Hypocritical neighbours

Oh dear, this post has made me feel so guilty I live alone and am vulnerable with COPD. Yesterday my son and his wife came over with my weekly shopping ( which they get with their own delivery) and stayed to chat for half an hour. They have both been in isolation since lockdown began as my DIL is on the highly vulnerable list. This was her first outing. I have not been out at all! They did not come inside the house. We walked around the garden keeping our 2 metres apart. It was amazing how uplifted I felt just to actually have some human contact after so long. Your post has made me paranoid that my neighbours; who all have families living with them, will think I am flouting the rules and being being a Covidiot. ?

Your so right to feel how you do my daughter WhatsApp me to say some of the neighbours at the back of her was having a ve day party outside she was so angry she has followed all the rules and it's been hard because my 2 grandsons are only 10 and 7 and from what she said later it went on till late at night people just don't care

I have a friend and we speak over the phone about once a week. When I tell her I have just been out for my exercise or done a large shop, she boasts that both of them haven't been off the premises for over 6 weeks and have their food delivered. But yesterday when we spoke she had been out in the street at a street party and had made friends with so many people she didn't know. She was going back out in about half an hour to finish off the party and blamed fireworks. Words failed me.

Appalling, it’s disgusting that people don’t follow the guidelines, they are been selfish and not thinking of others. I know my family mean more to me than anything else and I so miss not having my granddaughters, but all I keep telling myself is that following the rules that one day we will be here to welcome them back in our home with a huge hug. We will be here for them. Thank goodness for FaceTime. I have lupus, but it’s only mild so I’m not self isolating. Even so I haven’t been in a supermarket since the Friday before Mother’s Day. I just go on my daily walks around our village and go to a drive through farm shop once a week.

One of my neighbours had a BBQ with guests! I fumed. He is the first to complain.
I can't understand it. I haven't been out since 21 March. I want us to overcome this virus.

Is the tide turning?
A few weeks back, those commenting on neighbours' lack of social distancing got a real roasting.

I posted then that my neighbour was going out and about, on the bus, visiting her adult children (4 of them, also doing their own thing) and she still is.

It sounds like they're banking on everyone else's efforts and thinking it'll be fine because most people are doing the right thing. Let's hope they're right. I'd phone the police non emergency number anyway, as CarlyD7 said.

In Australia a neighbour reported to the police 7 students had dinner together , they got fined $1650 each. The rule is tight there but here it is worthless . It's the reason why other countries did a much better job.

Same here - Thursday night much clapping - yesterday mini street party with some neighbors all sitting much closer than 2m or even 1m the children playing with each other

My neighbours have 3 young children. Yesterday they had the youngish grandparents round, in the garden playing with the children, no social distancing. These neighbors also clap on Thursday. My daughter, who is married to a police officer, said I should report them. I feel this could cause unpleasantness as they will know it was me. We do not know them at all, as their garden backs onto ours so don't see them often. We haven't seen our grandchildren who live just 10 miles away, since lock down. It seems so unfair, and I just had to have a rant because I see that several of you are also in this position.

I think the trouble is that these people know we are all going to have to live in our neighbourhoods once this is all over, if it ever is. They think that they will not be reported. They are in most cases right. When I told my brother that my neighbours were having people over, loud music & BBQ's several days running he wanted to come over to have a word with them. Both my brother & I are over 70 & my neighbours are late 20's with friends the same age mainly men. Several children too. So did we say anything or report them? No because I have to live here & have had many bad neighbours in the next property over the years. They are nice enough people otherwise, just do not think that they have to stay apart. Regular visitors there, young children all very close. Then they will wonder why they get the virus!

Well I'm not sorry or embarrassed to say if it were my neighbours I would report them every time. How can anyone sit there and watch people come and go and do nothing? It's OUR lives they are playing with as well as their own. Deaths aren't going to slow down any time soon if we just let them get away with it all the time.

Hypocrites. That is what my cousin branded his neighbours, he is an ambulance driver. He told them He didn’t want the clap. Ahem... he could have phrased it a little better. So they took it as a joke and carried on partying.
He must have had a bad day, and ranted further that he doesn’t need patting on the head for doing what he has done for twenty years! And that he is not a child that needs praising all the time.
They shrugged, “what’s his problem?” And carried on partying.
I have come to the conclusion that people will do as they please, and they don’t even respect the police when cautioned. Mind you I am not always consistent and can launch into Meldrew at any point.
Look after yourself everyone, let’s keep doing what we are doing.xx

The recent coinage "covidiot" seems relevant here.

My neighbours are just the same. She is in her seventies and has health issues so is classed as vulnerable and is continuously reinforcing the fact. They have a succession of family visitors children and grandchildren etc. She gets in the car and visits her family yet she expects me to do her alcohol shop once a fortnight as she won't go shopping and her husband doesn't like her excessive drinking. I feel used. She's a very loud forceful personality and I'm concerned about upsetting the apple cart by saying something! Her husband is a retired policeman so he's obviously not concerned about the social distancing. I've got a 6wk old grandson who I haven't seen and am desperate for that first cuddle?

It is eleven weeks since I have seen any family member other than on my phone.
I am doing my bit and staying home but constantly see one neighbour have their family visit with the GC. When the family are not there the neighbours are coming and going in the car, not once a day to take exercise or shop but many times. Yesterday they left early morning and didn't return until after dark so must have been visiting somewhere else.
They are not the kind of neighbours I would associate with and haven't reported them yet but am sorely tempted.

Reading your comments makes me incredibly sad as well as angry that people could be so stupid, trumpesque as I call them. Like you I haven't seen my family for 2 months. My husband decided we should isolate on 15th March.
I also feel anger at our government for being so slow. Once the virus reached Italy, the writing was on the wall.
So many medics have lost their lives. The Reuters special report about shielding our hospitals made me cry out of sheer frustration.
I don't think life will be the same. I, for one, will not want to shake hands again. It will be a long time before my husband and I will use public transport.
Stay safe. Keep well.

Neighbours decided to have a VE day party - or afternoon tea. Invitations were posted through doors with the added note - bring a chair and your own food with the starting time.
I thought we'd all be sitting in our gardens around the close but no, chairs and tables were set out along our side road, plus flags and bunting, 6ft distancing was not observed, kids running around as if at a fun fair as well as in and out of each other's houses. Then later on in the evening, a message was sent around saying to dash down to our village green before the Queen's address as the Baptist minister (who normally has diddley squat to do with anyone outside his congregation to the point that it's almost a sect, would be saying a few words, followed by everyone joining together to sing "We'll meet again"!
I didn't go as I'm shielding, but one of the organisers lives with her mother that has one and a half lungs due to cancer, and her father has had several heart attacks. Another neighbour decided to have a coffee morning with her sister the other day.
I just despair !

We got invited to a neighbours VE garden party but stayed the proper distance apart. It worked and it was great to have a chat again

Oh kangaroo73 you are not wrong. I've had to leave our neighbours to their own nonsense. Since isolation one of our neighbours has had visitors and have stood chatting outside to others. It really has annoyed me as I watch my friends going into work every day not knowing if it is safe, yes they are nurses in hospital. I've recently retired but due to health reasons cannot return. What neighbours were doing was really upsetting me, but I've had to learn to not look, if they want to risk it they keep away from me. So far luck has been on their side. Just dont look and realise it is their life and I shall clap every Thursday for every dear friend that goes through the hospital doors and pray they will remain safe. Take care. Xx

I can’t believe what I’m reading. We have few near neighbours so wouldn’t know if rules were being flouted, except for spitting a strange car parked near one house for 3 days. It wouldn’t be surprising if there was a spike in infections in a weeks time. These people are probably the same as anti vaccine people- let everyone else do the protecting not them .

Spotting not spitting!

As an overview on this, I think the government is just happy if a majority adhere to lockdown. I’ve read that Boris didn’t want it anyway but bowed to the pressure. I really don’t know one way or the other but so think that if it’s government advice, we should be following it at leat for a few more weeks. And yes, lots of close up gatherings here as well ( although still only a minority).

Same here, on Thursday our neighbours had their son and his partner round grantedthey stayed in the garden but were there for most of the afternoon, then yesterday VE day we had a party in the street, most of us kept to just the edge of the pavement, not my neighbours they had several friends from further up the street and one of her sisters and husband who live in a different town, social distancing was non existing, one of the ladies is a care home nurse, our neighbours are carers for his parents who live in the same street, they are both in poor health and in their eighties. They will be out on Thursday night clapping and cheering but basically I don't think they care just as long as they can continue to enjoy themselves.

Lockdown is breaking down and this is the very reason why the Government didn't do it earlier. Unfortunately, as bad as the virus is, many, many people do not actually know anybody who has had the virus, let alone died from it. This makes it less attractive to stay within the rules especially if they have pressing bills, anxieties, etc. Personally, I have every intention of staying safe but I do get why people are beginning to have an 'it won't happen to me' attitude. I don't like it but I do understand it.