Jump to content

Menu

So, say you lived next door to a house....


Jen in NY
 Share

Recommended Posts

Where many interesting things had happened over the years.... like:

 

The olderish (50's?) woman living there was disabled in some way... but you hadn't seen her for years.

 

The dad mows the lawn, but the house is very dilapidated and stuff that belongs inside (like couches, baby gates, office chairs) is routinely thrown outside on the lawn. The garage door doesn't close and cars are sometimes parked at interesting angles... half in, half out....

 

The daughter (20's) hasn't been seen in years.... may have moved on...

 

The son (also 20's), known to have been in trouble with the law in the past, lives there. (There have been two times since we moved in ~10 years ago that the home has been surrounded by police.) At some point his girlfriend (or wife?) was living there with them. One time she showed up at my door asking if I could take her to the store for formula because her baby was crying from hunger and she had no way of getting to the store... my kids would then have been home alone... so I told her I was very happy to go buy what she needed. I did so immediately (and took my kids with me!), and when I brought the stuff to the house no one came to the door, even though I knocked repeatedly and could hear people inside. I left the stuff on the door and as soon as I started to walk away the door opened and the stuff disappeared inside. Later that day the older father left money in my mailbox. : (

 

I have not seen the girlfriend since, but do see the now young boy being picked up on a school bus... seems like some kind of early intervention program... each day. I was glad to see that.

 

Anyway... there's lots of other stuff, but you get the gist.

 

Here's my question. Lately, whenever I walk outside, someone knocks, very loudly, from inside the house. This has happened like 4 or 5 times. I don't know if the person is knocking all the time, or just when I walk outside. Maybe it's just what the mentally ill older mom does. I don't want to make a mountain out of a molehill, but it just seems kind of strange, and my imagination is running wild because of those three girls held against their will in Ohio. Like, where has the mother of the little boy gone? I never see her anymore.....

 

What action would you take, if any at all?

Would you go up to the house and ask what all the knocking is about? "Just checking to make sure everyone's ok..." kind of thing....

Or would you call an agency of some kind? (police? CPS?)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, all. I am definitely going to do something... just wasn't sure if the police was the right call to make. I totally blanked on the fact that I can call them in a non-emergency capacity.

 

I don't want to cause trouble for a family that obviously doesn't need more trouble, but I also want everyone to be safe....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That knocking thing is really strange. I think I would call the police non emergency number. Better safe than sorry, I suppose.

 

 

Exactly!

And...I have to say since I am approaching 50, I felt punched in the gut when I read "olderish, about 50". :closedeyes: :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

Exactly!

And...I have to say since I am approaching 50, I felt punched in the gut when I read "olderish, about 50". :closedeyes: :lol:

 

Oh dear, no! That's not what I meant at all! I was just trying to distinguish between the older parents of the younger parents.... so it was clear which mom and which dad I was talking about.

 

So Sorry!! :blushing:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would DEFINITELY not want to be the person that lived next door and "didn't notice anything strange" for years....kwim? I am sure the folks would rather deal with a no-issue call than to have a captive situation go unreported. Even if nothing truly nefarious is going on, perhaps your call will open the door for ome needed services.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, call in a "non-emergency" -- even if a disabled 50yo is "only" housebound and has a strange knocking habit... She still needs the authorities to check on her once in a while. She may need services and/or intervention for medical or social-work reasons. If the child's mother (sons GF) is also housebound, that sounds more nefarious.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...