My Opinion Monday - I'm that old lady...

There's just something about neighbor kids playing in my yard that gets me...I remind myself of the old lady in the Paper Boy video game (regular Nintendo, you all know what I'm talking about right??) that use to chase you off her lawn. I think she came out with a knife, or maybe that's what my brother told me anyways.

A few years ago when I live in the 'burbs (ugh, I hope I never live in those again) there were kids in every house around. The neighbors to one side use to throw their trash into the backyard - like old CD's and beer boxes or whatever else else the kids could find. Then the kids across the street would find their way to our front yard. Oh hey, how about you play in your own yard? I even yelled "get out of my yard" to a kid one day. I drove away thinking "uh, I'm that old lady!" ..but I was only 23 at the time.

So I now live in a small neighborhood with a pack of kids in one house just caddy corner from us. They were at the park yesterday riding their bikes on the tennis courts after somehow getting their bike through the actual opening. It's set up so that anyone wider than 12 inches would have troubles maneuvering the corner. As we tried to play tennis, he found it necessary to ride his bike all about both courts. I finally said polietly, "you're going to have to stay on that side of the court, we're trying to play here..." He listened and ran off into the woods with a PVC pipe that I imagine he and the rest of the pack used to beat the crap out of each other...

And then today, I'm out grilling dinner and that damn kid is riding his bike in the backyard. Mind you, there is a dead end street that he lives on, so he has no reason (other than being a little shit) to be in the backyard. He picked up a few branches and rode off with them, only dropping one back on the yard and looking and smiling at me the whole time.

I don't have huge issues with kids, I have issues with disrespectful kids. You have your own damn yard to play in, if you MUST venture into ours, at least ask us if it's okay. I'm just glad that Tyler trimmed the tree this weekend - no doubt he'd climb to the top, jump off and his parents sue us for their kids stupidity.

Kids these days....have some respect for your elders, even if they are only 27!