Problem With Coal Delivery and Neighbors

 
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joeq
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Post by joeq » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 8:17 am

I just found this thread, and can't believe of it's popularity. Or that it's that much of a big deal. I also can't believe that 1 car spot, can be that much of an inconvenience to the coal delivery. But then again, I don't know what the limitations are on his chute length. I would think the coal company (wanting the business), would find a way around this. I'm sure your dilemma isn't the 1st time they've run into this.
And going along the same route as the responder who referenced "Back-draft", have the coal company punch out the Jeeps windows, and fill the car with coal. Use "it" as your coal bin. I'm sure it would hold a tons worth. :)


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 8:20 am

Soooo, the concept of--in order to become old & wise, you must first be young & dumb-- does come into play at some point ;)

 
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Post by windyhill4.2 » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 8:56 am

Too soon dumb ,too late smart ,that saying will fit those who use a hostile method to "solve" this kind of a problem. Proverbs 15.1 says "A soft answer turneth away wrath; but grievous words stir up anger".This is advice that I would like to always remember to follow ,but too often speak/react too quickly & stir up more trouble & create a bigger mess. Punching out windows,fill with coal.... Add up the $$$...1 ton coal,1 Jeep,multiple legal & criminal charges + court costs = NO BIG DEAL :?: :roll:

 
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Post by titleist1 » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 9:11 am

windyhill4.2 wrote:Punching out windows,fill with coal.... Add up the $$$
A friend of my FIL's back in the day was a delivery guy for a concrete company. He suspected his wife was cheating on him and one delivery took him past his own house where the suspected cheatee's truck was parked. He went in and confirmed what he suspected, came out and dumped part of his load through the window of the truck & in the bed. He went back to the cement company and put a couple hundred on the counter and said...that load is on me. Not sure what the legal ramifications turned out to be but I know he didn't do jail time. Multiple good ole boys, including the owner of the truck have confirmed it is true over the years. They said the weight collapsed the truck and they had a heckuva time moving it. After many years passed the two get along pretty well now....the woman has moved on.

 
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joeq
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Post by joeq » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 10:14 am

windyhill4.2 wrote: Punching out windows,fill with coal.... Add up the $$$...1 ton coal,1 Jeep,multiple legal & criminal charges + court costs = NO BIG DEAL :?: :roll:
Too aggressive you say? How bout this. Hire a bucket loader to shove the Jeep a few spaces fwd.
(I'm sure the OP can differentiate between sarcasm and reality). C'mon, lighten up Windy. ;)

 
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Post by MarkG » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 10:40 am

Happy Sunday everyone!

As a few have stated, it's amazing what this thread has become. I certainly didn't expect it to blow up like this. Again, I'm humbled by the support and thankful for the suggestions and time of day you've all given me.

I was looking at the side of the porch yesterday trying to figure the best spot to position the opening to the bin. It still looks like it might be a bit of a challenge to access due to overhead wires so what I'm going to do first is try to be home for the next delivery and ask the delivery guys if they'd be able to swing it. I'm pretty sure they can, but I'd rather ask than blow a hole in the porch for nothing.

I didn't contact the authorities yet regarding the 24 hr. no parking ban but will look into that tomorrow.

Freddie, I never thought of asking the coal company about the payment plan. Good idea. I'm sure I'm not the first to ask. With a ton already in there, they may be more inclined to agree to it. I have a perfect track record of payment with them, so I have that on my side as well. My tax return this year was used to take care of some of the debts related to the purchasing/moving expenses. I didn't go about the purchase process in exactly the best way possible, but I did it in a manner in which we were best positioned to do so at the time. This house was on the market for seven months and dropped $10,000 in list price over that time. The fact that it had everything we wanted in a home made it a do or die situation, and with interest rates so low at the time (ours is 4%), we decided to borrow the money to cover the down payment/closing costs/moving expenses so we could get the house. Now that those debts are covered, we will be better off shortly. We're on pace for six ton per year, exactly what the previous owner stated, so if we can fill the bin twice per year, that would be ideal, so we're hoping we can take that route and have to deal with this problem less, but plans don't always work to perfection, so I want to be prepared in the event we can't do it that way and need to revert back to the monthly deliveries. Knock on wood, we haven't had any major problems with the house, but I also have to get an emergency fund established just in case, and we're currently going through our budget to see where we can cut costs and save more for this exact reason. Believe me, there's nothing more I'd like than to fill that bin to capacity and not have to worry about this. And to be able to stare at the beauty of the shiny pile of rock :D

The handicap parking spot would be nice, too. She fell down the stairs last month (no, really, she did fall :P) but she didn't do any permanent damage except to her ego ;)

 
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Post by windyhill4.2 » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 11:05 am

my typing skills are obviously lacking as I never intended to start another argument,was just trying to point out that the soft approach is best,as these days folks don't get even ,they kill. I will mind my own buisness & not follow this issue any further. :) :? :) :? :(


 
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Post by tjnamtiw » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 11:26 am

Why not print this whole thread out and give it to the neighbor? Then ask them if ANY of the suggestions make sense to them. Some they will see as detrimental to their future and unavoidable and others will or should seem like reasonable solutions. If they respond negatively, then you've done all you can do. Proceed with caution, BUT PROCEED.

 
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Post by MarkG » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 11:32 am

joeq wrote:I just found this thread, and can't believe of it's popularity. Or that it's that much of a big deal. I also can't believe that 1 car spot, can be that much of an inconvenience to the coal delivery. But then again, I don't know what the limitations are on his chute length. I would think the coal company (wanting the business), would find a way around this. I'm sure your dilemma isn't the 1st time they've run into this.
And going along the same route as the responder who referenced "Back-draft", have the coal company punch out the Jeeps windows, and fill the car with coal. Use "it" as your coal bin. I'm sure it would hold a tons worth. :)
The inconvenience to the coal company is risking the damage to a vehicle by their equipment. It's tight quarters for them to reach our bin when their Jeep is parked there and I don't think losing a $200/mo. delivery will break them when compared to the costs associated with damaging property because they took the risk. I don't want to cause them that inconvenience or have them turn us away because the risk is too great. They've been able to work around it thus far, but eventually I feel they'll deem it not worth the risk.

 
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Post by CapeCoaler » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 11:55 am

I think everyone has had a neighbor from hell at some point in their life...
We all feel for ya...
We all have been young and dumb too...
As we age we learn what is really important...
Hopefully your neighbor will grow up soon too...
Best to avoid the neighbor for they will soon self destruct...
Or piss off some young gun who will take a more direct path...
Best to let Darwin weed out the bad seed...
Fill your bin and ignore the neighbor...
It does work...
Let the kids be kids...

 
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Post by franco b » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 1:52 pm

windyhill4.2 wrote:my typing skills are obviously lacking as I never intended to start another argument,was just trying to point out that the soft approach is best,as these days folks don't get even ,they kill. I will mind my own buisness & not follow this issue any further. :) :? :) :? :(
I agree with you. The viewpoint of the neighbor also has to be considered. He is being asked to do something and is not asking somebody to do something for him. If he refuses, how is that bad except for it not being neighborly? He probably feels the he also is not being treated in a neighborly fashion with the noise the child makes when he has to sleep. He has his own problems.

There are lots of volunteers to hold his coat while Mark fights it out. He is the one who has to live with whatever happens though. Escalating the situation will only make it worse. Who wants to live in a permanent state of animosity with people living under the same roof? It's Mark's problem and not the neighbors and it is up to him to find a work around if that neighbor chooses not to cooperate.

 
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Post by JoeP » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 2:22 pm

I'd avoid any hostile suggestions / solutions since it may only make things a lot worse.

Someone suggested getting buckets and helping you, if the delivery truck cannot deal with it. Might be the thing to do in the short term and also make it a priority to obtain an inexpensive 2nd vehicle later this year. Once you get the extra car, plant it in that spot and then always keep it there.

If your neighbor complains about that, just say that you would be happy to let them take the spot back, but they have to move the car when you are scheduled for a fuel delivery. Then give them a second chance, and if they blow that too, then you perma-camp the spot with your old car.

Keep the emotions out of it. Not worth the anxiety and annoyance.

Edit: btw, you might also want to drop the prior owners of your house a note and ask them if they had the same problem with the car?

 
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Post by Lightning » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 2:58 pm

You mentioned earlier in this thread that the coal delivery person has been able to work around it even though its inconvenient. Maybe that's the best its gonna get... Better to work around it than stir up more drama if cooperation isn't in the cards.

 
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Post by MarkG » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 3:20 pm

franco b wrote:
windyhill4.2 wrote:my typing skills are obviously lacking as I never intended to start another argument,was just trying to point out that the soft approach is best,as these days folks don't get even ,they kill. I will mind my own buisness & not follow this issue any further. :) :? :) :? :(
I agree with you. The viewpoint of the neighbor also has to be considered. He is being asked to do something and is not asking somebody to do something for him. If he refuses, how is that bad except for it not being neighborly? He probably feels the he also is not being treated in a neighborly fashion with the noise the child makes when he has to sleep. He has his own problems.

There are lots of volunteers to hold his coat while Mark fights it out. He is the one who has to live with whatever happens though. Escalating the situation will only make it worse. Who wants to live in a permanent state of animosity with people living under the same roof? It's Mark's problem and not the neighbors and it is up to him to find a work around if that neighbor chooses not to cooperate.
Not trying to argue with you here, but just want to clarify in case you didn't read through the entire thread. We have considered his viewpoint and have been as respectful as we can be regarding the noise our kid makes, but it is impossible to keep a two year old quiet all day long. It's just not going to happen. Between the two of them, they have four kids. You think they'd understand that. Again, on numerous occasions, we have extended the olive branch to try resolving our differences and find a middle ground, but they don't want to budge. Not once have we received any kind of peace offering. At this point, it's beyond that. Escalation is not what I want, unless it's through the right channels. I would not take this to a physical/destructive level. I'd prefer to resolve this peacefully and in a manner that benefits both sides. That's why I came here - to solicit some ideas and maybe come across someone who dealt with it before. I've been given some great ideas to run with and I plan to do just that. Either way, when the problem is resolved by whatever means I choose, I won't lose sleep at night because I felt like I wasn't sympathetic to their needs as well.

 
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Post by MarkG » Sun. Feb. 23, 2014 3:25 pm

JoeP wrote:I'd avoid any hostile suggestions / solutions since it may only make things a lot worse.

Someone suggested getting buckets and helping you, if the delivery truck cannot deal with it. Might be the thing to do in the short term and also make it a priority to obtain an inexpensive 2nd vehicle later this year. Once you get the extra car, plant it in that spot and then always keep it there.

If your neighbor complains about that, just say that you would be happy to let them take the spot back, but they have to move the car when you are scheduled for a fuel delivery. Then give them a second chance, and if they blow that too, then you perma-camp the spot with your old car.

Keep the emotions out of it. Not worth the anxiety and annoyance.

Edit: btw, you might also want to drop the prior owners of your house a note and ask them if they had the same problem with the car?
I've talked to him about this, and he said 99% of the time, the Jeep was gone when he had deliveries. At the same time, he wasn't living here so he rarely had a delivery. Twice per year at most. Nobody lived here for 12 years, he just maintained the property until it became too much for him.


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