Is this why he started his latest YouTube video standing alone in his kitchen with a mask on? Lol

^^You can also just listen to Jack^^

Ok, here's a LONG update on Black Betty, let me know if this is TMI

Betty got new shoes (tires)! NO pics as there's nothing much to see but the effort to get them was a CHORE. Turns out she had something called Split Rims (AKA widow makers...google it) and Discount Tire etc wont touch them but I kept snooping around for help and found this old timer who does mobile tire changes and does split rims, so I got him to come do them.

Turns out this guys been working on cars for 40+ years so I ask him to check out my van and how good of a job they did. The first thing he notices is almost no oil in the transmission, WTF!?!?!!? Thank gawd I didn't drive it anywhere so he's gonna address that and some other minor stuff.

I show him her chair that has rusted and is hard to move plus it has ugly old, worn and ripped cushions:



so I ask him if he can fix the action on it and get it working properly and he says no problem. Then I ask if he can recover the cushions and he says no but he has someone, so I say go for it, I want it have white leather with black bead trim to look like this:



A few days later he sends me these awesome pics!



BAM!

On another crazy note, I have Black Betty parked in my driveway, she's not a food truck yet, so this is allowed. Further, my house is completely surrounded by a 4-5 foot fence and a 6 foot+ tall operable gate so its not like I'm in a typical residential street where all the houses are lined up in a row and have shared yards and parking the van in front might stand out.

So I go for a walk and come back to find this on Bettys windshield:



Wow!

The ballz on this MF'er to not only leave a note but scale my fence and/or gate to do so!!

I'm more bewildered and stunned than anything, not even mad, just dying to know who this person is. I think it has to be a prank from a friend but none have revealed themselves. I check my cameras and the damn things were not set to record.

DOH!

What a screw up on my part!

I start racking my brain trying to figure out who did this and I cant imagine who as I get along with my neighbors great (IMO). I even watched my neighbor to my lefts house a few weeks ago when they went out of town so I'm at a complete loss as to who the culprit could be but am not giving up.

A few days later, I'm talking to the tire guy and show him the note and say "can you believe this ****?" I'm trying to figure out who did it and they immediately say:

"it was your neighbor!!"

I'm like wha...huh?? Why do you think that????

They tell me while they were changing the tires, they heard the neighbor next door to my left (who's house I just watched) screaming loudly something like " that ****ing piece of **** van!!" over and over angrily (clue#1)

~I'm stunned~

I've never really talked to him as he's been kind of stand offish, seemed busy but I never thought much of it and figured he just wasn't talkative. His wife is very nice (I think?) and we text occasionally about neighborhood issues. She asked me to watch their house and has asked if they can come get her cat that meanders into my yard occasionally. I told her to let me know when they need to come over and I'll open the gate. She said no bother, there's a gap in our common fence (also heavy with bamboo) and they can just come through that so I tell her to make herself at home. (Clue #2)

I’m reflecting on the whole thing and decide I’m going to text her in order to gauge her response so I send her this:

Quote:

FYI-if you or your husband ever have an issue with me, my property or anything I’m doing over here, you can always just talk to me, I strive to be an easy going, approachable person and certainly dont try to do things to deliberately upset my neighbors or anyone else for that matter

Before I tell you the response, what does everyone think the response of a guilty person would/should be?

What do you think the response of an innocent person would/should be?

I’ll wait to hear a few opinions before I reveal her response

If you're fenced in a driveway they can go **** themselves on the head. Unless it is some ***** HOA policeman. more pics the better. Seats look good.

Response I think you got: "What in the world are you going on about? I have no idea what you are referring to."

Response from an innocent: "Sure thing. Same here. Have I caused a problem that I am unaware of?"

+1

FYI-there's no HOA

here's a view from my neighbors house looking toward my house. As you can see, the bamboo is so thick you can barely see through it. The man was standing in the location during his tirade:




Here's a view from the street (right on my neighbors property line from the previous photo) looking at my house. As you can see, the fence is covered in ivy and is only about 7 feet from the road:



The gate is the easiest to see through. Betty was parked on this driveway backed in with her front facing the street:



If Betty was a finished food truck, she wouldn't be allowed to park there and I wouldn't want to. Currently she's just a van.

I would have entertained a calm conversation from a concerned neighbor but the manner and intensity in which he delivered his message brings out the rebel in me.

Given I just bought another van, I day dream about putting (I won't) a big sign out front that says:

Hey Neighbor, I hear you don't like the van in my driveway, now you got two!!!"

I picture an argument with my neighbor like the video below but instead of days of detentions, its the quantity of vans.

move to where they respect your piece of **** van

Cooking a good neighborhood drama

Get the new van, punch a hole in the oil pan, park it on the street by neighbors house and run a couple quarts through it.

This is good.

Yim maybe you can park your van in that giant stove enclosure you have in your sweet ass kitchen?

One of those situations in life where, despite the other party acting like a complete piece of ****, you have the option to either escalate or de-escalate. Initial reaction is always the former, but I usually try to let myself cool for a day or so to try and get some perspective.

I like the text you sent (although I would have done it face-to-face), if they reacted in a bad way again then I guess **** em.

Circumstantial evidence is looking really bad for the neighbor and that's really unfortunate, neighbor wars suck.
If you're allowed to park on the street I would be soooo tempted to just put Betty right in front of their house but would probably never go through with it.
Really sucks because not doing anything it's easy for your ego to get hurt and feel like a cuck but again neighbor wars suck.
I'd try to give them an opening to make a genuine, sincere apology. Hopefully they regret their actions like most sane people would and can move forward in an awkward sort of way.

If they lie I think a bluff could be in order and remind them you do have camera surveillance and the police can get involved for trespassing or something.

Leave a note on their property saying you have footage of them trespassing.

Bonus points for doing the note with random letters chopped out of a magazine, or written in blood…

Remember, you can't spell 'de-escalation' without 'escalation'!

Did they sign that note inconsiderate neighbor?

I think it was addressed to the inconsiderate neighbor Yim and signed with that weird triangle and the lower case d.

No I know just saying I think it should be there signature.

Quiet, standoffish neighbor leaves an angry note with a creepy "signature" (wtf is that) on your property? Escalating seems unwise.

lol, that never worked for me in poker but it might work here

lol, dayum, dont mess with Jack!

+1

I dont have a giant stove enclosure, what you talking bout willis?

you're right and I wont be escalating, I'm just venting here. I tried to catch them out front and will keep trying as I'm a big fan of face to face discussions so they can see my demeanor that all too often gets misconstrued with the written word. Its why I despise places like Twitter because it feels like the country may end up in a war over a misunderstanding, we all need more face to face time with mutual respect imo. I plan to practice what I preach with my neighbors

+1 looking that way, eh?

I was anticipating a different response than the one I got and was planning to do the very thing you mentioned by saying: "you know, I have cameras all over my property?" and leave it hanging in the air to see if they'd take that as I have them on film (without ever making that claim) and get a confession but I haven't gotten this opportunity yet

lololol


irony at its finest, eh?

agreed, I watch that show on ID Network about neighbors who get so bent and full of pride that the escalation keeps growing and growing until someone gets shot and killed, I don't plan on going down that road if I can help it

I'm somewhat sympathetic to the disdain of the optics of a van and my work truck being in my front drive as I'd prefer to park them elsewhere, I just have an issue with starting so hot. Reason with me first and if that doesnt work, you can leave your nasty notes

People are a trip man, I try to live and let live and it would never dawn on me to be so concerned with someone else's property to leave a note like this unless something completely out of bounds was happening and I dont think Betty meets that standard and if it did, I'd speak t them in person, none of this gutless, passive aggressive nonsense

Thanks for the responses everyone

I figured an innocent person would be thinking, what the heck is this text all about out of the blue? I know thats what I would have thought and would have likely responded with something like "Ok, thanks, did you mean to send that to me?" So thats what I was expecting if they weren't involved

I figured she'd ignore the text and not respond if guilty so they could just play dumb and claim they never got the text if I spoke to them in person.

Well, she did neither, here's what I got:



well played?

I can't quite figure that one out other than it is an admission that you got the note. And that you probably will be receptive to acting upon another one with suggestions rather than a conversation. I wouldn't expect a Christmas card from them.

Seems like a strange game. Perhaps the only winning move is not to play.

Yim,
i suggest you take the note next door to the neighbors you suspect left it on your property, show it to them and ask them if they left it on your property, and go from there.
not in a malicious way, but in an inquisitive way.
leave the door for a reasonable conversation without hardening your position (which only leads to them hardening their own).
this **** isn't North Korea vs South Korea, so there's no reason to escalate it as if it is.

edit: i understand TX is an open carry state and you can get shot for no reason but to set foot on someone else's property, so please take that into account if you should act upon my advice. disclaimer: i am not a lawyer and i am not ordering anyone to do something, therefore i am not responsible for any harm that comes to anyone that takes my suggestions above and acts upon them with their own free will.

lolol

I wouldn't hold you or anyone on this board responsible for my decisions

my plan is try to catch him out on his walks (where I assume he wouldn't be packing heat) and just smile & say hey John (not his actual name), I hear Black Betty got you riled up, what's that all about amigo?

I communicate with them via his wifes phone by text, I wonder if he feels threatened by that or drawing some weird ass conclusion and this is some odd, passive aggressive response.

I've had crazy control freaks come after me in the past because of my relationship with their ex or current wife (and NO I didn't do or say anything out of bounds. In one case I was dating their ex and the other was my 10+ year older than me step sister, who was working for me so I gave a job to her husband but the freak thought I was trying to "be alone with his wife" by sending him to the jobs to do the work he was being paid to do).

People gonna people

Alright I'll stop this side bar topic and get back to Black Betty and food related topics, thanks for the input from everyone