Our neighbor stuck a note on our car: “One car per house!” We ignored it. But, three days later, we woke up to our cars being towed.
We ran outside-and there she was, grinning wide.
ME: “Wow! You really did it, huh?”
HER: “What’s so funny?!” ME: “Nothing. Just the fact that YOU OWE US $25,000 NOW.”
HER: *nervous gulp* What-What do you mean? I pointed at the car’s tag and chuckled out loud. “Bet you didn’t get what that mark means, as it’s a federal designation,” I said, tapping the photo on my phone. “That tag means this vehicle is protected under the Veterans’ Assistance Property Act. It can’t be towed, ticketed, or even touched without prior clearance from the Department of Transportation.”
Her smile wavered. “That’s not… real, is it?”
“Oh, it’s very real,” I replied, watching her face turn the color of skim milk. “And now that you’ve interfered with not one, but two protected vehicles, the towing company is facing a federal investigation — and they already named you as the one who made the unauthorized call.”
Her mouth opened, but no words came out.
I continued, “So unless you’ve got $25,000 per vehicle lying around — plus legal fees — I’d suggest calling your lawyer. Oh, and maybe your HOA buddies too… if you want to explain why everyone’s now under audit for fake parking violations.”
She took a step back. “I-I didn’t mean… I just thought there were too many cars…”
“Right,” I nodded. “So you just assumed and took action. Without asking. Without knowing the law. Without realizing you basically stepped on a landmine.”
My wife appeared beside me, holding out her phone. “By the way, we recorded this little conversation. Just in case we need to show intent.”
The neighbor’s eyes widened. “You recorded me?!”
“You bet we did,” my wife said calmly. “Same way we recorded the note you left. And the phone call to the tow company. And the moment the truck took our cars.”
The woman stood frozen, then turned and walked — no, marched — back to her house, slamming the door behind her.
A week later, she posted a tearful apology on the neighborhood Facebook group.
She also paid for all fees, damages, and then some.
And from then on, we never got another note on our windshield.
But we did get fresh-baked cookies once a month — always from her.