If you remember the plot of the “John Wick” movie, the antagonists' critical mistake, which led to the plot's twist ending, was lethally harming the protagonist's dog. This not only sealed their own fate, but also created one of the most popular and enduring memes in modern pop culture.
Well, the mother of the author of our story today, the user u/GanzGenauFrau, is clearly not a ruthless, trained special agent, but a simple Argentine housewife. But woe betide anyone who forces such a lady to cut down the plants she's lovingly nurtured in her garden for so long!
More info: Reddit
Good neighbors are a true blessing from above, but sometimes people actually overuse such neighbors' kindness and this leads them to nothing good
Image credits: EyeEm / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The author of the post has a mom who's an agro engineer by trade and lives in a one of two houses sandwiched between two huge buildings
Image credits: GanzGenauFrau
Image credits: nick7634 / Freepik (not the actual photo)
When the lady's former neighbor was still living next door, she made a green wall of plants out of the wall between their houses and it looked really great
Image credits: GanzGenauFrau
Image credits: korrawinj / Freepik (not the actual photo)
But since then the new homeowner appeared, and he demanded the lady cut down the plants for some reason
Image credits: GanzGenauFrau
Image credits: forgotten new york / forgotten-ny (not the actual photo)
The author's mom complied maliciously and did what he wanted - but then she erected a high concrete wall between the houses
Image credits: GanzGenauFrau
The woman then decorated her side of the wall with climbing plants as well, but the neighbor now had to observe the grey concrete only
So, the Original Poster (OP) explains that their mother lives in one of two houses actually sandwiched between two high residential buildings. The wall on one side is about 40 feet high, the other is 25 feet high, and another 15 feet is the wall separating this lady's house from the neighboring one.
Many years ago, when the previous neighbor was still living next door, the author's mom offered she decorate the wall between them with climbing plants to make it look more attractive. The neighbor happily agreed, and the lady set to work. An agro engineer by profession, she made the entire wall, including the wire structure above it, covered in a solid carpet of beautiful greenery...
But time is merciless even to the best of us, and the friendly neighbor, alas, was gathered to his fathers, while his son sold the property to a businessman who built a three-story apartment complex there. For some reason, that guy also took a dislike to OP's mother's green wall and devoted all his free time to demanding that she cut down all the plants.
Well, sooner or later, the decent lady caved in to this pressure - but not before going to the municipal commission and obtaining permission to erect a concrete wall of the same height between her house and the neighbor's. Now, from the window of any apartment in the neighboring building, the gray, lifeless concrete was clearly visible.
Needless to say, the author's mom soon decorated her side of the wall with plants again, making the view almost more beautiful than before. The neighbor, meanwhile, could only grit his teeth, remembering what he'd lost through his own stupidity and over-persistence...
Image credits: GanzGenauFrau / Reddit
In fact, the new homeowner had obviously slipped up badly, because designing and growing a green wall from scratch is a rather expensive and time-consuming process. Unless, of course, you're a professional and seasoned agro engineer interested in the result, and a plant lover as well.
Experts do say it takes at least a year for the installed green wall to take on its desired appearance. Climbing plants grow quite quickly, but they still need some time to fill in all the gaps and cover the system's hardware, the GrowUp company's official website claims.
Furthermore, if the original poster's mom initially took on all the installation, irrigation, and design work for the green wall, now if the neighbor wants to restore his side of the wall to its previous state, he has to fork out a pretty penny for professional services. For example, a 3x3-foot green wall with native plants will cost you about $500, according to the Green Adelaide website.
Commenters also praised the author's mom for her composure and calm, which ultimately resulted in a nearly perfect display of malicious compliance. "I would love to have a neighbor like your mom," some of the responders openly admitted. So would you, our dear readers, also love to have such a neighbor? Please feel free to drop your thoughts in the comments below.
Most people in the comments only praised the author's mom for her inventiveness, composure and wit, claiming that the neighbor actually got what he deserved
