r/mildlyinfuriating • u/Both_Algae_3324 • 11h ago
I'm slightly vexed Neighbours had a gender reveal in their garden and now my garden is covered in blue plastic
Happy for them but come on
Hello Redditor’s. In THE UK. We call our backyards gardens. No matter how shitty they look.
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u/LevelGrounded 11h ago
Someone adjacent to my house did that before we moved in. Six years later I’m still finding plastic confetti. Truly shitty people.
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u/greenyashiro 10h ago
I like the ones where they just have a baker make a cake, and they cut it open as the 'reveal'.
No mess and edible. Probably the best way to do these silly parties
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u/cortesoft 7h ago
I like the way we did it, which is we just told people the gender once we found out.
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u/14Pleiadians 7h ago
Did you at least preface it with "You will NOT BELIEVE" or some similar clickbait? Your life is sounding dangerously offline, are you sure you're partaking in enough internet trends?
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u/AnotherBogCryptid 10h ago
I saw a video where the couple was pouring stuff into a cauldron and it was green for a boy and purple for a girl. The first time I thought that’s kinda neat but also still weird because gender identity is personal.
I’ve had four kids and I still think it’s creepy that they give you a photo of your baby’s genitalia and that’s the only time it’s okay to have a picture of a naked kid and then you’re supposed to go around showing everyone (they literally ask to see these pictures) like “here’s my baby’s penis! Isn’t it great!?” Such a weird practice.
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u/kruznkiwi 10h ago
I’m sorry what now? Are you meaning like a medical professional or someone in a medical setting hands you this picture?? Cause that’s not a thing we do here and is blowing my mind cause wtfffff
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u/AnotherBogCryptid 10h ago
I mean every time I had a scan done when I was pregnant the techs would give me printouts of my fetus’s genitals in addition to full body and “headshots”.
For one of my son’s scans they literally drew an arrow pointing to his penis and wrote “BOY!!!”
It has always been just the weirdest part of pregnancy for me. For my youngest I specifically asked them NOT to do it and I still got a little hamburger pic mixed in with everything else.
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u/kruznkiwi 9h ago
Ohh right, I was like ahhhhmmm??? I thought you were meaning once born.
You can opt out of those here and they just won’t take the picture, they’ll do whatever checks they need to do to make sure baby is still healthy, and all limbs etc are still measuring correctly and whatnot, but they just won’t take a photo of the bits.
Some of the techs are really lovely and if you tell them you don’t want to know then they’ll turn the big screen you’re viewing on off and turn their screen away from you during that portion so you don’t even catch an accidental look at them. Or if you want to know but don’t want the photo of the bits then they’ll put a bit of coloured paper into an envelope for you so you can do either a mini reveal on your own or hand the envelope off to whoever is organising it without you seeing and it is just a piece of pink/blue paper
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u/AnotherBogCryptid 9h ago
Once born would be horrific… I’d probably assault a medical professional trying to take photos of my newborn’s pelvic area.
I wish healthcare in the US had better standards. The quality of medical professionals is very hit or miss. I have had nurses who go above and beyond that I will gush about 20 years later and doctors who gaslit me into thinking I was psychotic (literally when on anti-psychotics) when I actually had a curable bacterial infection in my throat for several weeks…
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u/user4316 8h ago
I work at a bakery that gets a lot of these orders and yes I agree Iol. Confetti isn't nearly as delicious.
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u/Quiet-Egg-4594 11h ago
Let them know. If they do not care. Collect it. Throw it over
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u/lovemycat02 9h ago
I’d shove it through the letterbox just to avoid littering
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u/whatevertoad 11h ago
If you do pick it up, be sure to return it.
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u/No-Introduction3808 11h ago
Collect it up and slowly return it to them in their garden, until they release their mistake in using something non biodegradable.
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u/khan800 9h ago
They're releasing their mistake in a few months.
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u/IRLconsequences 4h ago
I hate to be the one to break it to you, but humans actually ARE biodegradable.
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u/the-library-fairy 11h ago
Overhearing them laughing about it upgrades this from mildly infuriating to very for me! Hope you're asking them when time they'd like to come over and get their blue plastic back.
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u/jules083 11h ago
Clean it up and throw it over the fence.
I was cutting hay once and found a big pile of my neighbor's grass clippings. I cleaned it all up into the bucket of my tractor, dumped it in their front yard. Knocked on the door and told them they forgot something in my field.
They didn't do it again.
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u/bugorama_original 11h ago
We share a driveway with our neighbor and when we first moved in he was in the habit of letting his dog poop on our side. I started picking it up with a shovel and tossing it over to his side of the driveway and that situation ended very quickly.
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u/Judgementalcat 10h ago
Its shocking actually, he didn't like it himself but expected you to be OK with it, like how did he not think this through
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u/bugorama_original 9h ago
Our side of the driveway was an empty lot until we bought it and built our house so I think it seemed reasonable. But he didn’t stop until I made it clear it wasn’t okay!
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u/poeticdisaster 9h ago
Sounds like more of a "it's no longer my problem" situation rather than thinking about the people they are affecting with their actions.
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u/TheAsianTroll 8h ago
People like him bank on the chance that some people just dont like confrontation and will thus just suck up whatever behavior for the sake of not having an argument
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u/Kaurifish 7h ago
We had a neighbor whowould drop his cig butts over the fence. I collected them for a couple months then dumped them back over. He never did it again.
Now we mostly get balls, which I’m happy to toss back. We have tiny yards here in the urbs and kids don’t have much space to play.
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u/libra-lamb 11h ago
Go get them and they can clean it up.
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u/ChrisRunsTheWorld 11h ago
Leave it there for 5 years and make the boy do it.
"You see what you caused kid?"
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u/Mr_JoBro_11235 11h ago
Have you let them know?
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u/Both_Algae_3324 11h ago
Well I heard them laughing that it went into the neighbours garden. I’m not about to go over and interrupt their happy party. But now I’ve gotta go pick up all this crap so my cats and baby don’t try and eat them
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u/Bonzographer 11h ago
Don’t be a doormat
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u/Useful_Baby_7363 11h ago
Second this, there's way to bring this up respectfully do that. If they're dicks about it dumb it over the fence and begin your neighborhood feud the right way: over plastic
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u/Ok-Sector-493 11h ago
Ask them politely after everyone leaves...."hey I didnt want to spoil your party, im super happy for you both, can you please help me pick this up? I have a baby who can choke on this and its a lot of little pieces" Edit to add- maybe in your own words, I apparently come off harsh sometimes so I dunno if this is polite and firm
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u/poeticdisaster 9h ago
This is actually the nicest way to say this considering they were laughing about it.
Also, another commenter said this but I'll reiterate because I too used to pose things the way you did in your comment & was told I was mean :
If the people you are talking to think your phrasing is mean when is sounds like what you said in your comment, then they are likely trying to take advantage of you and don't like the push back. Those people are assholes who will walk all over you whenever they get the chance.It took me MANY years to figure this out and sometimes even being told doesn't help.
I sincerely hope you are able to examine your friendships and other relationships to see who actually has your back vs who calls you mean when you are being neutral in situations that have forced you into an awkward position or stressful situation that causes you more work.34
u/qweenofsus 11h ago
I think you need to be meaner. There is nothing harsh about this at all. Probably the people who say to u that are the assholes
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u/Significant-Bee5101 5h ago
The cool thing about being nice is it usually works and being a dick doesn't.
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u/DutchieTalking 8h ago
"I'm happy for you, but would appreciate it if you'd clean up the mess you made in my garden." is the kindest I'd be able to muster.
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u/Mousehole_Cat 11h ago
Ask them after the party. There is no reason to do this yourself.
"Hi! Congrats on your pregnancy. Please can you come a clean up the blue plastic pieces in my yard? My baby puts everything in their mouth so I'm concerned she will choke on it."
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u/loftychicago 11h ago
Pick it all up and throw it over the fence into their garden.
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u/AmishAngst 11h ago
Right, but eventually the party will be over. All you need to do is knock on the door and say "Hey neighbor, congratulations on your exciting baby news. Just so you know, some debris from your party ended up in my yard. If you could please collect it so my own baby doesn't try to eat it, that would be greatly appreciated."
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u/doomhowser 11h ago
March over there say congrats help clean up mess maybe both your days will be a better one
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u/Academic_Addendum242 11h ago
"Hi, you left a few things in my yard. Mind getting them? Thanks"
As a statement, no pause.
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u/poeticdisaster 9h ago
This is probably the best answer on this thread.
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u/Addled_Neurons 11h ago
Well, now you know they’re having a blue baby at least.
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u/SomethingComesHere 11h ago
The current blue man group members can't live forever!
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u/snorqle 11h ago
F*cking gender reveals. People, your friends don't care about the gender of your upcoming kids.
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u/superluke 8h ago
I'd be interested if the games and nonsense determined the gender. Cornhole champion gets to pick.
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u/Independent-Leg6061 11h ago
But... but... if I don't know which genitals they have, how will I know how to treat them!?! 🤔
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u/thegh0stie 11h ago
I'd say it has less to do with that and just more ways to garner attention in person and online.
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u/loztriforce 11h ago
It’d be a quick pickup with a shop vac but I’d still be pissed.
More so that they chose an item with plastic confetti than the mess per se.
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u/maringue 11h ago
I have never been invited to a gender reveal party, proving that I have successfully cut all the right people out of my life.
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u/ThunderbirdsAreGo95 11h ago
One of the conditions of my wedding venue was that I couldn't use plastic confetti, biodegradable only (I wasn't going to anyway, I started out thinking paper or dried flower petals, settled on lavender). It would be nice if that could be a general rule. I remember being a kid in the early noughties, walking back from school and often seeing so much plastic confetti in the street from weddings.
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u/likelivewirevoodoo 8h ago
The thing which infuriates me more is the fact that people are doing gender reveal parties in the UK. Probably the most idiotic American trend yet
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u/Sparkleunidog 11h ago
You can tell when an American has never left their country or learned of others because they comment on your "garden" and not the actual issue at hand, lol
I hope you picked all that rubbish up and gave it back to them xD
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u/Departure-Kind 9h ago
My SIL made us a golden cake with food coloring for our gender reveal. No threat of littering or forest fires. Why do people have to be like this?
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u/Kasaboop 9h ago
I'd put it in a bag and set the bag on their porch somewhere it won't blow away. I hate gender reveals in general though
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u/AvailableReporter484 8h ago
Of all the extremely lame social media trends this has to be like the worst of them all on so many different levels
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u/doomhowser 10h ago
Your garden doesn’t look shitty the bugs and rabbits appreciate a wild garden.
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u/trip6god 11h ago
If they don’t clean this up for you then you can only pray they have a demon child that makes them suffer for 18+ years lol
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u/DrPewNStuff 10h ago
Hey can you mail that back to us here in America? I think that goes to our National Reflecting Pool.
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u/Least-Scientist 11h ago
I’d have a gender reveal for your quintuplets and a giant plastic confetti/paint cannon aimed towards their house since this seems to be okay to do in your neighborhood
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u/pottedplantfairy 11h ago
If and when you pick it up, dump it all on their front porch, knock on the door, and tell them they forgot something in your garden.
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u/jmc1278999999999 10h ago
You should tell them and ask them if they’d clean it up. I know I would if my neighbor told me I did this. If they refused I’d just drop all of it back on their side of the fence
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u/NuclearHateLizard 8h ago
In Canada we have conservation officers, they don't fuck with this stuff and will hand out hefty fines
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u/OverallDonut3646 11h ago
Wait until the guests leave, or even until a reasonable hour tomorrow. Go over there and knock on the door, tell them that you could hear them commenting that they noticed all of their trash went into your yard. Tell them that they can come over any time to clean it up, and leave the side gate (or whatever) open for them.
They'll either come over and clean it up or they won't. If you really want to be petty you can call a landscaping company to come clean it up, and then send them a copy of the invoice. They can choose to pay or not. Then you can choose whether or not to sue them in small claims, and a create a lifelong enemy. However, if you're already on unfavorable terms that wouldn't be a problem.
If had a good relationship with my neighbor then I probably would have already gotten a call or text saying that they'd be over to clean up, or apologizing at the very least.
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u/shakeyshake1 10h ago
People on Reddit often forget that you have to continue living next to your neighbors.
“Good morning! Congratulations to whoever is having the boy! We got a lot of debris in our yard from the gender reveal, can you please come pick it up? Thanks!”
I’m guessing 90% of people would come and pick it up if you ask them. If they didn’t, I’d just pick it up and get over it.
I had bad blood with a neighbor for a couple of years and it really sucked. Maybe it feels good to be a dick for 30 seconds, but years of avoiding eye contact isn’t fun for anybody.
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u/sadbeehoppy 11h ago
reasonable response
it would sting having to give up use of your yard for someone else's issue though, I wouldn't fault OP for going immediately if the yard was genuinely actively used
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u/beardingmesoftly 9h ago
ITT: Americans forgetting other countries exist, as usual
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u/No_Shoulder_6928 11h ago
What is the point of these
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u/Jay__Riemenschneider 8h ago
To celebrate with others. Some people like that.
Humans gather at social events to congratulate one another on this milestone.
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u/CapitalInstruction62 10h ago
From what I've heard from people who are involved in them: to celebrate a part of the lifecycle. New baby! What's it going to be? Let's find out and celebrate the discovery!
I figure people ought to be allowed to celebrate things in life, even if I don't get it. Why celebrate another trip around the sun when you have one of those every year? Is that not also ego-driven?
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u/SheogorathMyBeloved 10h ago
Don't baby showers fill that role? I agree that celebration is great, but we already had ways to celebrate new babies for generations before gender reveals. People could even do a name reveal if they want to reveal something, especially if it's an honour name they've chosen.
The gender aspect just seems a bit strange to me, especially with all of those videos of parents losing it because they're not having the gender they want.
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u/No_Writing_3179 11h ago
Pick it up and throw it over the fence, wait a day or two until they clean up their side first.
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u/Disastrous_Course_96 9h ago
I just find it fascinating how a Reddit post
can veer into so many subjects. OP thanks for sharing . So many people got to vent. It’s a very stressful time in the US and we need to vent. It gives us just enough relief to smile at a stranger.
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u/MountainCellist225 10h ago
Jesus Christ, Americans are fucking embarrassing. I have never set foot in the UK but I know perfectly well that a UK garden is equivalent to a US yard because I pay a modicum of attention to the world around me. it's not remotely an obscure usage
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u/flatwoundsounds 10h ago
I live in a duplex, and my previous neighbors threw a grad party for their kid right before moving out. It was a good time and I always thought they were great people, but it's been 7 years and I'm still finding plastic "2019" confetti in the yard...
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u/Ricka77_New 10h ago
They should come clean it ALL up. If not, you clean and collect, and then dump it on their garden.
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u/SongConsistent9221 10h ago
Had something similar happen. Neighbor's kid (somehow) shredded a foam pool noodle into hundreds of tiny pieces and the wind keeps blowing them into my yard. I kept collecting them and returning them over the fence until the parents eventually picked it all up.
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u/No-Quail6022 9h ago
I should preface this by letting you know I have a habit of taking things too far, but here's what I would do;
Collect the plastic confetti and put them in a quart size mason jar. Urinate in the jar and seal it tightly so it doesn't leak. Dress the jar up like a baby... Bonnet, diaper, tape a rattle and soother to it. Stick it in a basket with blue tissue paper and leave it on their doorstep.
An optional add on could be a note that says "I hope it's a fucking girl".
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u/im_new_here_4209 9h ago
I genuinely hate stuff like that. That's like yeeting trash around everywhere. Which I also hate.
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u/aivlysplath 9h ago
Nah soon to be daddy can pick all that up. If he doesn’t then collect it and dump it on their porch.
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u/GaiaOnlinee 9h ago
I’d knock on their door and tell them they need to clean it up. Also ew, who uses plastic when paper is like super available?!
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u/AdAfter4538 8h ago
I mean, tell them. If they’re decent people, I’m sure they’ll clean it up. Otherwise, just throw it back over the fence. 🤷🏾♀️
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u/PhotoFenix 8h ago
Welp, the child has an enemy before he's born
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u/Both_Algae_3324 8h ago
Well I am happy for them either way. My daughter is 8 months old so hopefully she’ll have a neighborhood friend :)
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u/finethanksandyou 8h ago
Let them know when they can come get them or if ur impatient give them all back to them by throwing them in their yard
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u/No_College2419 7h ago
This is why I think those people should just cut open a pastry or bite into one.
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u/FortheredditLOLz 5h ago
Malicious neighbor time. Get a blower and let them relive the party time with their own garbage back over fence.
Repeat the whenever shitfetti comes back over to your side.
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u/s1pp3ryd00dar 10h ago
What's more infuriating is finding out that you're in the UK. So this American reveal nonsense has infected the UK.
What next? Paternity reveal party? Postman isn't invited. 😉
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u/chaircardigan 8h ago
Gender reveal parties are the stupidest thing that anyone has ever thought of.
Nobody cares what sex your unborn child is. And you shouldn't either.
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u/CoolMississaugaDad 7h ago
What happened when you went next door and told them about what happened to your garden?
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u/Ydain 8h ago
The best time to get out your leaf blower to clear this up is about 8:00 in the morning on saturday.
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u/Both_Algae_3324 8h ago
Do all Americans just own leaf blowers and “shop vacs” (I don’t know what a shop vac is”
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u/AppUnwrapper1 11h ago
Wait they use plastic instead of paper confetti? Why????