My neighbor tried to cancel me for using a gas leaf blower at 9am on a Saturday

I was in my driveway in Portland last fall, just trying to clear up some leaves before the rain hit, when Mrs. Patterson from three houses down came stomping over with her phone out recording me. She said I was "destroying the neighborhood's peace" and that she was going to post the video on the Nextdoor app to get me "held accountable." I just shut off the blower, pointed at the pile of wet leaves I'd already bagged up, and asked her if she preferred the sound of a rake scraping concrete for three hours instead. Has anyone else gotten dragged for something this small, or is my street just extra sensitive?

3 comments

3 Comments

kim3731mo ago

Oh man, leaf blowers are basically the nunchucks of suburban warfare in my experience. Your mileage may vary, but I've honestly started feeling like a supervillain every time I fire mine up before noon on a Saturday. If she posts that video, at least you'll have some solid proof of your villain origin story.

patricia_green2119d ago

Totally agree with you. I had the same thing happen last fall with my neighbor. I was just trying to blow a few leaves off my driveway before work, and she came out yelling about the noise at 8am. Made me feel like I was running a leaf blower inside her bedroom or something. Now I just wait until after lunch on weekends to avoid the drama.

markhall1mo ago

Wait, so being outside with a leaf blower at 9am on a Saturday is a crime now? That's wild. My neighbor runs his lawnmower at 7am every Tuesday rain or shine. I think it's just your street being extra sensitive. Portland is full of that stuff unfortunately.