Do You Have Any "Citiots" For Neighbors?

I agree with fin that the brochure does not have to be so antagonistic -
but it does get attention!
Anyway, in my neighborhood, many of the listed "citiot" behaviors apply more to the locals than to the newcomers.
I think both sides can use reminders about how to be a courteous neighbor.

I do think some of the ideas in the brochure cross the line though. Rather than expecting courtesy - they are becoming controlling - for instance, don't fence off long-standing trails??

I'm sorry, but that's what public roads and easements are for...
If the community wants the trail, than the community can buy it.

There is also an interesting idea that a neighborhood should stay the same, just because you want it to.
We ALL want that, but frankly, its unrealistic.
City folks often move to the country because THEIR neighborhoods changed. It's happening everywhere. And it will keep on happening as long as our population keeps growing.

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Hut on the Hill Farm
http://www.hutonthehill.org

Live and Let Live.

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Amanda

"Live and let Live!!!"

"Courage is being scared to death--and saddling up anyway" John Wayne

When I was 12-15 yo I lived on 40 acres out in the boonies of N. Idaho, we had some nice (ha!) neighbors from San Diego move in across the road onto a 20 acre parcel. Immediately they were bugging us at all hours of the day, trying to get my dad to "trade" a bunch of woodwork for them (they never fulfilled their part of the "trade").

Within two months of moving in they placed a wood fence 20' onto our property so they could have a "turn around spot". When my father approached them and asked them to remove the fence they stated that "since they maintained the land it was theirs now". This was about a week after it was erected.

We ended up having to hire a lawyer to make our new neighbors remove the fence, which finally happened about 6 months later. We ended up having to hire a registered surveyor, only to be approached by the new property owner wielding an axe, and threating physical violence on my father and my brother because "he had 10' easement rights on our property and we were trespassing". My father told me to go home. I'm not sure what else transpired that day, but all I know is that my dad carried his pistol every time he went near the fence line bordering their property after that.

Needless to say, they moved the fence and didn't fill in the 3' deep, 12" wide holes. Luckily I noticed this before I chose to ride my horses in the area, and filled the holes for them.

After they moved their fence, my father rented a backhoe and fell a 2 1/2' wide tree, digging a hole on our property, and laid the log behind the hole we dug, as to keep them from backing up onto our property, and if they did it would only cause some extreme damage to their vehicles (they had a huge driveway, but however needed the extra room to turn around...Previous neighbor was a trucker w/ a logging semi who NEVER had to drive on our property for a "turn around").

Next, the neighbors from San Diego moved their DD/SIL with their two kids, and a nasty singlewide onto the back half of their 20 acre parcel. They bred dachshunds, and kept miniture horses with the most horrible looking hooves I've ever seen (apparently, the "grandfather" from San Diego was a contractor AND a ferrier...RIGHT)

One day, while my father was in town running errands, I was at the "shop" (our living quarters) and I heard one of our two horses scream. It was the middle of the day, and I ran outside as fast as I could. What did I see? Why a dachshund hanging from the tail of my 20+ yo Morgan Mare, who was frantically running, bucking, and screaming for help (she was a total drama queen). So as I'm running out to the corral to beat the hell out of the dog, I notice my 3 yo TWH/QH gelding rearing repeatedly in one spot in the far corner of the corral. I go to investigate only to find a mess of blood, intestines, and what looks like dog fur. I assumed that it was another dachshund (which it was), and I chased away the other dog (I will admit, I punted it like a football. If I would have known, I would have shot the fool thing) and went to clean up the mess my gelding left behind.

About 3 hours later, the county Sheriff pulled up our driveway. He started questioning me about a missing dog. I told him my story, and he asked if my father was around (which he wasn't). He gave me his card and offered to testify if we wanted to sue our neighbors for the harassment of our animals (the corral was obviously within the boundaries of our property).

They owned ATV's and would wait for my father and I to go on our evening walks, and then speed down the road back and fourth, coming within 3' of us every time they passed.

They would cut our 4 line barbed wire fence, to ride horses on our property with no permission from us, destroying the stream bed of PeeWee creek running through our land. Every week I would go down there, and nearly every week we would have to repair the fence. Every time they clipped our fence, we would put up a post in front of the clipped area (after fixing the fence) with a sign pointing away from our property. It was one of those great "No Trespassing, Violators will be prosecuted" signs. By the time I left at 15 1/2, there must have been over 12 posts with the same sign on every post on that corner of the property.

The original property owners had a better relationship with us. Their property didn't have easement rights to any of the neighboring properties, after the end of the road, so the last 50' of road leading to their house was 3' onto our land. This wasn't an issue until the new owners from San Diego moved in. After that they had all sorts of things to say to my father about what was theirs and what was his, although they never went and researched laws relating to the issue. Eventually my father took 1 1/2' piece of rebar and pounded them into the ground on our property to keep them from driving on our land. After they popped at least a tire a day for over a month, they finally rebuilt their road so that it no longer was on our property.

My brother died in 2001 from either meningitis or encephalitis. My father gave up the land after that and sold it. It wasn't worth the trouble, surrounded by buttheads, and my father was getting too old to maintain the land by himself (by that time I was a sophomore in college an hour and a half away with no transportation besides public), so it came to the point where the land was sold.

I still mourn the land. I miss the darkness. I miss my horses, my pigs, my geese, my chickens, and my cats. I miss going target shooting with my grandfather's old bolt action .22. I miss the smells and the sounds. The bird calls all throughout the day. The buzzing of insects in the hot afternoons, and the 4' deep snow in the winter. I miss the day long trail rides that were less than 15 minutes from our property. I miss having to walk to the outhouse every morning (no, really!), and I miss the huge bonfires/slash pile burns that would bring the neighborhood together for merriment, laughter, understanding and happiness.

But what I don't miss, is the neighbors from San Diego.

We have very few citiots out here. The rudest, most inconsiderate jerks out here are the ones who grew up out here in the country! They're the ones who fly down our small bumpy road at 60 mph, have cheap barbed-wire fence that is not sufficient to contain their animals (the fence is often old and falling down, so it won't hold in cattle or horses, and they try to keep their goats contained with it!), do nothing to try and control the spread of weeds on their property (which spreads onto other peoples' property), set off fireworks at any time of year, burn trash during burn bans, have target practice at all hours of the day and night, etc. I think many of them live in the country just because it's cheaper and because they don't have law enforcement breathing down their necks, and they can get away with acting like jerks.

Most of the citiots out here are too busy commuting to town for work, or shuttling kids to and from after-school activities, to cause much trouble.

Apparentley you don't realize that the Cities are full of "Rednecks".

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Simple Things are Better!

Me, myself, and I.

Though I understand why the term came about, I think refering to those wanting to move from the city as citiots doesn't make a nice beginning to a neighborly relationship.

That said I have had no problems with newly arrived city people just the oldtimers who think that they should still have snow machine and mushing rights on my property since they have "been riding here for over 20 years." Well the shoulda bought the property.

Also, any city folks that buy in my area choose the property at higher elevations where it is warmer in the deep winter and leave the frozen swampland in the ice fog to us poor folks.

Does the pamphlet come with a scratch and sniff sticker??

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http://homesteadingfamilies.proboards.com/

And vice versa. The grass is greener...

Well, I'm a citiot. I smile and wave at everyone who drives by. When people bring their small children by and stare at the donkeys, I bring cut up carrots with me and let them in the pasture to pet the donkeys, which are trained to take treats with their lips and allow their legs to be hugged. I instruct the parents and children the proper way to give a treat, and that donkey legs are not to be hugged.

I drive the limit on the gravel roads, unlike my neighbor who liked to drive his pick up at 80 mph. That is, until he wrapped the pick up around a tree. They had to bring in a helicopter to transport him to the city hospital. Now, I don't find any more dead pheasant, ducks, or chickens on my road. I guess anger and testosterone don't go together in the city or the country.

LOL I was Born and raised in the city and DO less on that list then our family and neighbors. I think its just the lack of knowledge and manners being lost from our culture then where you are from

I just have a couple questions. How many of you that complain about "citiots" actually have something good to say about people who have moved to your part of the country? I frequent this board ALOT. I live in the city but have been thinking about moving to the country to get away from some of the city life here. I would hate to move somewhere where I would be considered a "citiot" because I dont do things exactly the way those who lived there whole lives in the country do things. I would also hate to move to a place where just because I wasnt born there I didnt have any say in the "town hall" meetings. Most of the people on this board want others to appreciate the country life more but I don't see alot of you willing to kindly give us a helping hand or "show us the way". I see alot of criticism but really, how are we supposed to just know things about country life if your not willing to extend your knowledge to us in a neighborly or friendly manner? Anyway, those are just a few questions I have and after seeing this post am really re-thinking moving.

As a side note: Someone said they heard your not supposed to look city folk in the eye..well I have lived in the city my whole life and always look people in the eye..I havent been killed for it yet. We are people just like you and would like some of the same courtesies you would want extended to you.

Most people who grew up in the city are used to small properties. It's obvious who owns that little square, because the house is right there and the yard is usually bordered by a sidewalk and the neighbors' driveways. In the city, a wide expanse of open land is a park, open to all. Unfortunately they take that mindset into the country with them when they move, and unwittingly cause a lot of bad feelings because it simply doesn't occur to them that someone actually owns that big stretch of open land down the road.

So, should the rural people who are aggravated by the "citiots" cut them some slack? Absolutely, because they are probably making honest mistakes, at least in the beginning. Should the city people ask questions and do their best to fit into their new life? Absolutely, because isn't that why you moved out there?

Obviously there does come a point when people are just being rude and inconsiderate, when they know better but just choose to be nasty neighbors. Then you do what you have to do, but until then, at least consider the fact that they honestly might not know that there's a problem with what they're doing.

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A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take everything you have . . . Barry Goldwater

My recently moved here 'citiot (largely Floridiots)' neighbors out here in what was the middle of nowhere (the land that no person wanted, was quite scenic and wild) say we the locals will be better off for their presence

because we (the locals here) might get some culture and some 'shops' and I wish you could hear how I pronounce their way of saying 'shops'.

Shops? What's that? Stores with stuff and junk arranged to 'sensory overload' that fools buy?

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Population keeps on breeding
Nation bleeding, still more feeding economy
Life is funny, skies are sunny
Bees make honey, who needs money, monopoly
...
World pollution is no solution

"There are no rules out in the country."

That's what my neighbors, who have lived here much longer than we have, believe. She chewed me out because I told her to keep her dogs home after we shot some dogs (not hers) without collars who killed our chickens & ducks. She said that dogs had the right to go anywhere they pleased because they can't read "no trespassing" signs. She does keep them home, though.

Another neighbor, new this past year from a big city, put up about 4 or 5 huge yard lights that are on all night. Fortunately, they are far enough away we can't see them. Other than that, they're nice.

One long time resident started as our mechanic & has become a friend & mentor.

I'd rather not label people. It's too easy to miss the good guys because of a preconceived bias.

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God bless,
Bonnie
Opportunity Farm
Northeast Washington

"While we have the opportunity, let us do good to all." Galatians 6:10

All of us locals laughed as the latest newby sodded 1 1/2 acres of her 10 acre plot and put in lots of lights and a big fence with a security gate complete with intercom.

That was 3 years ago. In the interim we got to know her better.

This summer this lovely lady brought her weed wacker over and spent several hours trimming our fencelines when she knew that the deadline for our daughter's wedding was coming close and the only time available had to be assigned to haying.

I will keep my mouth closed about citiots in the future.

your right!! having been forced into becoming part of a large city, citiot too us is anyone we deal with that works for the city!! mainly applies too office staff, roads crew for the most part are good old boys!! still tease the roads crews though!! (and no they don't fill our lane with snow or clip our mail box) one of our neighbors moved in years ago, put up a fence too keep their kid in (3 at the time), did not work, he escaped on his big wheel to the farm here and became a good friend and helper. his own son would love to stay here at the farm and help but they live too far down the road for him too ride here!!(plus the cars have gotten insane, they even try and face down the massive tractors i drive!)

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àigeach carnaid
chaora dhubh
"Don't raise your voice, improve your argument."

cruachan

We have been over run here. I am not against city folks moving to the country ,don't get me wrong,I did 18 yrs ago. I didn't expect the country to change to suit me though.You can't even build a shed in the back yard without expensive inspections and permits now.
We have a hen farm and yes it stinks it has been here 20 yrs .The country neighbors don't complain ,the ones who built their huge house 100 feet off of the property line 2 yrs ago within view of the hen houses complain."Can't you do anything about the smell" .."Your horses kicked my small annoying dog while he was in their pasture barking at them"....Called the health dept. because of the flies.Tried to have me shut down.Well I don't take kindly to having someone threaten my lively hood because it stinks!!!

Brocure:
The country is lovely and quite and clean
at least the parts that you have seen
The animals grazing
the view is amazing
the locals are quaint..

But maybe they ain't..

The tractors are slow
just so you know
not because they have nowhere to go

The animals grazing
make piles of poop that are amazing
Chickens are cute (wink wink)
But really they stink

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Chris
http://aberryvinefarm.blogspot.com/

I'm not going to label folks either because the county road that I live on is comprised mostly of "transplants", ourselves included. However, the people who live behind us are extremely lacking in common sense. They're from Chicago and I dont mean the "burbs", which is fine, really.
The front of their 40 acre property line is our 20 acre back property line. Their house is at the back end of their property. The man is obsessed with the property line that we share and has manicured trails along it that he monitors daily (he doesnt work, he's an artist). He has went so far as carving stones to make "perches" to monitor the back of our property. Why, I do not know? I know he watches us since the horses spook whenever I ride our trails and always look directly at those perches (which is how I ended up finding them). They have an easement/right of way to get to their place across our land, to which they have placed a huge gate with chains and locks (fine, whatever). They have fussed at us for accessing our riding trails by walking along "their" gravel road when my horse left a present on the side of the drive, in the grass (*on my property*). Good grief. They informed us that farm animals are disgusting. Whatever. In casual conversation shortly after we bought this place he let us know that hunting is absolutely inhumane and that they do everything possible to prevent innocent deer from being killed. Gee, they wonder why nobody likes them. Guess that's why they barricaded themselves in?
There's a major creek that flows through the properties and continues on several miles downstream across both public and private lands, eventually going into a river.
Last fall, while riding horses on our property we noticed some flat rocks had been placed across the creek where our properties meet; which can be seen from a 20' drop-off. We figured it was so they could cross without getting wet. No big deal. Well, about 3 weeks ago the creek dried up and the neighbors downstream were all pretty upset. It has never dried up despite the severe drought 2 yrs ago. There are parts of that creek where it makes some sharp turns and bends that have some pretty deep pools, 7' deep in places (we use for fishing and swimming). Those pools were now stagnant and becoming really foul. A walk upstream revealed a dam on the property line standing 4' high! The local people have depended on that creek to water their livestock, gardens, for many yrs so were obviously pretty upset. So was I! After calling several local and state offices, all of us downstream were out of luck. Since the creek flowed on his property, he was within his legal rights to do as he pleased with it. Nevermind the impact it was having on all of us downstream, the wildlife and fish or how the creek's restricted flow was causing some serious erosion to our property by essentially being re-routed. I did persuade the guy at the Ok Water Commission (who sympathized with us) to at least call the guy and see why he was doing it. Turns out, the guy did it so he could build sandcastles with his kid! What??? Never occured to him what impact he was having on everyone around him. Unbelievable. The Oklahoma Water guy strongly encouraged him to remove the dam; which he has since "released" some of the creek by taking down a 1' section of his sand castle utopia. Gee, thanks. The man's home sits overlooking his 1 1/2 acre stocked pond (fishing being inhumane as well). The creek has been around for so long that it has carved out areas with 15' ravines, both on his property and ours. The sand is super fine and wonderfully clean. The point is, its everywhere! Why did he feel the need to dam it up when there are huge sandbars already on his land? Made no sense.
We try to be good neighbors despite the quirks but somedays its really an effort. I offered them some extra zucchini from our garden (organic) and they just stared at me, said they only eat store bought organic from Whole Foods. I've given up.

Hi Stone;
Well, there's a local who wants to be a "citiot". She pretends she's a hoity toity but her family has been around here for years. They sell fish for a living and she cleans the fish and oversees the workers in her parents business. Keeping this in mind; one day I was out in the yard. I had tilled the ground by hand and had pulled out the roots and such. I then began planting my transplants, (collards) and she comes out of her house and stands and stares at me not saying a word. Then her daughter comes over and they both stand and stare. After a few minutes I look up at them. The woman says; "that's filthy" and turns her nose in the air and walks away.
Hmm, I don't know about you but I'd much rather toil in the soil than to clean fish all day. Makes you wonder about how some people define filth.
tamilee