My Crazy Neighbor Lady went into the hospital on Monday, so I’m picking up her mail (and newspapers). I’m not a relative, I have one of her kid’s phone numbers and am watching out for the screaming bint’s house and stuff.
I’ve picked up mail for neighbors before, but that was because they were on vacation, so I just tossed everything in a pile and delivered it when they got home.
Now, I feel obligated to go through CNL’s mail so I can call the family when I see a bill that needs to be paid. I know that I’m doing a good thing, but it makes me feel sleezy. Of course, I won’t open anything, I’m just looking at the envelopes. I have CNL’s bank statement. CNL also gets a lot of credit card offers
It just feels wrong for me to have that sort of info in my hands.
Her kids have said that they are going to get her mail forwarded to them, but its been 5 days and CNL’s mail keeps coming.
I just feel so sleezy when I sort her mail. Am I weird?
Address changes can take as long as two weeks.
You aren’t being sleezy, you’re being neighborly. Would you feel the same if it was someone you liked and socialized with?
I’ve been getting my folk’s mail since they are living mostly in their bach (small holiday home, often at the beach, but theirs is in the country).
Their neighbour (who feels weird about collecting their mail when they have family so close, so I get to do it) went off on holiday and I got to collect her mail too.
Man, that’s a whole order of oddness above getting Mum and Dad’s stuff. Like you, I sorted out the crap and kept the important things. I kept a lot of stuff for her that I’d chuck out for me or my folks, just in case *she *thought it was important.
Well, if you’re not comfortable with it, then don’t do it. Put it all in a box and let them come get it. Bills very rarely need to be attended to in less than 30 days.
But yes, it does make sense, and you’re not unusual for feeling like you’re invading. But you’re doing a good thing, and if you can get over your feeling of squick, know that you’re helping her family a lot right now. They’ve got a lot to deal with, and sorting Mom’s junk mail is one less thing to do. If it was purplehorseshoe, you’d help, right?
I’ve been bringing in my clients mail for over 15 years and I still feel weird about it.
Even worse is when a client asks me to look for something and open it for them.
I don’t need to know their bank balance or that they are going to court.
I always ask them to leave cleaning supplies out, I don’t like going through cabinets and closets looking for things.
If they know I’m going to have to look under the bed for the kitty, is it too much to ask that they hide the ‘adult toys’?
I think that there is something very special about the fact that respect for other people’s privacy is so deeply ingrained in you, that even though you are doing something nice, necessary and requested for your neighbour, you still feel a twinge about doing it.
My neighbour was away for a few months and I started collecting his mail and cleaning the bundles of flyers off his porch. I didn’t mind grabbing it all and throwing it in a bag for him, but I think I would have felt less comfortable having to sort it and pitch the junk.
Validation is so sweet, thanks! I honestly don’t think I’d feel more comfortable if I was doing this for a close friend, though. When my sweetie was in the hospital, I didn’t like going through his mail. We won’t even discuss my feelings about going through his email, even though he was right there. (He was so drugged up that he couldn’t read, and wanted me to read it to him.)
I just laughed so loud that Bill stopped snoring for a couple of seconds.
TreacherousCretin, I don’t know where or when “bint” was added to my vocabulary, I’ve been using it for years. Its a perfectly cromulent word that most people understand is mildly offensive. I probably learned it when I was in the military.
Thanks for digging up that post Cheez_Whia, I’d almost forgotten about that. The teenagers haven’t backed into anything for a long time, in case anyone is interested.
Shakes, almost every neighborhood has a CNL. I just happen to live next door to ours. I could tell so many stories about her. We live in a small rural neighborhood. Our roads are paved, but there is not a lot of traffic, so the youngsters (4 and 6 years old) ride their bikes in the street and do such things as laugh and shout. CNL is constantly outside screeching at them.
I find the kite eating tree across the street to be amusing. CNL called the police on the youngsters because they were vandalizing the tree and littering when the kids got their 4th kite stuck in it.
I’m going to continue to sort CNL’s mail. I know that I’m helping her kids, they have a lot on their plate right now. It only takes a few seconds to put the obvious junk on the bottom of the stack and the important looking stuff on top.
I just thought that my discomfort was weird. Now I know that it isn’t
I know. I mentioned it only because I’ve only heard/seen the word once before, in Monty Python and The Holy Grail ("…some moistened bint…").
Not counting myself, of course. It’s a great word and I’ve used it a few times over the years, jokingly, with zero effect.
That made me picture this. (And I’ve never used online photo storage before, so let me know if you need a password or something to log in. I’ll find a way to fix it.)
Its such a great word, the meltdown that happened over it was so strange. OK, I can’t figure out how to quote a single post…can someone help me out, please? #190 10-13-2012, 09:15 PM
Naive Evian
BANNED Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 101
Bint is an offensive, misogynist term. I am not surprised to see a biker use it. I am glad you got hit. Take some your meth money and put it toward a new custom paint job. Or better yet, sell the bike, get a Prius, and start treating with the respect they deserve.
Oh heck, this thread has just reminded me that I need to take her garbage can to the street.
Oh heck. CNL has her trash can locked up. I guess I’m going to have to call her kids tomorrow. CNL’s truck is in the yard, but her trash can is behind a locked gate. The neighbors on the other side will probably not be happy, I’ll talk to them as well.
