Oct 11
Reset
Photography is a great way to reset your thoughts.
When I set out for a walk, I had a lot of negative thoughts in my head. The problem is with my neighbour/landlord who is apparently not able to grasp the concept of “yours and mine”. Meaning that when I pay my rent, I pay for more than just my flat – I pay for the garage and I pay for the piece of lawn between my flat and the garage. Which means that while I’m not the owner of the space, I have the right to use it – except now it’s him using it. His trailer has been almost permanently parked behind my garage since the summer, and when I half jokingly asked him if he’d like to rent the space from me, he said that he didn’t have room for it on his side (true – he’s got too much junk for the little space he has) and he’d remove it. 
But not only did he not remove it, but yesterday when I drove my car in the garage (I’ve been keeping it outside) I found that he had mounted a shelf and stored some planks on it. In my garage!!!! Without as much as a word to ask if he could do it, can you believe it?
So anyway, I was saying that photography is good. I tried to force myself to think happy thoughts as I was walking, but I always kept coming back to the same thing. Then I finally reached my destination, a small brook that I found last week. What a relief it was to set up the tripod and start composing the pictures, because every last little brain cell of mine was concentrated on photography. Happy thoughts, happy thoughts – quite naturally!
And then I was done with the pictures and started walking back home, and I was mad again. I’m paying too much rent and considering that I’m getting even less for my money than I should, the rent is intolerable. It’s a bad timing to move now because I really should save my money for the cabin, but my option is be angry every day when I see the trailer. I see it when I go to work, I see it when I come home, I see it from my kitchen window, I see it from my living room window, I can see it just by turning my head as I’m typing this now. And the shelf in the garage, I can’t believe he had the nerve. I can feel my blood pressure rising.
Too bad I can’t photograph 24/7.
4 comments
Auch, that does not sound too nice any more
In my experience there is only one option: get own house with no neighbours within 100m or more preferably. During today’s little roundtrip it was quite obvious that very many houses are available, it’s just that I am not too keen on buying one from around here…
Sad story Minna! Renting from your neighbour can be tricky sometimes. Nice to have your own camera then.
But why don’t you try photographing the trailer…?
That’s the plan – rent a house. It doesn’t have to be 100m from the neighbour (well, provided the neighbours are nice and quiet) but it has to be a house. I will never ever again want to live in a block of flats, or even semi-detached as I do now. When I moved here the other flat was empty and I figured that nobody will ever rent it, but what I failed to take into consideration is that Ljusdalshem would sell all their properties in Loos. And thus I suddenly had a landlord living next door.
I was hoping that the cabin would be a solution to my problem, but even if I could go there every weekend (not possible), I would still have to spend most of the week here. And in any case I won’t even have a cabin until next summer… I’ve got to move out from here, now!
Yeah I could shoot the trailer… and the shelf in the garage. Only to use it as evidence against him…
Oh, that sounds very bad indeed.. What does the contract say? What have you rented? If the carage is mentioned there, good for you, throw the shelf out (=ask politely and point to the contract..). Be ready to move out and start searching for a new flat if situation does not change. Don’t wait too long, my neighbour hit me as you remember..