Part-time neighbor trouble, stealing signs

But what if I had purchased my grandma's place and newcomers would no longer let me come onto their land? I don't see that as being any different.

I think it is about being neighborly. It is too bad that the OP's rarely visiting neighbors are not neighborly but do expect her to be.

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Moms don't look at things like normal people.
-----DD

No what you see is the damage done by illegals in this country.
They have established a base of cheep labor that prevents good americans like the OP from hireing leaglly.
Your "soultion" is for the Op (and the nation) to conceed to the illegal hords. Shame on you. The USA isnt about easy its about right.

The scary part of this statement is that if its true for a long enough period of time your neighbors ARE RIGHT .
It could be their right to do the things they wish on your farm.
How long did this go on?


HINT HINT HINT if it was very long at all DONT ADMIT IT HERE IN PUBLIC!
in fact you might want to remove the above quoted statement as fast as possable.
You do know they and the culprate might be reading this right?

Not that I agree with you, but...this newbie is going to jump in with a spelling lesson...

What you see is damage done by illegal workers in this country.

They have established a base of cheap labor that prevents good Americans, like the OP, from hiring legally.

The "solution" is for the OP (and the nation) is to conceed to the illegal hordes. Shame on you, the USA isn't about easy, it is about right.

Sorry, but I literally can't help myself...

Emmy

Wasnt it a Grammer lesson?

LOL Im pretty much spelling free! A sorta spelling dislexic.
If ya want to see what war at HT looks like start a "Spelling " thread!
If ya do be sure to put on them flame proof undies cause Ive seen them(spelling wars at HT not your undies) and they just aint pretty!

mom25 kiddies, please introduce yourself to me when you come. You will be the first HT member I have gotten to meet!

This morning as I was putting up my arrows along the road, there were cars following me down the road, all the way to my place! It was a homeschool group!

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I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye

1st sentence - note double use of the word "is."

2nd sentence - run-on. Maybe, "Shame on you - the USA isn't about easy: it is about right."

It's pretty much a rule here that anyone who chimes in to correct someone's grammar is going to be corrected in turn.

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Wise enough to know I'll never be wise enough to know it all

I am cool with that, I have had a bad sinus headache all day, so I probably shouldn't have posted in the first place.

Emmy

Lol - no worries Emmy, no big deal.

There are a few large threads on HT (can't think of any recent ones though) dedicated to HT grammar and the lack thereof, attitudes about misspelling, attitudes about correcting others, etc. Whenever someone corrects another's grammar, the person ALWAYS makes a mistake that someone else brings to attention. It's kind of a running joke that this happens on a regular basis.

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Wise enough to know I'll never be wise enough to know it all

Why should the OP remove that statement, that statement proves that the owner KNEW it was going on for quite some time, but did nothing, so I say this again for those who scratch their heads, get along with your neighbors, you will have to make concessions on their part.

I am not for lying, and it is obvious some are promoting lying in this thread. The neighbors ARE RIGHT, that is not scary, it is fact. Communicate(and communication is NOT a one way street) with your neighbors, and solve this problem or get better signs... I choose the prior.

Also YOU do not own the land(again unless you have the land patent) the Government owns it, and has allowed a "claim" on that land, with eminent domain, land is a risky investment, it can be taken so easily.

I think I addressed this earlier. The cabin owners did use this place at will and take as they pleased when te previous owners owned it. They were Hong Kong investors. We purchased the ranch in 2000 and began posting the property, introducing ourselves to the cabin owners, locking the gate, spending time here, and confronting (in a neighborly way) trespassers. So the unfettered access they once had stopped when we purchased nearly 10 years ago.

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I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye

I'd never dream of having folks travel up to my place, nicely hidden in a NF. I can understand the feelings of the neighbors... having 'more strangers' roaming around is never good. If there's ever any kind of shtf scenario, I daresay most of the people getting apples will think of that lovely place up in the mountains, and how nice it'd be to be there instead of in the ratholes that they're in.

If you prosecute, you have declared war. Personally I don't believe in limited warfare. There can only be one winner. Some folks depend solely on the law to settle differences. Others choose the direct route... namely fire, the great cleanser.

Think it through... enter in all the data into a ten year calculus... how much money do the apples provide... minus all expenses... compared to having the orchard burned down, your cabin burned down, or maybe even something worse.

Me.... If I lived there, I'd have plans for eliminating all the cabins, (when the owners were gone) and destroying or disabling the road to all traffic... just in case... you know! But then again, I don't care for neighbors, full time, part time, or any time.... and care even less for strangers...

good luck, and 'think' ahead of all potential consequences...

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Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Seneca
Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

"If you prosecute, you have declared war. Personally I don't believe in limited warfare. There can only be one winner." Think long and hard grasshopper. Are you strong enough and willing enough to pay the consequences of becoming king of your palace?

Texican, Fire is the great cleanser, and it is uncontrolable and terrible in our mountains. The Station Fire in the San Gabriel mountain range next to us is still burning and has consumed over 250 square miles, and over 70 structures, most of them FS lease land cabins. Only a fool would set one here, as they may not be able to run ahead of it to save their own lives.

We own our ranch, and we have a farm/ranch insurance policy that would replace our house and contents, equipment and animals. If the FS lease land cabins burn, I do not believe they are allowed to rebuild. If a cabin owner set fire to our place, they would harm themselves far more than they would hurt us.

And as for what the apple sales buy. Last year was our first full year selling apples direct to the public. The apple sales paid our property taxes and paid our farm/ranch insurance premiums, plus provided some additional funds to cover other ranch costs. Plus, we declare our income and expenses on our taxes, and because we operate this as a business we deduct our ranch expenses on our taxes.

In a SHTF scenario, people swarming into these mountains would find us anyway, or possibly not even be able to reach us. The Big Bear quake damaged our highway pretty bad, which isolated our ranch for three weeks back then, until they were able to repair it.

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I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye

Buy a very cheap car or truck put the sign in the bed. It then becomes a vehicular vandalism and that carries weight. Park it and wait. Photograph with a telephoto lens and prosecute.
What you have to realize is this is not an attack on your business. This is an attack on you. Someone is trying to control you and your livlyhood. That person will have all the excuses in the world and will be high and mighty in them but they are scum.

i thought she was asking for help with the signs not business advice?

CT, have you ever checked out the Local Harvest site? You can advertise there and post information about your orchard, hours, types of apples, etc. and link it to your website. It may be a better way to draw in customers without putting up the signs. Of course, you'd have to post a detailed map or have people call for directions. But it may be worth it. Then you'd have plenty of customers without dealing with ignorant "neighbors."

Honestly, I can't even begin to comprehend why anyone would think you are in the wrong when people are stealing from you. Because their ancestors freely stole (or had permission) from the former owners does not make it okay for them to steal from the new owners. That's just silly.

Those neighbors should just be thankful your land isn't a campground again. Then they'd have reason to complain. If you were not in the right, I highly doubt the ranger would be helping you. I hope you get them on camera soon. I'll be checking back to see how things go for you.

As a side note, I sure wish I was close to you. I was just saying today how I'd love to go to a U-Pick and load up on some yummy apples. Apple sauce, apple pie filling, apple butter...oh yum.

poof, end of problem. Better to get most of the close ones first with a few far far away ones to make them think.

I am listed with Localharvest.org and pickyourown.org The signs do direct people to our location, but more important, they help people find us when they are trying to get there. Our road isn't really visible from the highway, and then it is 2.2 miles down a dirt road that has other dirt roads leading from it. Without the signs, our customers stand a very small chance of finding us. There are no street signs, so I have to tell people what mile marker to look for.

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I yam what I yam and that's all what I yam.

Popeye

I can't get my computer to go to page 3 so don't know if this will post or not. Will give it a try anyway.

As for making bigger, heavier signs, bigger posts, locks, chains, etc. All that will accomplish is spray paint. If they can't move it, they will simply make it unreadable. I put myself through college by having garage sales which is 99% signs to get people there. Some people will just not tolerate signs no matter what you do. I did this for years, experimenting with advertising, bulletin boards, which days of the week work best, etc. Although the product is different, the method of selling remains the same. What I can't get is all the people who think you can pick and haul the apples when you have plainly said you can't. Then if one is not capable of the labor we are to give it up? This attitude is the reason laws had to be passed to protect people like me who are suffering from a physical disability. Good neighbors do not always make good neighbors in return. It does not matter where I have lived, a dozen states all over the US and city, suburb and way out in the boonies. If I did not have a neighbor from hell when I moved there, one would eventually move in right next door. Some people just are that way and nothing I can think, do or say is going to change them. I am nice to everyone, keep to myself and stay out of other peoples business. However, I keep myself armed at all times, have a couple of very big dogs and refuse to live in fear. I had some people push themselves into my house one time on the pretext of looking for the house across the street for sale. I sat quietly at my kitchen table with my weaponry out of site and my Pit Bull, Chesapeake Bay Retriever, and German Shephard sitting in a row next to me. It took me a half an hour to talk them out of the house and in the end told them my husband was due home and I needed to fix supper and they left. Afterwards I found some pills missing in my medicine cabinet that the one man had used to take his 2 year old daughter potty. The next day I hear on the news that a woman and her small child had been knifed by people matching the exact discription of the people who had forced there way in my house, right down to the van they were driving. I believe you have done everything you can to take care of this situation and are smart to leave it up to the authorities. You have my complete support and I hope you find a resolution to your situation. Foxy.