Neighbor tries to trick woman into being her maid, babysitter, and pet sitter all at once, for free: 'She asked if i could just watch her kid for 15 mins while she ran errands and it turned into over an hour'

Who wouldn't want free pet or child care and a cleaner to boot?

Good things in life that make life better and easier. But they don't come free. There's a reason that having a regular cleaning service is considered a luxury, and that pet sitting and child care services are always talked about as being the most exorbitant of expenses, giving most working couples pause to consider having one parent stay at home or work part-time to avoid the cost. 

It all comes down to time. We get paid for our time by our employer, and we pay money for goods and services to save ourselves time. By the time you've counted in eight hours of work, an unpaid hour-long lunch break, and the time it takes to commute to and from work, there are very few hours left in the day, and then we spend most of it taking care of chores or caring for our children.

Well, for most of us, when we work late and get home, falling down exhausted on the couch to do a little doom scrolling, we start hearing the sweet siren song of the delivery app we uninstalled last week when we swore we were done wasting money on food delivery. We thought we were turning over a new leaf, but all it took was one long day at work and one long look at the kitchen to send us right back to old habits. Oh well, there's always next week to start off good habits. 

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Author image for Brad Dickson Brad Dickson
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  • 01

    "[Am I wrong] for snapping at my neighbor after she kept trying to make me her free maid babysitter and pet sitter all in one?"

    Cheezburger Image 10558296576
    via Richard Stachmann

    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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  • And there always comes that point where you start wondering just how much you would pay to have some of that time back. How much is it worth for a few extra minutes or hours of the day to relax and rest from the toil that is existence? Saving ourselves time by getting a cleaner or paying for food will save us time, but cost us a pretty penny in return. And you can always start a side hustle or pick up a second job to try and earn some additional income, but that's just more time and energy you already don't have. And it becomes a vicious cycle that repeats itself. 

    This neighbor seems to have it all figured out, though. When you find yourself short on time, why not just casually trick someone into helping you? Just ask for a bunch of small consecutive favors and slowly slide that foot in the door while you covertly enlist them to be your personal assistant. 

    This neighbor is definitely a living embodiment of “given an inch, take a mile,” and while it's good to be neighborly and help out, there needs to be some firm boundaries set before any more “favors” are done.

  • 02
    so this lady next door has been slowly pushing it. at first it was like can you grab my mail since ur already walking by. fine whatever then it turned into her leaving her dog leash in my hand once and just walking away like i was automatically gonna pet sit while she ran inside. another time she asked if i could just watch her kid for 15 mins
    via Cutebooty04
  • 03
    while she ran errands and it turned into over an hour, i finally snapped when she tried to dump a whole list on me like feed her cat water her plants and maybe watch her kid all at once cause shes so busy. i told her im not her maid or her sitter and she needs to stop acting like im on call for her.
    via Cutebooty04
  • 04
    she went off about how im a terrible neighbor and now shes gossiping with the lady across the street about me. even my mom said i couldve been nicer but i honestly dont think i was wrong. aita?
    via Cutebooty04
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  • 05
    EDIT: wow this kinda blew up. tysm to everyone who commented, i was honestly second guessing myself but reading thru made me realize i'm not crazy lol, a lot of ppl said it's about boundaries and yeah thats true tbh, she just kept inching further every time i said yes to small stuff.
    via Cutebooty04
  • 06
    to clear up a couple things i never agreed to be her sitter, she just sorta shoved stuff in my lap. like with the dog leash thing she literally walked off before i could even say anything. and with the 15 min kid watch i was stuck over an hour, couldn't even leave cuz i didn't wanna abandon the kid, anyway i'm not gonna engage with her drama or gossip. i'll just keep it polite but firm. lesson learned say no earlier, I appreciate you all tons
    via Cutebooty04
  • 07
    OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the ah le: I didn't set boundaries early enough then exploded afterward
    via Cutebooty04
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  • 08
    Cheezburger Image 10558298112
    via unsplash.com

    The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 09
    AppropriateReach7854 NTA. That lady saw a chill neighbor and thought "free labor". You set a boundary after she pushed way past reasonable. That's not ride, that's survival
    via Cutebooty04
  • 10
    KAJ35070 - NTA Nope, nope and nope. You give that lady an inch she is going to take all the miles. You did the right thing.
    via Cutebooty04
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