To feel almost murderous rage at my inconsiderate neighbours

[Playingvideogames]

I live in Devon. I’m not joking when I say it’s been raining solidly (and I mean solidly) for 45 days now. We are the worst hit area in the country, massively flooded, haven’t seen the light of day really since Christmas. It’s been bloody awful.

Today I wake up to a gorgeous blue sky and think… WASHING!!! And everyone on the estate clearly has the same idea - lots of full washing lines everywhere. Our first chance to dry clothes outside since October!

Not only that but twice a year or so I wash all my sofa cushion covers. They’re stiff fabric so it takes 3 loads, but I finally got them all done by 2pm and popped out.

I’ve just come back and some arsehole a couple of houses away has only gone and lit a massive bloody bonfire. Fucking why???? All my washing is ruined and stinks, including the sofa cushions. My neighbours must feel similarly. The first beautiful day in months, and outside reeks and is making my eyes water.

AIBU to think while it’s not illegal (as no doubt I will be told!) this is the height of arseholery, and who the fuck has a bonfire when it isn’t November 5th???

Arghhhhh

YABU. Your neighbour was waiting for it to stop raining so they could have a bonfire. What’s wrong with that?

Thankfully a local (slightly scary) man has gone berserk about it on our community facebook group, so saved me the bother of cowardly posting anonymously!

This. What were they thinking? Bonfires of dried prunings in September or October are reasonable, but in February ! Why would you?

Why does anyone need a bonfire? They’re antisocial - they stink, they prevent people from hanging out washing or opening their windows. If you’ve got stuff to dispose of take it to our (1 mile away) tip. It’s really selfish.

There’s a time and place for it (Bonfire Night and campsites mainly), a crowded residential estate with back to back gardens on the first ‘drying’ day in weeks isn’t it.

Haha I feel you, we have farms around us and whenever the weather gets nice and we open the windows and put the washing out someone starts burning. In fact today it’s a fine dry day so I thought I’d go for a run locally and of course someone is burning so I spent the run breathing in smoke - healthy!

There’s no excuse - ever - to burn anything in your back garden. Selfish cunts do it around my way regularly though. They seem to think they’ve some sort inalienable right to do it too - the way they carry on about it on the local Facebook page, defending their actions, reminds me of zealous American gun owners protecting their right to bear arms (and fuck everyone else).

Get on to The Council, as its 'trade waste' the rules may be stricter

Dial 999 and ask for Fire

I love a bonfire 🔥 (it’s not be btw).

One of my neighbours loves a fire, especially on a very calm summer afternoon when they have their own washing out in their garden 🤨🤨. I don’t mind a bonfire but I think they should only be allowed after dark and only for enjoyment purposes. Regular waste can be taken to the tip to serve a purpose as compost instead of wasted, and god knows what is released when rubbish, treated wood etc. is burned

Also in Devon - it's been a beautiful day hasn't it?

Although we have a tumble drier we much prefer to dry laundry outside as a/ it smells better & b/ it's free.

Many of our neighbours had washing on lines today & were out in their gardens doing outside jobs enjoying the sunshine - as did DH & me.

I'd be freaking fuming if a neighbour lit a bonfire on the first fine day in months & would be plotting my revenge.

I know some of my neighbours would have taken direct action & knocked on his door to complain or gone over to his house en-masse with buckets of water & doused the fire out. There are some feisty old ladies living near me & I wouldn't like to get on the wrong side of them. 😡😂

https://www.gov.uk/garden-bonfires-rules

Ok, I think that’s a bit extreme. Using your garden incinerator on dull, overcast evenings, when any washing would be in, is absolutely fine. Incinerators are ubiquitous and sold everywhere - they’re widely accepted as garden usage. Using them on sunny mornings or afternoons when everyone needs to dry their washing, definitely makes you a dick. I’d always check with surrounding neighbours before lighting one, to make sure that they don’t have plans to sit out in their gardens as well. But that’s because I’m normal, not at the extremes of the issue 😂

Our new neighbours today on also our first sunny day have started burning their garden waste. Yay…

😡

My mum is very calm, never shouted at us as kids, always reasoned with us etc

once a similar thing happened to us from a garden in another street that backed into ours. She drove round to the house and politely requested the man didn’t burn plastic and green stuff. We were having a massive outdoor family gathering for a communion or christening or something.

the guy was really rude to her, unnecessarily rude and perhaps even said something unkind about our ethnic background. This was the 1980s. She went to Homebase and bought a hose extension and jumped over the fence with it. Massive long gardens, the guy had gone inside and left the bonfire. He didn’t have a clue what was going on. The water pressure was pretty crap so she was throwing buckets of sand from my sandpit over it. I was about 7 years old.

I’ve never seen her lose her sh&t like that!! But that’s what bonfire smoke does to people!!!

Are you reading the room? People want to dry their laundry outside in the fresh air so that it would come in smelling fresh.

The neighbour could have made their bonfire after it got dark & all laundry inside. 🙄

😂😂😂

Good for your mum!

We like to have our bonfires when it is light and sunny, not dark and cold. Can’t beat a lovely bonfire on a winters day, very therapeutic

I scent a troll or wind-up merchant here. 🤔

Luckily, we have a few acres of land and no neighbours to infuriate.

the area I live in is smoke free - so no-one lights a bonfire

They affect people's breathing especially those with asthma, and they affect numerous people in the area as it smells, it's a selfish act. Take your stuff to the tip and stop polluting the atmosphere.

Oh I feel you OP. I have neighbours like this, they regularly burn rubbish and it absolutely stinks as not wood. I don’t dry my washing outside so not that bothered but I fully get your frustration, something about how you write the op made me giggle it’s so relatable. The sofa covers in particular! What a pain to have to re wash

like you said. You are not unreasonable but they are not breaking the law so what can you do

Isn’t the standard MN response to move to a detached house with no neighbours if you don’t like the way your neighbours behave?