Overheard over the fence (Antimustachian neighbours)

[TheFrenchCat]

In my neighborhood Facebook group, a member just posted to ask whoever has a HS kid who is driving a Tesla super fast in the neighborhood to please slow down.  Dang this hood has gotten boughie since I moved in here 4 years ago.  A HS driving a Tesla shakes head.

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

Also, I understand the poster very well.  I can't stand the people who drive super fast in our neighborhood.  They'll go 40-45 MPH or so in a 25 zone, even though the street is well known for bikers and walkers.  Ugh.

[dragoncar]

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

[Chaplin]

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

The charging cable has excellent heft.

[dragoncar]

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

The charging cable has excellent heft.

I’m just waiting for the feature where I can tell the car to bring them to Palm Springs

[Freedomin5]

I bumped into my ayi sitting in the lobby after cleaning our apartment this afternoon. She was waiting to go over to her “full-time” family, for whom she works M-F 7:00-6:00. Today is Sunday. When I asked her why she wasn’t going home, she said that her other family needed her to stay over this weekend. The reason? Dad is on a business trip and mom can’t handle taking care of her two-year-old by herself for two nights.

[Scotts]

I bumped into my ayi sitting in the lobby after cleaning our apartment this afternoon. She was waiting to go over to her “full-time” family, for whom she works M-F 7:00-6:00. Today is Sunday. When I asked her why she wasn’t going home, she said that her other family needed her to stay over this weekend. The reason? Dad is on a business trip and mom can’t handle taking care of her two-year-old by herself for two nights.

That's just sad.

[BuffaloStache]

...mom can’t handle taking care of her two-year-old by herself for two nights.

I was trying to give the benefit of the doubt, and first read this as "two (as in 2x), one year olds". But then I re-read.
I'm not saying parenting is easy, but...

[YttriumNitrate]

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

Additionally, if you figure that your kid is going to crash the car, a Tesla is one of the safer ones to do it in.

[Freedomin5]

...mom can’t handle taking care of her two-year-old by herself for two nights.

I was trying to give the benefit of the doubt, and first read this as "two (as in 2x), one year olds". But then I re-read.
I'm not saying parenting is easy, but...

We bumped into mom and kid in the grassy area in our complex. They were having a picnic. She messaged ayi to bring down dinner. Lest you think it was some fancy picnic hamper, let me disabuse you of that notion. Mom had ordered a pizza, and she needed ayi to warm up slices of pizza and bring them down. She also needed ayi to wash fruit and bring that down. And that’s why ayi left work late that night...because it’s so difficult to take care of a toddler and prep dinner.

[SwordGuy]

...mom can’t handle taking care of her two-year-old by herself for two nights.

I was trying to give the benefit of the doubt, and first read this as "two (as in 2x), one year olds". But then I re-read.
I'm not saying parenting is easy, but...

We bumped into mom and kid in the grassy area in our complex. They were having a picnic. She messaged ayi to bring down dinner. Lest you think it was some fancy picnic hamper, let me disabuse you of that notion. Mom had ordered a pizza, and she needed ayi to warm up slices of pizza and bring them down. She also needed ayi to wash fruit and bring that down. And that’s why ayi left work late that night...because it’s so difficult to take care of a toddler and prep dinner.

20 to one that same woman is against raising the minimum wage for "unskilled" labor...

[Freedomin5]

...mom can’t handle taking care of her two-year-old by herself for two nights.

I was trying to give the benefit of the doubt, and first read this as "two (as in 2x), one year olds". But then I re-read.
I'm not saying parenting is easy, but...

We bumped into mom and kid in the grassy area in our complex. They were having a picnic. She messaged ayi to bring down dinner. Lest you think it was some fancy picnic hamper, let me disabuse you of that notion. Mom had ordered a pizza, and she needed ayi to warm up slices of pizza and bring them down. She also needed ayi to wash fruit and bring that down. And that’s why ayi left work late that night...because it’s so difficult to take care of a toddler and prep dinner.

20 to one that same woman is against raising the minimum wage for "unskilled" labor...

Well, she needs the money to dry clean the picnic blanket. Yes, the picnic blanket that you put on the ground and sit on. That surprised me. It’s amazing how people come up with ways to spend money.

[Fomerly known as something]

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

Additionally, if you figure that your kid is going to crash the car, a Tesla is one of the safer ones to do it in.

Hmm, speed limits, how could one account for the neighborhood speed limit of 25 and the 55 mph road between it and the school?

[dragoncar]

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

Additionally, if you figure that your kid is going to crash the car, a Tesla is one of the safer ones to do it in.

Hmm, speed limits, how could one account for the neighborhood speed limit of 25 and the 55 mph road between it and the school?

I don’t know if this is an actual feature, but mapping systems have pretty accurate information these days.  Every time I get directions it displays the correct speed limit.

[zolotiyeruki]

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

Additionally, if you figure that your kid is going to crash the car, a Tesla is one of the safer ones to do it in.

Hmm, speed limits, how could one account for the neighborhood speed limit of 25 and the 55 mph road between it and the school?

I don’t know if this is an actual feature, but mapping systems have pretty accurate information these days.  Every time I get directions it displays the correct speed limit.

DW and I went car shopping just a couple days ago, and (depending on the model) the cameras in the car will actually pick up speed limit signs and display it on the dash.

[dragoncar]

I can't imagine letting a high schooler drive a Tesla, that's crazy.

I might, since you can set limits on speed and acceleration via computer as well as review the dashcam on suspicious events (hard braking events, etc.).  The only downside is Tesla doesn't come with jumper cables with which to beat them when they get out of line.

Additionally, if you figure that your kid is going to crash the car, a Tesla is one of the safer ones to do it in.

Hmm, speed limits, how could one account for the neighborhood speed limit of 25 and the 55 mph road between it and the school?

I don’t know if this is an actual feature, but mapping systems have pretty accurate information these days.  Every time I get directions it displays the correct speed limit.

DW and I went car shopping just a couple days ago, and (depending on the model) the cameras in the car will actually pick up speed limit signs and display it on the dash.

Is it like a photo of the sign?  Or is it just from the mapping software?

[zolotiyeruki]

Hmm, speed limits, how could one account for the neighborhood speed limit of 25 and the 55 mph road between it and the school?

I don’t know if this is an actual feature, but mapping systems have pretty accurate information these days.  Every time I get directions it displays the correct speed limit.

DW and I went car shopping just a couple days ago, and (depending on the model) the cameras in the car will actually pick up speed limit signs and display it on the dash.

Is it like a photo of the sign?  Or is it just from the mapping software?

There's a camera in the car which detects speed limit signs, does image recognition, and figures out what the sign said.

[AlanStache]

There's a camera in the car which detects speed limit signs, does image recognition, and figures out what the sign said.

I wonder can any of this be used in court to fight a speeding ticket?  if a log is kept of the car speed and posted limits and these disagree with what the cop says you were doing.  But I remember that the major car manufacturers are VERY reluctant to give anyone read access a cars internal data.  But would seem a good selling point. 

Edit: might not be enough, I am told there is a road around here that officially decreases the speed limit before the sign.  Boss supposedly got hit with this and tried to fight in court; judge "it is your job to know the speed limit on the roads you drive on - the signs are only for your convenience".  yeah is just a cash grab by a small town, that only serves to undermine any trust and respect for law enforcement and the judicial system.

[RWD]

Edit: might not be enough, I am told there is a road around here that officially decreases the speed limit before the sign.  Boss supposedly got hit with this and tried to fight in court; judge "it is your job to know the speed limit on the roads you drive on - the signs are only for your convenience".  yeah is just a cash grab by a small town, that only serves to undermine any trust and respect for law enforcement and the judicial system.

This makes me very upset. If your limits aren't documented by the signs then they aren't documented.

[Ann]

This is a house in our neighborhood.   It's been like this long before we found the neighborhood 16 months ago.   It's better now than when we first saw it, at that point the entire front porch across the front of the house was filled with packages.  The same packages stay there for awhile.

I have no idea whether the house is so chock full of hoarded stuff that it takes them awhile to find room, or what.

Apparently it's not a criminal enterprise, at least according to the president of the voluntary HOA for the neighborhood.

I just have to say that it’s nice your neighborhood doesn’t have the theft problem I hear about around my neck of the woods.  If your neighbors leave out packages that long, and least that probably means they’re not getting stolen.  Off topic, but I was impressed

[Dicey]

Gotta get this out somewhere, this seems like a good place.

There are existing drainage problems from our neighbor's house to ours (on their side) that they refuse to address. When we put in our new paver driveway (ourselves, in the middle of summer), we offered to tie them in to our drainage on the other side of the house, which is more than adequate and most importantly, downhill. We would have charged them nothing for crossing our property, because it would have been easy after the existing concrete driveway was torn out. They declined.

This very small family eats out virtually every night, except when they order in. Over the past few months, we've noticed various Kitchen Renovation Company vehicles visiting their house. Fast forward to when we returned from a two-week vacation. There is a full gut kitchen renovation going on. For people who don't cook. Facepalm.

It gets better: DH is familiar with the contractor who's doing the work. DH knows the dude's license is expired, which means he has no Worker's Compensation Insurance for the two workers who are there every day. DH checked with the city. Turns out the homeowners got their own building permit, not the contractor (because duh, he can't since his license is expired). I wonder if they realize why he wanted them to get their own permit and that it's their ass on the line if anyone gets hurt while building the kitchen they're not going to actually cook in? Head:Desk.

MYOB is the correct answer, but I appreciate having this space to vent. Thank you.

[jeninco]

Gotta get this out somewhere, this seems like a good place.

There are existing drainage problems from our neighbor's house to ours (on their side) that they refuse to address. When we put in our new paver driveway (ourselves, in the middle of summer), we offered to tie them in to our drainage on the other side of the house, which is more than adequate and most importantly, downhill. We would have charged them nothing for crossing our property, because it would have been easy after the existing concrete driveway was torn out. They declined.

This very small family eats out virtually every night, except when they order in. Over the past few months, we've noticed various Kitchen Renovation Company vehicles visiting their house. Fast forward to when we returned from a two-week vacation. There is a full gut kitchen renovation going on. For people who don't cook. Facepalm.

It gets better: DH is familiar with the contractor who's doing the work. DH knows the dude's license is expired, which means he has no Worker's Compensation Insurance for the two workers who are there every day. DH checked with the city. Turns out the homeowners got their own building permit, not the contractor (because duh, he can't since his license is expired). I wonder if they realize why he wanted them to get their own permit and that it's their ass on the line if anyone gets hurt while building the kitchen they're not going to actually cook in? Head:Desk.

MYOB is the correct answer, but I appreciate having this space to vent. Thank you.

Honey shucking Fit, batman, that's ... a lot. Things like that make me appreciate my neighbors, some of whom are uber-mustachian (without calling it that) and some of whom are merely reasonable neighbors.

[dragoncar]

It gets better: DH is familiar with the contractor who's doing the work. DH knows the dude's license is expired, which means he has no Worker's Compensation Insurance for the two workers who are there every day. DH checked with the city. Turns out the homeowners got their own building permit, not the contractor (because duh, he can't since his license is expired). I wonder if they realize why he wanted them to get their own permit and that it's their ass on the line if anyone gets hurt while building the kitchen they're not going to actually cook in? Head:Desk.

MYOB is the correct answer, but I appreciate having this space to vent. Thank you.

I thought it was common practice for contractors to make homeowners handle the permits.  Is this a red flag?  I’ve heard it quite a few times although I’m yet to hire my own contractor

[SwordGuy]

In my area it would be a red flag.   

[AMandM]

In my area the permitting process is such a headache that it's a reason all its own for hiring work out. No way would I hire a contractor who wanted me to pull the permits (plural--separate permits for structure, electric, and plumbing) myself.

[Dicey]

Update: DH met the contractor doing the job next door, and they chatted for quite a while. Turns out the guy is doing the job for $85/hour, plus materials. So maybe the homeowners decided to save themselves $85/hour by getting their own permits? Or maybe the guy's crafty and suggested they do it to save some bucks, so he wouldn't have to disclose that his license is not current? DH did not ask him about that, but the state's website is typically pretty accurate.

[TomTX]

In my area it would be a red flag.   

++

[zolotiyeruki]

FWIW, a lot of people around here choose not to get a permit, not out of a desire to cut corners or get away with shoddy work, but rather to avoid the attention from the local tax assessor.  As we live in an area with high property tax rates, spending a chunk of money to improve your house gets rewarded with the obligation to pay more in taxes.

[Chris22]

FWIW, a lot of people around here choose not to get a permit, not out of a desire to cut corners or get away with shoddy work, but rather to avoid the attention from the local tax assessor.  As we live in an area with high property tax rates, spending a chunk of money to improve your house gets rewarded with the obligation to pay more in taxes.

Plus scope creep. Having an inspector in your home around here is an invitation for him to find all sort of other “problems” that must be “fixed” because you’re upgrading your house anyways. My home is 100 years old with at least two major renovations I’m aware of, I’m sure that a good inspector could find dozens of things that “need” to be fixed that would cost me tons of money over what I planned to spend on the initial project.

Also, last time I looked into pulling a permit (for a basement remodel) I was told the village likely wouldn’t let me be my own electrician, etc. All I was doing was adding a few lights and outlets, I don’t need to pay a $$$ electrician for that just because the village wants me to. Fuck them.

[Dicey]

FWIW, a lot of people around here choose not to get a permit, not out of a desire to cut corners or get away with shoddy work, but rather to avoid the attention from the local tax assessor.  As we live in an area with high property tax rates, spending a chunk of money to improve your house gets rewarded with the obligation to pay more in taxes.

Yes, but when you know nothing about the building process, if you take that risk, you get what you get.

The folks I mentioned know nothing about using a kitchen, let alone building one. And oh, yes, they are clearly experiencing scope creep, but it's hard not to.

[Dave1442397]

Update: DH met the contractor doing the job next door, and they chatted for quite a while. Turns out the guy is doing the job for $85/hour, plus materials.

Hmm, so how much did that conversation cost the homeowners?  I think I'd rather have a set price :)

[Dicey]

Update: DH met the contractor doing the job next door, and they chatted for quite a while. Turns out the guy is doing the job for $85/hour, plus materials.

Hmm, so how much did that conversation cost the homeowners?  I think I'd rather have a set price :)

DH works at the end of our street, so his friends often stop by on their way home from work if he's out front. (There are different schedules.) That's who I thought he was talking to, so I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention. They were out chatting at the end of our driveway for at lea$t an hour.

Also, in my limited experience, the Time & Materials guys tend not to be fond of details, particularly doing things like comprehensive bids. Not a trait i want in a guy who's doing my kitchen.

[Catbert]

FWIW, a lot of people around here choose not to get a permit, not out of a desire to cut corners or get away with shoddy work, but rather to avoid the attention from the local tax assessor.  As we live in an area with high property tax rates, spending a chunk of money to improve your house gets rewarded with the obligation to pay more in taxes.

Plus scope creep. Having an inspector in your home around here is an invitation for him to find all sort of other “problems” that must be “fixed” because you’re upgrading your house anyways. My home is 100 years old with at least two major renovations I’m aware of, I’m sure that a good inspector could find dozens of things that “need” to be fixed that would cost me tons of money over what I planned to spend on the initial project.

Also, last time I looked into pulling a permit (for a basement remodel) I was told the village likely wouldn’t let me be my own electrician, etc. All I was doing was adding a few lights and outlets, I don’t need to pay a $$$ electrician for that just because the village wants me to. Fuck them.

Yep, on wanting to avoid the attention of the building department.  Our new neighbor at our vacation condo bought one in original 1970s condition and preceeded to update pretty much everything.  Wasn't planning on pulling permits/get inspections except for a small job to pipe natural gas to the courtyard for a BBQ.  I mean who wants to take a chance on gas pipes! Inspector noticed all the rest of the reno going on.  Not sure how much time and money spent on getting permits for the rest.

The funny part of the story involved windows.  He was caught between a rock and a hard place (aka HOA and City).  He was replacing 1970s single pane sliding glass doors with dual pane, energy efficient windows.  The HOA wanted windows that looked like the windows they were replacing (dark metal frames) and the city required something else (vinyl?) which I think had to do with energy conservation.  Condo has multiple oversized (8' high) sliding glass doors in the desert.  What to do?  Have the windows installed on Friday when the inspectors don't work.  And that's why I didn't pull permits when we replaced out original sliding glass doors.   

[kms]

Found this on a neighborhood buy & sell page on Facebook yesterday. Not sure if crying or laughing would be more appropriate.
I know this is an affluent HCOL neighborhood but $1,600 for a crib? Seriously?

[TheFrenchCat]

Looks kind of like ours, which was under $150, if I recall correctly. 

[Chris22]

We had a pottery barn crib, my parents bought it for us for our first. Wasn’t quite $1600, but I bet all in it was $1k-1200. Tried to sell it for around $100, ended up giving it to one of our movers who had a pregnant wife when we moved, he was thrilled to have it.

[Sugaree]

We did the convertible crib thing, though ours wasn't nearly that expensive (I think it came from Target).  He's almost 8 and still using it, so I think we've gotten value out of it.

[DadJokes]

Ours came from Target and cost $300. Well, it cost our in-laws $300, as that was their baby shower gift to us. It converts as the child ages, but you have to buy the extra parts to convert it. The first piece was an extra $110. I'm sure that it'll be $600-$700 by the time everything is said and done, but it'll also last 10 years or so.

$1,600 is crazy for something the child sleeps in for a few years.

[Sugaree]

It's also not a bad idea to go ahead and buy the conversion kit when you buy the crib.  I know at least two people who discovered that by the time they were ready to convert from the toddler bed to the full bed, the crib had been discontinued.

[zolotiyeruki]

The whole convertible crib thing doesn't make sense to me.  It's so doggone cheap to find used toddler and twin beds for cheap that it seems silly to have all these pieces that only get used for half the bed's life.

We spent $0 on our crib.  It's a hand-me-down from friends of my in-laws, is one of the oh-so-dreaded drop-side models, and is built like a tank.  It looks precisely the same now as it did 17 years and six babies ago.  It's in storage now, awaiting the day we have grandkids.

[markbike528CBX]

The whole convertible crib thing doesn't make sense to me.  It's so doggone cheap to find used toddler and twin beds for cheap that it seems silly to have all these pieces that only get used for half the bed's life.

We spent $0 on our crib.  It's a hand-me-down from friends of my in-laws, is one of the oh-so-dreaded drop-side models, and is built like a tank.  It looks precisely the same now as it did 17 years and six babies ago.  It's in storage now, awaiting the day we have grandkids.

But, but.. does it have future-proof Wi-Fi/bluetooth ?   :-)  Do NOT tell me this is a thing, I don't wanna know.

[RWD]

The whole convertible crib thing doesn't make sense to me.  It's so doggone cheap to find used toddler and twin beds for cheap that it seems silly to have all these pieces that only get used for half the bed's life.

We spent $0 on our crib.  It's a hand-me-down from friends of my in-laws, is one of the oh-so-dreaded drop-side models, and is built like a tank.  It looks precisely the same now as it did 17 years and six babies ago.  It's in storage now, awaiting the day we have grandkids.

But, but.. does it have future-proof Wi-Fi/bluetooth ?   :-)  Do NOT tell me this is a thing, I don't wanna know.

https://www.popularmechanics.com/culture/a18556/wifi-baby-crib-is-too-powerful/

[Sugaree]

The whole convertible crib thing doesn't make sense to me.  It's so doggone cheap to find used toddler and twin beds for cheap that it seems silly to have all these pieces that only get used for half the bed's life.

We spent $0 on our crib.  It's a hand-me-down from friends of my in-laws, is one of the oh-so-dreaded drop-side models, and is built like a tank.  It looks precisely the same now as it did 17 years and six babies ago.  It's in storage now, awaiting the day we have grandkids.

I see what you're saying, but I'm not sure that it's any better to have a few pieces go unused rather than changing beds three times by the time the kid reaches high school.  I guess if you know that you'll have someone to pass the thing down to it would make sense.  We were the oldest of our friends to have kids and kind of knew going in that we were only going to have one.

[shelivesthedream]

Three beds? Our eldest has been in a sides-up cot/crib and moved straight from that to a single bed. Our soon-to-be-middle spent her first year in a travel cot as Big Brother was occupying the big cot. Littlest (yet to be born) will do the same as Middle.

I don't understand convertible cots either, or toddler beds. It seems an unnecessary staging post to me that requires extra expense Vs going from cot to real bed.

[Sugaree]

I'm thinking
1) Crib
2) Toddler bed
3) Regular bed 

I guess the toddler bed isn't really a necessity.  I probably wouldn't have bought one if our crib hadn't converted.  I think that we knew we were likely only having one kid, so we only had use for one crib.

[zolotiyeruki]

The whole convertible crib thing doesn't make sense to me.  It's so doggone cheap to find used toddler and twin beds for cheap that it seems silly to have all these pieces that only get used for half the bed's life.

I see what you're saying, but I'm not sure that it's any better to have a few pieces go unused rather than changing beds three times by the time the kid reaches high school.  I guess if you know that you'll have someone to pass the thing down to it would make sense.  We were the oldest of our friends to have kids and kind of knew going in that we were only going to have one.

I guess I should have added a bit more context.  In an era of craigslist/kijiji/FB marketplace/etc, I fail to understand the need for a convertible crib/bed.  If you're done with the crib, sell it and buy a bed.

[20957]

A crib that converts to a toddler bed is very handy for people having more than one child. You switch it to the toddler bed when they're too old for the crib and that way you don't have to store the crib for the next one. When the new baby needs the crib, you buy big kid a twin bed they can stay in until adulthood. Of course, if you have twins all your planned efficiencies go out the window...

[Freedomin5]

My parents had three kids (two of them were twins) and we never had toddler beds. We had cribs, and then we had beds. My parents bought bed railings that went on the normal bed until we were old enough to not severely hurt ourselves if we fell out of bed.

[maisymouser]

My parents had three kids (two of them were twins) and we never had toddler beds. We had cribs, and then we had beds. My parents bought bed railings that went on the normal bed until we were old enough to not severely hurt ourselves if we fell out of bed.

Yeah, same here. Our son switched over to a twin mattress on the floor at the ripe old age of ~18 months when he could climb out of a crib (that we had added an extra 2x4 to in order to effectively raise up the bars) and he was in a regular 'adult' bed by age 2. Not sure what the toddler beds are all about. They are pretty cute, but not worth my time/money.

[dragoncar]

Or just do what we did and buy a convertible crib that the kid uses a couple times because he mostly sleeps in our bed or a packnplaY SMDH

But if anyone wants to purchase a barely slept in, heavily chewed crib LMK

[TomTX]

Looks kind of like ours, which was under $150, if I recall correctly.

We got the $50 unpainted wood one from IKEA and the $20 mattress. Held up fine. Started in bedside crib mode, switched to toddler bed - and for the past month has been inverted as a "cave" while he sleeps on the floor. Held up absolutely fine. in ~8 years of use. No need to buy any extra "kits" - apparently the ridiculous bed originally linked had a conversion kit which cost more than 2x what we spent on the whole package!