We all know that pools are a hot commodity during the scorching summer months. But if your neighbor happens to own one, does that make you entitled to use their property whenever you want to cool down?
This 34-year-old man doesn’t think so. He currently lives in a suburban area, where he has a pool in his “decent-sized” backyard.
Yet, he has a neighbor in her mid-forties named Karen who moved in next door around a year ago and thinks she can just use his pool anytime she pleases.
It all started earlier in the summer, when Karen would visit his home with her kids and ask whether they could take a dip in his pool.
Initially, he didn’t care either, since her children appeared to enjoy it, and he was typically outside and present on his property anyway.
“But soon, things got weird. Karen began showing up unannounced, sometimes even when I wasn’t home, and I caught her using the pool without my permission,” he recalled.
Then, things came to a head when he arrived home one day and realized Karen had invited multiple friends to have a full-blown pool party in his backyard. They were all set up with music, snacks, and pool floats, and he was shocked.
Karen, on the other hand, pretended as if the whole thing wasn’t a big deal after he confronted her. She even said, “Oh, you weren’t using it, so I figured it was fine.”
He took this opportunity to tell Karen that, moving forward, she had to ask first before going into his pool.
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“And that I wasn’t comfortable with her just assuming she could use the pool whenever. Karen seemed annoyed but agreed to follow the rules,” he added.
Well then, last week, Karen actually showed up on his doorstep with a list of “pool rules” she’d typed up, and she expected him to follow them!
She didn’t want anyone to swim in his pool after 5:00 p.m. due to her kids’ “strict bedtime,” and she also stipulated that no loud music should be played whenever her family is outside next door.
But perhaps the most shocking part? Karen wanted mandatory and exclusive access to his pool on the weekends, for just her and her children.
Given how ridiculous the list was, he understandably thought Karen was just messing around at first. Sadly, she wasn’t, and he ended up laughing in her face, saying he definitely wouldn’t follow any of her rules for his own property.
In response, Karen acted like a true “Karen.” She called him selfish and accused him of being unfair to her kids, as well as “ruining the neighborhood spirit.” On top of that, she started badmouthing him to the rest of their neighbors!
Some even took Karen’s side, too, saying that he should just drop the situation to prevent any further drama. But he truly believes Karen is insane for acting like she owns his pool.
He’s since installed a keypad lock on his backyard fence, hoping that would be the end of the situation. But instead, once Karen noticed the lock, she showed up on his doorstep again.
She didn’t think it was right of him to “lock out” the children in the neighborhood and even claimed he was treating her family like a bunch of criminals.
He tried to explain that all he wanted was some privacy on his property, as well as autonomy over who used his pool. After all, it could be a major liability issue if something were to go wrong.
“Honestly, I feel a lot better with the lock on now. It’s a bit awkward with Karen, but I’d rather that than have her acting like my backyard is a public pool,” he vented.
Would you ever invite yourself to a neighbor’s home and use their pool without their permission? Was it a good idea to put a lock on his backyard?
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By Katharina Buczek
Katharina Buczek graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Digital Arts. Specializing in... More about Katharina Buczek
