I’ve always loved hanging laundry outside. There’s something peaceful about it—the fresh air, the sun warming the fabric. But when Melissa moved in next door, she turned my peaceful routine into a battle.
Every time I hung my sheets, her grill magically appeared. Thick smoke would drift over, saturating my clean clothes with the smell of burnt meat. At first, I thought it was bad timing. Then I realized—it was sabotage.
“Melissa,” I said one day, “do you really need to grill every time I do laundry?”
She blinked innocently. “I’m just using my yard. Isn’t that what good neighbors do?”
My late husband Tom would’ve laughed at the absurdity. “Diane,” he’d say, “pick your battles.”
This was one I was willing to fight.
Instead of arguing, I got creative. I dug up old, brightly colored towels and hung them like flags during her precious Saturday brunches. Her influencer friends gasped as their perfect photos were “ruined” by my rainbow display.
“You’re doing this on purpose!” Melissa snapped.
“Just like your grill?” I smiled.
She moved her brunches inside. The grill gathered dust. And now? My laundry dries in peace.
Sometimes, the best revenge is simply outlasting your opponent.
