I live in a neighborhood with many small ponds and for as long as I
have lived here (18 years), the neighborhood kids have fished the ponds
and nobody has ever objected as long as the kids stay out of people
yards. There are portions of the ponds with either power line right of
way or along unpaved roads where the kids can fish. My neighborhood
abuts another where the neighborhoods have different associations so
nobody really has control over the rights of way.
So, I took my 10 yr old daughter to fish with her little friend and we
were just sitting with nothing happening when a voice behind me says
"You are trespassing" so I turned to see a sour looking older guy and I
said, "I am sorry, we didnt know it wasnt allowed" (there are no
signs). "My name is David OHara and you are?" and he says, " I am Joe
Blow, president of the homeowners association and fishing is allowed
only for residents". Not being sure of my ground but realizing there
was something wrong with what he said, I replied, "Well then, we will
go then but I hope people treat you as well as you have treated me and
my kids". Of course, I said this in a very nice way. He got livid and
red in the face and I thought I might be able to provoke him into
something stupid and he blurted out "WE have spent tens of thousands of
dollars to keep this up, What would you think if somebody went onto
your property" and I replied "This isnt your property, it is right of
way, but I'd welcome them, I encourage the kids from your neighborhood
to walk across my property so they wont have to walk so far from the
bus, I like to know who is in the neighborhood". "I will continue to
be nice to them". He got really angry and asked if I was being smart
with him and I again said "I hope people treat you as well as you have
treated us" and "It's interesting to see the good examples that adults
set for kids" pointing to my daughter and friend. He was really ****ed
and shouted "I live across the pond and had to drive a mile aeound here
when I saw you fishing" to which I replied "You drove a mile for me, I
am impressed, thank you". As we walked away, I saw a pile of beer cans
and broken bottles somebody had left and I pointed to it and said, "I
like how well your association keeps up the place, so would the health
department but I am sure you will find the time to pick up this health
hazard"
As we walked home, I realized what was wrong with what he said. The
property I was on I really did have permission from 3 years ago when I
had briefly talked to the owner. Furthermore, There is no way he could
claim to control the pond because my own homeowner association had
tried to find who controlled that pond because it caused flooding to
our road (not govt maintained roads) and 4 of the homes on it were in
our association.
You see, I never did question his "property rights" and he might
actually have the legal right to kick us off. However, I have the
legal right to get him mad enough to have a stroke by killing him with
kindness.

I got that from a guy whose property runs along a stream I've been fishing
forever. It was never posted until a year ago, but the signs were almost
100' back from the stream, at a spot where NOBODY walks because of the dense
thorny underbrush. The trail's 10 feet from the stream, so no way I saw the
signs. The guy began the conversation as if I'd raped his daughter. Real
nasty attitude. I asked if he was the new owner of the land. He said he'd
owned it for 40 years. I told him that if it was posted, I wouldn't be on
his land. He pointed to the nearest sign, way back from the stream. I asked
if he'd finally posted because of all the litter. Of course, that's usually
the reason, and he confirmed that. I always have a small plastic bag in my
vest for litter. I pulled it out, showed him, and said "I've been coming
here for years, and I've never left as much as a one inch piece of
monofilament (vest pocket's filled with pieces), and I usually pick up other
peoples' containers as I leave". The guy shook my hand, introduced himself,
and told me to watch out for the poison ivy up the trail.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
.... The guy shook my hand, introduced himself,
and told me to watch out for the poison ivy up the trail.


Sounds like you were patient & tactful.... successful at
avoiding needless confrontation. Want a job in government?

DSK

"DSK" wrote in message
...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
.... The guy shook my hand, introduced himself, and told me to watch out
for the poison ivy up the trail.

Sounds like you were patient & tactful.... successful at avoiding needless
confrontation. Want a job in government?

DSK


Sorry, but I nobody would like my "patient & tactful" plan for the Middle
East. Too weird.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"DSK" wrote in message
...
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
.... The guy shook my hand, introduced himself, and told me to watch out
for the poison ivy up the trail.
Sounds like you were patient & tactful.... successful at avoiding needless
confrontation. Want a job in government?

DSK


Sorry, but I nobody would like my "patient & tactful" plan for the Middle
East. Too weird.



Did you start drinking before 5:00 PM again? "Sorry, I but nobody would..."

Well this is all just sad. When I was a kid there was a small lake in
the neighborhood, A fellow by the name of Tom Crow lived about 5 houses
down and across the street right on the lake, he has a nice dock in his
back yard, and all us teenage boys were welcome to go in his yard and
fish whenever we liked.

As a matter of fact, Tom owned the local lumber yard. When we turned 16
he hired a few of us after school to work at the lumber yard. My first
job, working with my friends.

When I see the guys from the old days, we still laugh and joke about
the times we had working at the lumber yard, there was a room with bins
on the walls full of different kinds of nails, and a scale the center
of the room to weight the purchases. Well the floor was about 2 inches
deep in spillled nails from over the years, we had to 'sort' the nails
back into their appropriate bins. Good grief, we would sit in there
sorting nails, singing Molly Hatchet songs.

Best times of my life, fishing on Toms dock and working at the lumber
yard with my buddies.

How the hell did life get so complicated?