she warned them to stay out they didn’t listen so she made sure they’d never try again Tasha Williams had worked hard for everything she had at 42 years old she was proud of her home a beautiful two-story house in Chandler Arizona with a backyard that was her Sanctuary palm trees lined the fence and in the center of it all was her pride and joy a crystal clear perfectly maintained pool she wasn’t the type to brag but she had every reason to be proud she bought the house on her own with no handouts no shortcuts just years of grinding saving

and making smart choices her neighborhood was mostly families a mix of old and new homeowners some folks were friendly others kept to themselves Tasha didn’t mind either way she wasn’t looking to be the community favorite she just wanted to live in peace but that peace it didn’t last long the first time it happened she brushed it off one Saturday afternoon she came home from running errands and noticed wet Footprints leading from her backyard gate to the sidewalk At first she thought maybe it was the landscaper or a utility worker

but then she saw it a dripping wet towel carelessly thrown over her fence she checked the pool the water level was lower her pool float was moved and a half empty soda can sat on her lounge chair someone had been in her backyard she took a deep breath trying to give people the benefit of the doubt maybe it was a mistake maybe a kid jumped the fence and panicked when they got caught but when she asked around she got nothing but casual shrugs from the neighbors oh it’s probably just one of the kids one woman said with a laugh you

know how they are another neighbor a man in his s barely looked up from his car as he said they’re just having fun you got a nice pool Miss Williams people notice the way he said it bothered her but she didn’t push she just tightened the lock on her gate and hoped it wouldn’t happen again but it did a week later she was sitting in her living room when she heard splashing At first she thought maybe she left the pool filter running but then laughter she walked to the back door and peaked outside there in her pool was a teenage boy casually

swimming as if he owned the place a girl probably his sister sat at the edge dipping her feet in Tasha flung the door open excuse me the kids jerked up eyes wide the boy scrambled out of the water like a caught fish I I thought he stammered we didn’t think you’d mind you didn’t think to ask Tasha snapped who even are you the girl mumbled something about living two houses down before they bolted out the gate Tasha stood there dripping towel in hand heart pounding she wanted to let it go but then came the excuses the next day she confronted the

kid’s parents expecting an apology instead an argument oh come on the mother scoffed they just k kids it’s hot what’s the big deal Tasha stared at her stunned the big deal she said slowly is that this is my property my home my pool and I don’t remember giving out invitations the father arms crossed muttered you’re being dramatic dramatic that was the word people love to throw around when they weren’t the ones being disrespected Tasha bit back the words she really wanted to say instead she installed security cameras maybe that

would send a message but it didn’t the problem was just getting started the security cameras worked for about 2 weeks at first the neighbors backed off no more Footprints no more wet towels no more Uninvited swimmers Tasha thought maybe just maybe she had made her point but then on a scorching Saturday afternoon she pulled into her driveway and noticed something strange her side gate the one she always kept locked was slightly open she stiffened a bad feeling crept up her spine as she walked around back and there it was her yard

packed with people not just kids grown adults lounge chairs taken beer bottles on the ground someone had even set up a folding table with snacks and her pool full a couple of women were wading Waist Deep chatting like it was their own backyard a man leaned against the pool ledge grinning as he sipped a drink for a second Tasha thought she had lost it was this real she took a step forward scanning the crowd and that’s when she locked eyes with one of her neighbors Sandra from three houses down Sandra who had never spoken to Tasha before waved like

this was some casual get together hey girl hope you don’t mind she called out it was so hot today we figured we’d cool off Tasha’s jaw tightened mind oh she minded her voice came out sharp and steady every single one of you get out now some people froze others exchanged looks like she was overreacting Sandra scoffed oh don’t be like that it’s just a pool you weren’t even home Tasha stepped forward her anger bubbling just beneath the surface it’s not just a pool it’s my pool my house my yard you don’t live here you don’t pay for this

so get out all of you someone muttered gez what’s her problem that did it Tasha stormed to the pool equipment box grabbed the remote and shut off the pool filter then she yanked the power cord to the speakers silence I’m calling the police she announced now that got them moving drinks were snatched towels wrapped up and in a matter of minutes her yard emptied Sandra though had the audacity to roll her eyes on the way out you don’t have to be so uptight she muttered nobody was hurting anything Tasha wanted to scream instead

she stood stone-faced watching as they shuffled out like nothing had happened she slammed the gate behind them locked it and stood there hands on her hips fuming but she knew one thing for sure this wasn’t over they had zero respect for her and if respect wasn’t going to stop them something else would Tasha had tried everything talking reasoning cameras locks none of it worked so now it was time to get Crea she sat at her kitchen table staring at the security footage from earlier that day the nerve of these people the way

they acted so entitled like her property was theirs to use whenever they pleased she wasn’t just angry anymore she was done and if they wanted to keep treating her pool like the neighborhood water park she was about to make sure their next visit would be their last first she made a trip to the hardware store she she picked up two heavyduty locks one for the side gate one for the pool equipment box the old ones were strong but these unbreakable next she went online and ordered a special chemical treatment for

her pool not chlorine something stronger it wasn’t dangerous just a harmless but highly effective trick used by public pools to expose rule Breakers a little something called pool die a harmless chemical that turns the water bright green if someone pees in it yep if even one of those freeloaders tried to use her pool again they’d leave looking like a radioactive alien but that was just the start Tasha wanted Insurance something that would make them think twice before ever stepping foot in her yard again so she

went to a local sign shop and had a custom pool sign made the next morning she drilled it right onto her fence where everyone could see warning pool chemically treated for unauthorized use exposure may cause rash severe itching or temporary skin discoloration did it sound a little extreme sure was any of it actually true nope but they didn’t know that and just to sell it she placed an empty hazardous chemical container near the pump something she picked up from a friend who worked in maintenance now all she had to do was weight and it didn’t take

long the next hot afternoon she sat by her window sipping iced tea watching it was quiet for most of the day until she saw a couple of teenagers walking past her fence they stopped read the sign one of them whispered something then pointed at the chemical container within seconds they turned right back around and walked away Tasha smirked later that night Sandra the same entitled neighbor from the last pool party was walking her dog when she spotted the sign she squinted at it then pulled out her phone and started typing

Tasha checked Facebook a few minutes later and there it was a neighborhood group post that read FYI looks like Tasha put some kind of weird chemical in her pool says it causes rashes and skin issues not sure how safe that is just a heads up the comments rolled in OMG what if it leaks into the ground that doesn’t sound legal why does she even care so much it’s just water Tasha laughed out loud they were mad not because she was lying not because they got caught but because they realized their free ride was over and if

they wanted to test her they were more than welcome to try for the first time in months Tasha finally felt at peace no more random towels No More Strangers lounging in her yard no more entitled attitudes her plan worked or at least she thought it did but then the knock came it was a Thursday evening when she heard it sharp impatient banging on her front door she sat down her drink and peaked through the peephole Sandra arms crossed looking pissed Tasha sighed here we go she opened the door keeping her face calm

yes Sandra didn’t waste time we need to talk Tasha raised an eyebrow do we Sandra huffed look I don’t know what your problem is but people are saying you put some kind of dangerous chemicals in your pool Tasha blinked then smirked I did she said smoothly to keep out uninvited guests Sandra’s jaw clenched you can’t do that what if a kid touches the water Tasha folded her arms a kid who broke into my yard Sandra faltered that’s not the point it’s exactly the point Tasha shot back I told people to stay out they didn’t listen so I took

precautions Sandra scoffed you’re ridiculous you don’t even have kids it’s just sitting there going to waste Tasha tilted her head so because I don’t have kids that means my pool is up for public use Sandra rolled her eyes oh come on don’t act like Tasha Cut Her Off no you come on Sandra you and the rest of these people have some nerve you don’t pay for my water bill you don’t clean my pool but you expect to just help yourselves Sandra’s face turned red well if you weren’t so unfriendly maybe people would actually like you Tasha laughed a deep

genuine laugh that’s your problem Sandra you think being liked means letting people walk all over you Sandra opened her mouth closed it then shook her head in frustration you know what forget it she turned on her heel enjoy being the mean neighbor Tasha called after her enjoy using your own hose this summer Sandra stomped off Tasha shut the door smiling to herself they were mad but they had finally gotten the message and just to be sure she doubled down the next morning she added a final touch a motion activated sprinkler

system along the fence if anyone tried to sneak in again they get a nice cold wakeup call but the best part she didn’t have to use it because nobody tried again the freeloading days were over after months of frustration Tasha had finally reclaimed her peace the pool hers again the backyard quiet the entitlement gone and the best part she never even had to call the police because that was never the goal she wasn’t trying to cause a seene or make enemies she just wanted what was hers to be respected but here’s the thing some

people don’t respect boundaries unless they’re forced to Tasha had tried to be nice she had given warnings she had even asked politely and they had ignored her at every turn but the second she flipped the script they backed off because at the end of the day people will take as much as you let them it doesn’t matter if it’s your time your space your energy or even your damn swimming pool if you don’t set boundaries someone will walk all over you so was Tasha Petty for what she did May maybe but was she wrong not even a

little what about you have you ever had to stand your ground when people tried to take advantage of you or better yet how would you have handled this situation drop a comment below and let’s talk about it and if you enjoyed this story don’t forget to like subscribe and hit that notification Bell for more thanks for watching and remember respect is earned not given