squares on the pavement. Honestly I think it's fine, it's not doing any harm and as others have said, washes off in the rain.

Aside from the chalk (which there is nothing wrong with AT ALL), why doesn’t your friend kick him out !?

He has left once, why doesn’t she give him a months deadline to leave or she will put his stuff on the pavement and change the locks?

Why is she living with her ex who is miserable, who is sticking his nose in the chalking situ when he shouldn’t even be living there !?

Baffled.

It would be a very long time before I got far enough down my list of things to give a sh*t about, before I got to 'kids chalking the pavement outside'.

It is such an inconsequential thing to worry about.

There's nothing wrong with kids having fun and chalking on the pavement, which washes off with the rain.
It's much better for Kids to be out there, socialising with their friends and using their imagination, than to be sat in front of a screen indoors.
Kids have always drawn on pavements, with stones sometimes if there's no chalk available.
Let them enjoy themselves, a bit of chalk harms nothing and no one.

Kids chalking on the pavement is lovely to see, and hopscotch is great exercise.

I had a sneaky go at someone's chalked hopscotch late at night when I didn't think anyone was watching. It was humiliatingly difficult.

Last week some children round here drew chalk willies in the road. Very cerne abbas!

oh well, they can chalk again.
it seems mean to wash it away, what a waste of water
but they can just chalk again.

Gosh. The misery of some people.

It’s been a miserable time for children. Let them chalk away.