# Am I being an asshat? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 25, 2013, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619 "2013-09-25T03:40:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/21 "2013-09-25T13:44:29Z")
I honestly wish a neighbor would complain to us. My wife had to have this little carp-shaped bell from the Japanese Gardens (despite my trying to discourage its purchase), and had me hang it on the back porch. It has a long piece of thin cardboard hanging on a string that is attached to the bell’s clapper. When the wind blows, it’s one note, dinging over and over and over. Now, with the door closed, we can’t hear it in the house, but it’s possible that any neighbor with an open window could. I’ve always hated chimes and the like (for reasons stated), and think it’s presumptuous and rude to put them up, so I am truly chagrined to have this thing dinging constantly on my own porch. Maybe I could pay one of them to say something. . . ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/22 "2013-09-25T14:45:50Z")
Sneaking on to their property and interfering with their possessions is juvenile and, might I point out, against the law. I vote for being a grownup and politely informing them that it’s bothersome. The idea of bringing them a little gift to welcome to the neighbourhood is an excellent idea. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/23 "2013-09-25T14:46:11Z")
Just attach a heavy weight, so it only dings in a thunderstorm. Consider it an early warning system! ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/24 "2013-09-25T15:10:14Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I honestly wish a neighbor would complain to us. My wife had to have this little carp-shaped bell from the Japanese Gardens (despite my trying to discourage its purchase), and had me hang it on the back porch. It has a long piece of thin cardboard hanging on a string that is attached to the bell’s clapper. When the wind blows, it’s one note, dinging over and over and over. Now, with the door closed, we can’t hear it in the house, but it’s possible that any neighbor with an open window could. I’ve always hated chimes and the like (for reasons stated), and think it’s presumptuous and rude to put them up, so I am truly chagrined to have this thing dinging constantly on my own porch. Maybe I could pay one of them to say something. . . Take it down. When she asks you why, say a neighbor complained while you were mowing the lawn. Or put up with it. Your choice! ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/25 "2013-09-25T15:21:28Z")
I like wind chimes and I have some up. If a neighbor asked me to take them down (or otherwise silence them) I would do it in a second. I would consider the request perfectly reasonable if it was phrased politely. Of course, before I took my wind chimes down, I’d ask my neighbor in return to stop working on cars and having outdoor parties at 2 and 3 am. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/26 "2013-09-25T15:30:00Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > I honestly wish a neighbor would complain to us. My wife had to have this little carp-shaped bell from the Japanese Gardens (despite my trying to discourage its purchase), and had me hang it on the back porch. It has a long piece of thin cardboard hanging on a string that is attached to the bell’s clapper. When the wind blows, it’s one note, dinging over and over and over. Now, with the door closed, we can’t hear it in the house, but it’s possible that any neighbor with an open window could. I’ve always hated chimes and the like (for reasons stated), and think it’s presumptuous and rude to put them up, so I am truly chagrined to have this thing dinging constantly on my own porch. Maybe I could pay one of them to say something. . . This was my first thought: There may be someone in the household who will love you for it! ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/27 "2013-09-25T15:30:32Z")
> [@all\_timestamps\_displayed](#): > > Buy some Girl Guide cookies or some other polite little token of good will, then go over there and politely make your request (you might even give them the cookies first, then explain yourself) like “and look… I really don’t want this to be ‘one of those things’ so I brought you some cookies, just to try to make it a little… you know… less like ‘that’ because it’s not like ‘that’… so do you think you might possibly be able to tie them up at night?” > > Then pretty much anyone cool at all themselves will say yes, of course! (and a significant portion of jerks will be caught unaware and checkmated). > > Then you can even produce that nice piece of twine or ribbon from your pocket (bonus if you get something that looks nice with the wind chimes) you brought in case they needed something. You can act a bit embarassed & sheepish about having brought it, but you had it, so you thought why not, just in case it was needed. > > I’m not saying you owe them cookies for this, or anything, honestly I think you’re more in the “right”… but that’s not the point here. The point is no more noise & no bad neighborly vibes. I knew a Canadian wrote this before I even noticed you said Girl Guides instead of Girl Scouts. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sahirrnee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sahirrnee/32/13937_2.png) [@Sahirrnee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sahirrnee)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/28 "2013-09-25T16:09:51Z")
I love wind chimes and I used to have them. None of my neighbors complained, I don’t even know if they could hear them. Knowing my neighbors they would have told me or just come over and taken the down themselves and left me a note. Then again, on nice days I would come home from work to find a bunch of neighbors sitting on my front porch, and before I put up a fence some of the men would sit on my back porch and drink beer into the middle of the night. If I was nice enough to let them use my porch it would have been a bit rude of them to complain about my chimes. I don’t know if you can still buy them, but the one thing that would drive me crazy at night was those electric bug zappers. One of the neighbors had one of those, I wanted to shoot it. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/29 "2013-09-25T16:38:13Z")
> [@brujaja](#): > > Neighbors have a new windchime-thing on their back porch. I stopped after reading this line. No, you’re not being an asshat. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2013, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619/30 "2013-09-25T16:52:30Z")
> [@all\_timestamps\_displayed](#): > > Buy some Girl Guide cookies or some other polite little token of good will, then go over there and politely make your request (you might even give them the cookies first, then explain yourself) like “and look… I really don’t want this to be ‘one of those things’ so I brought you some cookies, just to try to make it a little… you know… less like ‘that’ because it’s not like ‘that’… so do you think you might possibly be able to tie them up at night?” > > Then pretty much anyone cool at all themselves will say yes, of course! (and a significant portion of jerks will be caught unaware and checkmated). > > Then you can even produce that nice piece of twine or ribbon from your pocket (bonus if you get something that looks nice with the wind chimes) you brought in case they needed something. You can act a bit embarassed & sheepish about having brought it, but you had it, so you thought why not, just in case it was needed. > > I’m not saying you owe them cookies for this, or anything, honestly I think you’re more in the “right”… but that’s not the point here. The point is no more noise & no bad neighborly vibes. This is good advice. I’m going to try to remember that for if I ever have any issues with neighbors. Much less awkward than just asking them to do something for you. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/am-i-being-an-asshat/669619.md?page=1)