Take it sleazy

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June 24th, 2013 · 59 comments

Jeff in California was not too happy when a neighbor slapped this on his door. “I am a lover of vintage neon,” he says, “and do not drink Budweiser or hang out in dive bars.” (I’m guessing his neighbor didn’t catch the nuance.)

related: Tacky, you say?

FILED UNDER: a matter of taste · California · neighbors

59 responses so far ↓

#1 Tammy

Tacky is leaving a snide note and not knowing how to spell understanding and truly.

Jun 24, 2013 at 7:28 pm rating: 90

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- #1.1 Judith Vegan-Barnes
  
  Maybe she used up her allotment for N that day.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 7:58 pm rating: 90
- #1.2 JK
  
  What’s with people using sticky notes for all these things? It’s for people who want the classiness of a text without all that ‘this is my identity’ stuff.
  
  If you gotta move onto a second sticky note, bust out a piece of paper and some tape. Perhaps an envelope. Not like it matters. 9 times out of 10, assume a person doing this with a neon sign has no intention of changing what they do, roll your eyes, and go on about your day like the rest of us.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 9:59 pm rating: 90
- #1.3 The Elf
  
  You said it, JK. When you have a grievances, the only classy way to handle to write your passive-aggressive note using quill and parchment on fine vellum.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 6:39 am rating: 90
- #1.4 The Elf
  
  Quill and ink! Damn it, I should stop reading this site before the coffee takes hold.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 6:40 am rating: 90
- #1.5 redheadwglasses
  
  Or a porcupine and blood. Poor man’s quill and ink.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 4:25 pm rating: 90
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#2 Tard

Can’t sign the note?
You don’t deserve the respect of compliance.
God, I hate pussies.

Jun 24, 2013 at 7:59 pm rating: 90

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- #2.1 jdaniel
  
  Really? I never met one I did not like.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 9:13 pm rating: 90
- #2.2 Jami
  
  Even the blue kind, JD?
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 9:52 pm rating: 90
- #2.3 Raichu
  
  Pussies? Really?
  
  Jun 30, 2013 at 10:57 am rating: 90
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#3 Nahhh

Dear Neighbors:

So, move.

Jun 24, 2013 at 8:06 pm rating: 90

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- #3.1 JK
  
  I’d love to see the reactions of people on this comment thread if it was Christmas lights up year round. What if they want to practice a ‘Christmas every day’ philosophy of philanthropy and celebration by leaving everything up?
  
  Why should they have to move (a stressful and expensive process made more difficult if it affects their property value to live near a guy like this with neon signs) when he could treasure his precious sign easily enough with a slight adjustment and no expense? Should he HAVE to change his situation? No. Would it be a nice thing to do? Probably.
  
  He’s well within his right to have the sign (assuming it doesn’t violate some local statute), but both he and his neighbor are jerks. The neighbor’s a jerk for being obnoxious and cowardly via sticky note. He’s a jerk for not considering other people when he puts up that sign. How it’s bizarre to this guy that someone else doesn’t appreciate his love of vintage neon, I don’t know. It glows and references beer. It can’t be a shock that it might be viewed as tacky. A matter of opinion, sure, but the other possible opinion here is an obvious and predictable one.
  
  So many people worry about their own wants and needs ahead of what might be the considerate thing to do. No, you don’t have to do it. It would be nice if you did. You can be absolutely, 100% right about something and still be a jerk. Put up the sign, in your house, where you can see it. A neon sign viewable from the street does look business-y. If it’s not in the window but is visible through the window, maybe shift it over a few feet. Problem solved.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 9:48 pm rating: 90
- #3.2 Poltergeist
  
  JK – so your logic is that anybody who doesn’t give into some douchebag’s demand for the removal of property based on differences in taste is being a jerk?
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 10:15 pm rating: 90
- #3.3 Poltergeist
  
  You know that painting hanging on your living room wall that’s visible from the street? It’s not my taste. I only like paintings of big fucking squares. Remove it or you’re being a jerk.
  
  I can see the standing lamp too. It’s old and dusty and reminds me of my horrid grandmother. Throw that thing away or you’re being jerk.
  
  I hate the fuzzy dice hanging from your car’s rear-view mirror. After your dog got fixed, did you save his balls and dye them pink? Get rid of them or you’re being a jerk.
  
  Speaking of your car, it’s a hideous model and has a dent in it. Plus it’s red, and we all know red cars are troublemakers. Park it in the garage or you’re being a jerk.
  
  That Jewish candle thingy is stupid. It’s Christmastime, not Bar fucking Mitzvah time. Take it out of the window or you’re being a jerk.
  
  To top it all off, you’re pretty goddamn ugly. Your wardrobe clashes and your face could make a blind man vomit. Close the damn blinds while you’re at home or you’re being a jerk.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 10:58 pm rating: 90
- #3.4 mystic_eye
  
  The notewriter asks that it be moved away from the window so it can’t be seen from the outside. That suggests:
  1) It’s inside
  2) You can’t actually see it from within the notewriter’s abode.
  
  Finally, we’ve had the xmas lights year round argument many times on this sit.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 12:51 am rating: 90
- #3.5 Tom
  
  There’s a world of difference between a sign that you can see from the street vs house decor that you need to slink up to their window and peer inside to see like a creeper.
  
  I’ve got a grand idea. Mr Budweiser, draw the shades when it’s night and turn the sign off when you go to bed.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 10:35 am rating: 90
- #3.6 JK
  
  @Poltergeist – I would really hate to live next to you. Please put up a neon sign declaring your location so I can avoid doing so in the future.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 2:25 pm rating: 90
- #3.7 redheadwglasses
  
  Who CARES about someone’s neon beer sign? I can’t imagine caring.
  
  Team Poltergeist here.
  
  Want nontacky decor surrounding your home? Go live in one of those HOAs.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 4:27 pm rating: 90
- #3.8 Poltergeist
  
  Aww, really JK? I was looking forward to you leaving a bunch of PA notes on my door.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 8:05 pm rating: 90
- #3.9 Jami
  
  Here’s the thing, the sign’s inside. The whole problem would be solved if the dude just either put a super dark tint on his window so people can’t see inside but he gets plenty of light, or puts up a lace panel that does the same.
  
  Curtains are your friend.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 9:55 pm rating: 90
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#4 Red Delicious

Doesn’t matter if you “don’t drink budweiser” or “don’t hang out in dive bars.” Apparently the note writer doesn’t understand that by hanging neon signs in your place that are visible to everyone, you then MAKE IT LOOK like your place is a dive bar. And THAT is what no one wants to see.

Note could’ve been written better to reflect this, but as with most PA notes, the worse the grammar/spelling/syntax is, the funnier the note.

This one kinda falls flat.

Jun 24, 2013 at 8:07 pm rating: 90

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- #4.1 Rattus
  
  Why would no one want to see that? I’d rather see that over the usual Law & Order rerun and art-by-the-pound I see through most people’s windows.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 8:30 pm rating: 90
- #4.2 Poltergeist
  
  Tacky or not, it’s his window and he can hang whatever he wants in it.
  
  The note is counterproductive anyway since it’s just begging for the spiteful placement of naked cherub statues and lawn flamingos.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 8:53 pm rating: 90
- #4.3 jdaniel
  
  I would imagine he CAN’T hang whatever he wants in his window. Most apartment complexes, many neighborhoods (especially those with home owner associations) and a considerable number of cities might either ban or have severe zoning restrictions.
  
  Your days of unbridled freedom have been dwindling for a few decades, ESPECIALLY in California. Hope and Change, you know.
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 9:20 pm rating: 90
- #4.4 Guin
  
  It doesn’t say it’s hanging IN the window, it says it’s visible from the outside. And yes, it’s totally Obama’s fault that we have HOA’s. *eyeroll*
  
  Jun 24, 2013 at 10:13 pm rating: 90
- #4.5 The Elf
  
  If it’s not part of the HOA (or rental agreement), Bud Dude can do it and the Notewriter Neighbor should suck it up.
  
  One exception: unless it creates a disturbance, in which case they are justified in making a request. For instance, if the light shone brightly into their bedroom window, they could ask for him to turn it off after whatever hour or move it. But if that were the case, I have no doubt there’d be a third sticky to explain that point.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 6:46 am rating: 90
- #4.6 H for Toy
  
  Yes, please turn off the Budweiser sign at night. Also your frogs. Thank you.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 6:52 am rating: 90
- #4.7 L
  
  Once I wrote “Help Me” on the window in window markers. It looked funny when we had up the halloween decorations.
  
  Four months later, it was not so funny when somebody called the cops XD
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 5:18 pm rating: 90
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#5 Pippi Longstocking

“I” —> “neighbors” doesn’t gel. Shouldn’t it be “Your neighbor”? Or is this tool more of a pussy than initially thought? “Signed: Me! Me and my really big ARMY of people who all think you’ve practically broken the law too.” PS: Where I live, the gist of that note has no merit anyway. You cannot mandate how another person decorates, even if it lacks your sophisticated sense of style, and, yes, even if your precious peepers are assaulted by it daily. In Australia we call that Fascism.

Jun 24, 2013 at 8:31 pm rating: 90

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- #5.1 FeRD
  
  (A) The “I” / “Neighbors” thing MAY just indicates a notewriter who’s half of a couple, and is used to signing things from the not-so-royal “us”. That’s a pretty common/innocent writing quirk. Or, the notewriter may simply be presuming to speak for All The Neighbors, as busybody neighbors are wont to do. Not sure there’s any need for psychological-warfare conspiracy theories.
  
  (B) The gist of the note is, “Please move your sign”. That’s a REQUEST, not a mandate, and as such has merit everywhere. Nobody is trying to force anyone to do anything, and people are allowed to ask anything they wish of anyone — who is allowed to turn them down, of course.
  
  Of course, this request was made in a particularly clumsy and inappropriate manner. And there’s no question, it vastly overreaches the bounds of what’s appropriate when communicating via Post-It Note with (sounds like) relative strangers. But your “fascism” histrionics are completely misplaced.
  
  Rein it in, Che; the revolution can wait for now.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 2:08 am rating: 90
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#6 DarthKlipsch

I would move the sign directly into the window, just because I’m a dick. And add an additional sign into every window to be an extra big dick. But that’s just me, you can do whatever you wish.

Just no pink flamingos, I hate those damn things,

Jun 24, 2013 at 8:54 pm rating: 90

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- #6.1 Tom
  
  Around here the villages would come after you. Even businesses aren’t allowed signs like that, much less residential houses. *knock knock* I have a fine for violating town ordinances on 4 counts…
  
  Get involved with your local architectural board and make your dream of the ugliest house possible!
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 10:38 am rating: 90
- #6.2 Poltergeist
  
  Businesses aren’t allowed neon signs in their windows? Where the hell do you live?
  
  *knock knock* We think the decorations you have on your own property are ugly. Our duty is to make the world a better place, one frivolous fine at a time. Now please excuse me, it’s the end of the month and I have get back to giving out tickets to people going 3 mph over the speed limit.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 1:19 pm rating: 90
- #6.3 Tom
  
  I live in a “historical” town that lives to nitpick what is “appropriate”. You call it frivolous fines, they call it village income AND they get to tell everyone what color they can paint anything. It’s a win-win in their eyes.
  
  From my understanding, HOAs that get to do almost anything they want are not that uncommon across the USA. And general zoning regulations such as “no business signs over such-and-such size and lighted so-an-so in residential zones” are rather common….everywhere there’s zones, really. Which is most everywhere.
  
  Anyway, I’m just sayin’, commercial signs in residential buildings can certainly get a knock on the door if someone tells the town inspector, and most people consider beer advertisements commercial
  
  Just make a neon pink butt sign for every window. Nothing commercial here no sir!
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 1:45 pm rating: 90
- #6.4 H for Toy
  
  I live in a small town with nothing special or historical about it. The wording on the codes is exteemely vague, and can be interpreted as “if your neighbors don’t like it, you have to get rid of it.”
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 2:19 pm rating: 90
- #6.5 redheadwglasses
  
  HOAs like that are NOT common across the country, but they are common in certain areas. Florida is ripe with ‘em.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 4:29 pm rating: 90
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#7 H for Toy

Please move your Budweiser sign so it can’t be seen from the window. My girlfriend keeps getting confused and heading to your house every night, because she thinks it’s a dive bar. At least I think that’s why she goes over there.

Jun 24, 2013 at 9:00 pm rating: 90

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#8 Poltergeist

The magnet reminds me – I wonder what kind of outrage would spew forth from the local Christian community if I posted a similar note about my neighbor’s painted wood carving of Caucasian Jesus’s toned body, delicate features, and perfectly conditioned hair nailed to the cross. It’s either that or the blowup nativity scene, but at least they take that down a few months after Christmas.

Jun 24, 2013 at 9:25 pm rating: 90

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#9 Vivica Halliwell

Unless the lights are keeping you up at night, or there is a naked Hitler fucking a baby in bright green neon, then i don’t think anyone has to move the sign.

It would be nice, but I personally would not do it unless the person came up to talk to me in person. I am all for being nice to your neighbors, keeping the neighborhood clean, and making sure you do not offend the local culture. But a beer sign is not the end of the world.

Jun 25, 2013 at 1:08 am rating: 90

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- #9.1 The Elf
  
  Agree on the talking in person part. If a neighbor came to talk to me – in person – about something in our yard/house they found objectionable, I’d take it under consideration. A PAN, especially unsigned? Forget it.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 6:49 am rating: 90
- #9.2 Vivica Halliwell
  
  I think this whole judgment depends entirely on where the beer sign is located. If its in the window, then a happy medium might be to have it on the wall.
  
  I have had neighbors try to police the way my apartment or house looked. My mother used to make metal statues of small animals, or birds. She would sell them for a good chunk of change to local people. But she kept a beautiful bronze statue of a hawk on our lawn.
  
  My father is a contractor and is familiar with local laws. So when the neighbor complained about how tacky the hawk was, he told her there was nothing wrong with it, it was up to code, and even matched the neighborhood, which was done in a lot of pueblo styles. Other people had large fountains, tacky ceramic suns on their walls, and giant statues of children playing.
  
  She ended up coming over to our property and trying to take a bat to the hawk. We moved it into the backyard, and she complained she could see it through the gate.
  
  Sometimes people are jerks with nothing better to do with their time.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 4:32 pm rating: 90
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#10 Hbomb

“lover of vintage neon”. Douche. That said, it’s his damn house to be douchey in!

Jun 25, 2013 at 6:30 am rating: 90

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#11 jj

with the no religion thing on the door, maybe they assumed the tenant is a drunken slob who lives for beer, not a neon collector. Complainers gotta complain.

Jun 25, 2013 at 7:59 am rating: 90

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- #11.1 observant
  
  Those are fridge magnets. The person took the note inside and put it on display.
  
  Also, the assumption that someone who disdains organized religion is a drunken slob is ridiculous. The two ideas do not go together and I think you’re just showing your own bias.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 10:29 am rating: 90
- #11.2 JoDa
  
  Those *are* fridge magnets, but judging by the texture of the paint job, he’s got them on a steel fire door. I have a couple ‘o’ magnets on the (inside) of my front door myself. Safe from fire, with a convenient place to hang notes and important mail, to boot!
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 11:23 pm rating: 90
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#12 Dane Zeller

You all may have it wrong! Maybe the objection isn’t to the sign, but to the brand of beer. A Corona neon sign might be okay. (I used “Corona” because I couldn’t spell “Hienekin.”)

Jun 25, 2013 at 8:34 am rating: 90

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- #12.1 The Elf
  
  Piss beer by any other name is still piss beer.
  
  Team hefeweizen FTW.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 10:15 am rating: 90
- #12.2 Beatus Mongous
  
  I’m going to hang a neon Henry Weinhard’s Root Beer sign in my window.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 11:19 am rating: 90
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#13 Who passed out the Haterade?

For this one, mark me up as Team “Can’t fathom why anyone thinks ‘p****’ is a socially-acceptable synonym for ‘coward’.”

Jun 25, 2013 at 8:52 am rating: 90

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- #13.1 The Elf
  
  Because “dick” already had another pejorative meaning.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 10:17 am rating: 90
- #13.2 Snowflame
  
  It is a bit of an odd one though. I mean, I can see how “dick” gets it’s pejorative meaning…popping up at awkward times, refusing to leave, and then just when someone actually needs it most, it’s nowhere to be found. But has anyone had trouble with female genitalia running away?
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 11:59 am rating: 90
- #13.3 Lil'
  
  My high school boyfriend would say yes.
  
  Jun 25, 2013 at 12:09 pm rating: 90
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#14 My name is Princess!

Dive Bars = Cheaper Alcohol and a set of folks with a lot of character. I don’t see what the problem is.

Jun 25, 2013 at 9:33 am rating: 90

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#15 Phoenix

Wow, i’d hate to live across the street from such a proud hipster too. That said, I live in a college town. I’m pretty used to a world decorated by self-satisfied 20-somethings. At least they grow out of it eventually, unlike prissy neighbors like the note writer.

Jun 25, 2013 at 1:04 pm rating: 90

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#16 Nectaris

It might not be as easy to move as the neighbor might think. We have six in our game room(no one can even see our house from the road), and they are heavy, there could be only so many places they could put it with the proper support. Perhaps simply closing the blinds at night could keep the neighbor from being irritated. If they have them on in the daytime, then the neighbor is just being overly picky.

Jun 25, 2013 at 5:23 pm rating: 90

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#17 dom

I’m a bit confused by why your interior decoration matters so much?

Jun 27, 2013 at 2:14 am rating: 90

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- #17.1 this is a question?
  
  You seem confused about a lot of things?
  
  Jun 27, 2013 at 12:03 pm rating: 90
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#18 Big Red

Knew someone once upon a time with a Schlitz Malt Liquor Bull 3D neon sign. His wife who was shall we say uncomplicated, used the horns to hang wet laundry on.
For those that are too young to remember Schlitz symbol was a bull crashing through a wall.

Jun 27, 2013 at 3:04 pm rating: 90

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#19 warns

The neighbors need to close their blinds and mind their business. Unless they run a homeowners association or something, leaving a note about someone else’s decor is tacky and pointless. 10 bucks says this person ran out to get more neon signs.

Jul 2, 2013 at 4:31 pm rating: 90

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