JUNE 1 - HERE WE GO AGAIN

FROM BARRY:
EXPERT ADVICE from PB Post, Sunday May 21

Gwen Carden – Be a Good Neighbor

QUESTION: The neighbors on both sides of me have generators that ran every night after Hurricane Wilma for two weeks, until the power resumed. The noise was deafening and fumes poured into my open windows. I’m still angry.
Shouldn’t the neighbors know it’s common courtesy to silence their genereators late at night so that people who are sleeping with open windows can at least have some peace and quiet? I’m thinking of calling the police next time.

ANSWER: Ah, dear reader, if only common courtesy were common. While your neighbors were snug in their partially powered pads, you were boiling and rolling at the injustice of it all. Common courtesy calls for turning off generators between 11p.m. and 6 a.m. but not everyone is courteous.
I know it’s not easy, but consider chatting informally with your neighbors before hurricane season rolls around again. Say something like, “I’m sure you didn’t realize that your generator noise and fumes disturbed my sleep last year. Would you consider turning it off overnight if you use it again?”
Some people are so wrapped up in survival that their social consciousness is temporarily dulled. If you get a curt “no,” resign yourself to your fate and invest in some earplugs. Maybe your neighbors (or at least one) will see your side and be more considerate.
While I’d like to tell you that there’s legal recourse, even communities with noise ordinances suspend them in disaster situations, so calling the police won’t have any effect.