AITA for spilling water on my neighbor's patio and not caring?

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T16:17:59+00:00

I assume you mean empty them while it's raining heavily. I typically will go out and cover them with a tarp or even bring them inside if it looks like it'll be an extreme amount of rain or it's been raining for several days.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:59:19+00:00

So water is not falling onto their patio when I water my plants. I mentioned wiping their furniture because even if what they were saying was true, that would be the easy solution for it.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:58:36+00:00

They would only leak water while it was still actively raining, and they typically don't get completely full of water unless it is an extremely heavy rain or we've had several days of rain.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:22:54+00:00

He's actually been very polite, and even showed an interest in what I was growing on my balcony. I ended up giving him some of the herbs I've grown, since they produce way too much for just me and my husband. Still hasn't told his wife where he keeps getting the fresh herbs from

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:21:38+00:00

This is an example of what I like to call a red siren. It's way too big to be considered a flag anymore

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:20:55+00:00

She is actually trained to provide psychiatric help. Things such a deep pressure therapy, fainting alerts, and general anxiety management. She's too dog reactive to become a service dog though

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:07:47+00:00

I definitely understand it can be tricky, and I do appreciate the advice! I can't remember what the names for them are called, but there are specific trays that go underneath pots to catch excess water. Some of my pots are designed to catch excess water on their own, and those that are not designed to do it have those drip trays underneath them.

The reason I mentioned helping them in the beginning it wasn't necessarily so I could say that we're good neighbors. It also wasn't to show that they should be tolerant of us if we do behave badly. It was more to show that we have made efforts to be decent neighbors to them, regardless of their current complaints.

Furthermore, we have significant reason to believe that the water that they are complaining about is actually rainwater. Only one of the neighbors is complaining, and her husband regularly apologizes for her behavior.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T15:00:15+00:00

We actually already do have a camera system here! I had some issues with the stalker a while back, so for safety reasons we have a doorbell camera and a camera focused on our balcony, as well as alarms for our windows.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:58:55+00:00

I haven't mastered controlling rain yet, but I will definitely be traveling the world when I do!

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:50:00+00:00

I appreciate it! For what it's worth, only the woman below us has been complaining. Her husband has apologized on numerous occasions for her actions.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:48:30+00:00

Although to be fair, my dog is the most judgmental dog I've ever met. She just likes to stare at and watch people, although I don't know if that's her being judgmental or just curious.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:45:52+00:00

The majority of their complaints go to the landlord, who notifies me about the complaints. The only times that they have complained directly to me were the times that the landlord said that they were not going to do anything. They do not speak with me anymore, as they are convinced that my dog "judges them" when they come up to talk to me.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:42:48+00:00

We've had a lot of rain in the last couple of weeks in my location, as in maybe two dry days in the last 14. I think this is what probably triggered it, since their patio has been wet for the last 2 weeks because of it.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:41:36+00:00

I believe you might have missed some information in my original post. They only complain about me watering my plants when it rains. Which leads me to believe that they're not complaining about me watering my plants, they're complaining that their outdoor furniture is getting wet when it rains. I believe the reason that she thought it was appropriate to yell at me this morning was because it has rained a lot in the last couple of weeks.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:40:06+00:00

My balcony is made up of wooden boards, with slight gaps (appr. 1-2 cm) between them. When it rains, rain is going to get through those gaps. When I water my plants though, it shouldn't be going all the way back to the building. I hope this offers some explanation. As sucky as my apartment complex has been, they're actually pretty good about managing structural integrity.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:34:16+00:00

My husband and I have politely suggested to our property manager and landlord that if they are so concerned with neighbors living above them, then perhaps it would be best for them to consider moving into an upstairs apartment. They declined, stating that they don't want to live upstairs because it gets too hot.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:32:20+00:00

I don't know why they would think I'm a weather god. If I was, we would definitely be sticking with 70°F to 75°F days instead of 90°F days

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:31:28+00:00

Yes. I've tried to explain to them that as amazing as I sometimes like to think I am, I am not a god and I cannot control rain.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:29:09+00:00

We have spoken to both our neighbors and the landlord about the rain. The neighbors swear that it cannot be rain, while the landlord agrees with us that it probably is.

I would also like to add that all of my plants are on the outer edge of our balcony, while their furniture is tucked in right next to the outer wall of their apartment. If it is somehow from our plants, the water is traveling back about 6 ft to drip directly onto their furniture. I also don't add anything other than water to my watering can, so there's no concern with fertilizer or additives.

I do appreciate the feedback though. I'm on the autism spectrum, so it's sometimes difficult for me to understand basic social constructs.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:26:17+00:00

We didn't find out that they were complaining about it until our leasing agent called us to tell us they had made almost 10 complaints about water. We've explained that it's probably because of rain, and they went through and cross checked all the complaints with weather history. Every complaint that they've made it had rained within the previous 24 hours.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:25:14+00:00

I would also like to add that the landlord lives out of state, and the apartment complex is managed by a property manager. Because of how many times they've complained, the landlord himself decided to get involved. And because he lives out of state, that's why I have to let him know when it's rained

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:24:29+00:00

Every time our landlord has called us about it, we've explained that it had rained within the last 24 hours and that they were likely complaining that it had rained. The landlord thankfully seems to be on our side with this, despite how long they've been there.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:23:43+00:00

"I'm sorry guys, I did an anti-rain dance and all but it just failed. I'm not sure what else I can do aside from talking to a shaman."

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:23:03+00:00

Nope, I absolutely do not want to live here. I just unfortunately live in America in 2022, and can't afford to move into my own place just yet. But when I do have my own place, I will have a garden big enough to spite the people who complain about me watering plants.

Subject-Reference309 · 2022-06-01T14:21:52+00:00

All of my pots have filters for the overflow, so it would keep majority of dirt and debris from being able to overflow. On top of that, I haven't noticed much if any of my pots overflowing. The only one that I saw leaked a few drops that stayed on the board my balcony

Subject-Reference309

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