Playing Tai Chi with encroaching neighbour

Instead of Crouching Tiger, we have Encroaching Tiger and Silent Dragon.

When ‘Love thy neighbour’ was taken a bit too far… no, not in the romantic sense, far from it.

In KL, having car-free roadside is a luxury, which even Damansara Heights, especially along Jalan Birah, in front of Commonwealth Club, cannot claim to have.

My friend’s house in Sentul seems to have one car in particular which remains after others have left, and it is right in front of their gate. So it can be tricky driving out of the compound.
But in good old Batu Gajah, we can have the luxury of car-free roadsides in front of our house, except when there is a function at the Indian Temple Hall, when free parking means parking right in front of our gates, without due consideration to owner’s right of access.

Back to when there is no function and we rightly expect car-free roadside in front. Our good neighbour, in their ‘ultra-friendly’ gesture seems to make it a habit of parking their car or cars in front of our house, in spite of having 100 feet of vacant frontage in front of theirs.

We have had 2 minor accidents before (in reversing) involving our own cars because most times, we are used to having no cars in front.

Now, in their efforts to love thy neighbour, they have moved their garden swing, yes, you have guessed it, in front of our house next door. A bullock cart came a-calling few days ago, luckily not to unload bullshit, but some earth.

Each time we were away, ‘elves’ must have been at work, as grass and other plants were added, including some in pots hanging from the tree.

More than a year ago, when both of us were in UK, some ‘elves’ were at work cutting all the leaves of our palm on the roadside. Normally, you would expect only those offending ones protruding into their side, but no, all the leaves. Soon, in spite of our presence, new shoots were not spared. Again, when we were not around one day, the whole palm was brought down! Weeks later, with encouragement from our inaction and lack of direct complaints, when we were not around, the ‘elves’ moved the whole cut palm to one corner of our frontage, at least 100 feet away. If only I can harness this kind of free work, I should be making some money.

Just yesterday morning, I discovered some new shoots coming out of the same spot was again cut and the leaves put inside our bin! Has it occurred to them that I could do the same to their plants? No, I am not about to fall into their game plan of starting a quarrel.

Btw, their charitable gesture of feeding the pigeons is another sore point. For one with OCB, his own premises must be neat and tidy. So, when feeding pigeons, it is better if the grains are thrown on the road, yes, you have guessed it, in front of our house. So we have pigeons in the morning and pigeons in the afternoon, waiting to be fed on the electricity lines in front, with some on top of our roof, shitting now and again. With the bird flu spreading from HK and India, this is most unkind and objectionable.

It was strange because when we first constructed the Semi-D houses 14 years ago, my wife anticipated problems with neighbours and the fence wall was built on our own land. Now our wall is being used to dry school shoes, rugs and what have you. I have given up on painting that piece of wall because it becomes mouldy in no time because of the water dripping from the top almost everyday. Leftover foods were conveniently thrown into our back garden on the pretext of ‘providing for our dogs’ but no thanks we have our own arrangement. Crown corks, wrappers, empty bottles and other containers are often thrown over.

(Rubbish in our front garden, having worked at by our dogs.)

( Rubbish in our back garden, conveniently thrown over.)

Now I only wish they would build their own wall, higher like what they did to their other neighbour at the back of their house.

Cantonese has this saying, ‘yeen kah lou chark’ or ‘the road seems narrow when you meet your enemy’ and with the swing right in front, there is no way we can avoid them if they were to sit and stare! Some people just cannot take the hint.

Now, let’s take a look at the two points of perspective which I have commented in my previous post:

I 've learned.... That when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you. (working on it, see below)

I've learned.... That everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile. (except my neighbour)

So, all the nice advice on how to behave in relation to others, are now being tested on me. If I can get through it without a quarrel, I can be a pastor. At the moment, I am only human with all the usual emotions.

Just this morning, we were joking about a friend’s similar problem with his neighbour and pulling his leg that his neighbour is thinking of buying over his property just to get rid of him! Already two of my friends said I am being bullied for being ‘meek’! That’s the problem with Tai Chi (though I am not an exponent) or ‘kung fu’ teaching, and that is, to be patient till final provocation. The turf war is not over yet.