"For the last 6 years I’ve been the target of the children of the
neighborhood. I don’t really understand why. They call me freak lady and throw things at my house. It started harmlessly enough, lunch leftovers, snow balls, mud. Then it was snowballs and I started to go out and tell them not to do that, that it could result in broken windows. So I guess I inspired them because the aim got more deliberately at my windows and then
it was rocks, spark plugs, wrench sockets.
"Well by then I was calling the police who would come out and be patronizing with the freak lady and do nothing. As in childhood the advice I keep getting is either to ignore it or get violent. Well violence is anathema to me, I won’t go there, not for anything.
"I know from childhood that ignoring them means they up the ante until it’s destructive enough you CANT ignore them. So I put up acrylic on all the windows. When they smashed one acrylic sheet I bought a heavier one. Then I put up a high fence after finally
saving enough, last summer, hoping it would cut down on my attractiveness. Then it was a molotov cocktail thrown at my house shortly after 9/11 and the police finally realized this was serious. I put horrible ugly metal grates on my windows that keep me from opening the windows. It’s awful. I hoped it was over and soon I could take the grates off and live normal again… besides, the little fu!!rs were finally getting older and would have more important things to do, right?
"So today there’s thumps on the side of my house again. I look out and watch these 3 girls throwing snow lumps at my house as if it’s a perfectly normal thing to do. I go out. “Why are you doing that?” They had no answer. I tried to keep my tone unthreatening and kept asking for a reason. The taller girl seemed to mumble something, it might have been “just wanted to meet you” or “just fun to …something” I don’t know for sure. I asked her to repeat it and she said she didn’t say anything. I just couldn’t get anywhere and finally told them it’s not cool to throw crap at my house. I pointed to the metal grates and said “This is what it means to me, I hate those grates, I had a firebomb thrown at my house, I don’t want to be mean and get you in trouble, I just want to be left alone!”
"I went back in and looked out. They kept standing there! I went back out and told them to move on. I watched and they started walking, holding more snow lumps and looking back to see me at the window and throw the lumps instead of at my house at the sidewalk.
"It was extremely weird. I finally called the police to ask exactly what am I supposed to do. They said just call them, every time. I don’t have much faith in that.
"WHAT am I supposed to do? This is a frightening thing. It’s terrorism and I am being more and more tightly isolated into my house and yard trying to avoid being seen and noticed and wanting to just be forgotten. This is a whole new generation though. They hand it down from generation to generation and I can’t afford a house in any other neighborhood except worse ones.
“I don’t want to keep living like this. I’m 38 years old, this crap was supposed to be over in high school. I just want to live my life quietly, I’d like to be a help and a member of the community, not some scared lady hiding behind grated windows and a tall fence. I want it OVER. I don’t want any advice that involves hurting them. I can’t identify them because of my face blindness and the fact that I don’t know any of the families in this neighborhood. Because of my autism I can’t go get socially involved in the community. I tried that my first year and it may well have been the cause of all this. I dont’ socialize correctly, I say all the wrong things and come off looking like a flake,
freak, weirdo or psycho. This is a very real problem that has stopped me from even keeping a job. I am a gentle caring person, I’m fun, I’m interesting, I don’t deserve this.”
This from an email (basically the entire email) from someone who’s on my bullying support list (support for people who are survivors, or current sufferers of, bullying). My first thought was to get a big dog, but evidently this woman (she’s identified herself as such previously, I believe) doesn’t have enough of a yard for one.
The only thing else I can think of is to get rid of everything she has protecting the house, because obviously the kids think of it as a sort of challenge. Anyone got some good advice for her? Thanks in advance:)
