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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

First blow struck in car parking wars, do I strike back or live the bigger person?

60 replies

reasonablypricedlove · 02/12/2021 12:34

Okay so I'm really really trying hard to resist this, because my nature is to dive right in but I know, from bitter experience, that sometimes it's better to seethe inside but not get involved!

So to the parking... on my street parking seems to work if everyone parks where they usually do, I think there's some people who live on the next street down who park on our street but obviously they can park where they like, even though it is very annoying.

Anyway, my ND neighbour disturbed the delicate balance yesterday when a workman they had blocked two drives for several hours, and then, when asked to move, took one of the other spaces normally parked in over night by another neighbour, that let to a catastrophic mixing of neighbours cars which seem to have led to one neighbour taking their car off their drive and parking it in front of our house where we normally park and leaving their drive empty. As we were not involved in the parking shenanigans (apart from waiting engine running in the empty space outside their house for about 5 mins whilst the workmen's van was moved so that our other ND neighbour could get off their drive I can only assume that they think it was our workman and are 'punishing us'. I have a car on my drive, that I could easily park anywhere, I could create havoc but I know I shouldn't - devil horns or angel halo folks, what do I do?

OP posts:

HoardingSamphireSaurus · 02/12/2021 12:36

Stop.it.

I live in a similar sounding road and appreciate it can take days for the usual parking patterns to return after a disruption. Just smile, wait, forget it.

colourfulpuddles · 02/12/2021 12:37

What do you do? Nothing You have a drive and you aren’t entitled to park on the street outside your house.

You are overthinking this. They probably didn’t even give you any thought at all.

savvy7 · 02/12/2021 12:38

Stay out of it

0palescent · 02/12/2021 12:40

Stay out of it. Life's too short to worry about parking. The recent murders over parking spaces/cars have really changed my thoughts on these things.

LublinToDublin · 02/12/2021 12:44

I have no idea from your post what the problem is or why you think you are being punished. A neighbour has simply parked outside your house. So what? Why would you take your car off your drive and "create havoc"?

MrsBison · 02/12/2021 12:45

The hell you on about?

Your neighbour parked on the street in front of your house....so what? Unless he blocked or overhanged your drive /dropped kerb, there is no issue.

And either way, maybe your neighbour parked there because they were expecting a visitor later to park in their drive?

TooMuchPaper · 02/12/2021 12:47

Have you nothing better to do?

DoubleTweenQueen · 02/12/2021 12:47

@reasonablypricedlove Your post comes across as quite childish. The only issue seems to have been the workman parking across driveway access. Wherever anyone else parks on the road is irrelevant.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 02/12/2021 12:47

does everyone have a drive?

Bimblybomeyelash · 02/12/2021 12:48

What? Why would you do anything? Why are you even bothered about where other people
park?

MrsBison · 02/12/2021 12:49

@0palescent

Stay out of it. Life's too short to worry about parking. The recent murders over parking spaces/cars have really changed my thoughts on these things.

Tbf though. Its not necessarily about parking, its people taking the piss.

I live 5 mins walk from a school. I have 0 issue with someone parking in front of my house/pavement. Nor even someone stopping in front of my driveway to quickly let someone jump out.

However, I do have an issue with selfish parents who rock up and park their car in front of my driveway for 10 minutes while waiting for their children.

If I need to take my car out it causes problems. Or worse, if i am returning to my house, it causes mayhem, as I live on a main road and the cars behind me start horning whist the selfish parent eventually moves.

And either way, its not something I do when dropping my daughter. I park further away and walk the rest. But some people are just selfish scum i guess.

Twatforaneighbour · 02/12/2021 12:50

Could it be that the neighbour parked outside of your house, could be worried the work vans are coming back and may block them on their drive so they have put their car where they can get out easily? It might not be 'aimed' at you, just the spot outside your house was free?

Original poster

reasonablypricedlove · 02/12/2021 12:50

Well that took a turn! Was a bit lighthearted really, hopefully no-one will be murdered over it. I'm surprised that no-one else would be bothered though if someone deliberately took their car off their drive to park it in front of your house for no reason other than to make your life harder? There are about 10 nearer spaces they could park in front of, and around, their own house if they needed their drive.

OP posts:

Thursdaymiami · 02/12/2021 12:51

Has the street never encountered work vans before!!!!

colourfulpuddles · 02/12/2021 12:51

You have absolutely no idea why they’ve parked where they have.

MrsBison · 02/12/2021 12:52

Do you have a driveway, and have they blocked or overhanged it?

If the answer is they havent, then move on.

MattHancocksSexTape · 02/12/2021 12:52

Not sure it took a turn. It started off as a load of bollocks to begin with, and people realised that straight away.

FOJN · 02/12/2021 12:52

I'm not sure why you'd get involved, are they blocking your driveway?

starfishmummy · 02/12/2021 12:54

Tempting!!

It's street parking here and we often have to park a distance away and I do enjoy a bit of winding up of the ones who are clearly watching out their windows to get a space 2 feet nearer their house!!

brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr · 02/12/2021 12:55

don’t run your engine for 5 minutes if you’re waiting - just wastes fuel & leaves unnecessary emissions

NerrSnerr · 02/12/2021 12:58

Life is far too short for this (and I agree about not leaving engine running- car exhausts are a perfect level to blow fumes into my asthmatic child's face when we're walking past, it's very selfish).

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 02/12/2021 13:02

Maybe you could tell them that they weren’t your work vans and nothing to do with you?

Freddiefox · 02/12/2021 13:07

@reasonablypricedlove

But you don’t know that happened. Ive parked in front of neighbours house because someone parked in front of mine. But by the time the neighbour got home the person in front of mine had gone. I’m not going to move my car until I need it. Maybe he had a visitor that you didn’t see.

Original poster

reasonablypricedlove · 02/12/2021 13:11

Calm down folks, I haven't got involved. It was a lighthearted observation of neighbour politics. The car engine idles when not in forward motion and it wasn't clear what was happening and who was moving where which is why we waited instead of parking somewhere else. I was just amused/slightly frustrated by the neighbour politics and thought I'd share in order to have some interaction and lighthearted banter with some other adults. I stand corrected, feel free to move onto another thread if you don't like this one.

OP posts:

LublinToDublin · 02/12/2021 13:17

I'm loving that you are telling posters to 'calm down' given your OP stating that you have history of bad experiences from diving in and we're trying not to do so and simply seethe inside

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