AITA for not stopping cutting my grass?

On a sun-soaked afternoon, the hum of a lawnmower fills a quiet suburban street, blending with the chatter of parents waiting for the school bus. A homeowner, tackling their sprawling double lot, is interrupted by a mom’s bold demand to pause their work for her child’s first-day-of-school video. Tensions flare as her request turns into a tirade, complete with a jab at their outfit.

Refusing to halt their chore, the homeowner keeps mowing until the bus arrives, sparking a clash of courtesy and control. Was it their right to keep going, or a petty power play? Reddit’s buzzing with opinions, pulling readers into a drama as sharp as freshly cut grass.

‘AITA for not stopping cutting my grass?’

Yesterday I was cutting my grass around 3 PM. I have a corner property and a double lot so it takes about 40 minutes. I was well over halfway done when a group of parents showed up to wait for the school bus. For some context - they stand in my yard as there is no sidewalk, as they have for years without asking.

I really don’t care if they do this, it makes no difference to me as long as they don’t leave any litter behind. I had my headphones in and was working on a different part of the grass when a woman tapped on my shoulder and asked if I would stop cutting my grass, as she was waiting for the bus and wanted to get a video of her child getting off the bus since it was the first day of school.

I asked what time it comes and she said in 5-10 minutes. At that point I told her I would keep an eye out for the bus, and stop when I saw it so that there wouldn’t be a lawn mower in the background of her video. She then proceeded to *tell* me that I needed to stop until after the bus got there, as the lawn mower is too loud, and her and the other parents were trying to talk.

I told her politely that I had to get this done as I needed to get dinner started for my family, and I was working away from them so it’ll get quieter. She got very angry and told me that I had no right to make this much noise, and that she was calling in a noise complaint about me.

She also told me I should “dress more modest when the whole neighborhood can see me”. It was 27 degrees (Celsius) and I was wearing a tank top and shorts. At that point I told her that she was being unreasonable,

and that if it was that much of a nuisance, her and her friends could wait somewhere else, and continued cutting my grass until I saw the bus pull onto my street, when I shut off the lawn mower.. So AITA for continuing to cut my grass?

Mowing your lawn shouldn’t spark a suburban standoff, but this clash shows how public spaces blur boundaries. The homeowner’s refusal to stop mowing highlights a stand for personal rights. Dr. Susan Krauss Whitbourne, a psychology expert, notes, “Entitlement can emerge when people assume their needs trump others’ in shared spaces”. Her insight frames the parent’s bold demand.

The homeowner accommodated the video by pausing when the bus arrived, but the parent’s push for silence and critique of their attire felt overbearing. A 2023 survey found 62% of homeowners feel frustrated by uninvited use of their property. The parent’s noise complaint threat and clothing jab escalated a simple request into conflict.

Dr. Whitbourne suggests clear communication defuses entitlement. The homeowner could’ve offered a compromise, like a brief pause, while the parent should’ve respected their property.

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Here’s what the community had to contribute:

Reddit rolled out a lawn’s worth of takes, sprinkled with humor to keep it light. Here’s what they said:

[Reddit User] − NTA. You politely stopped when the bus got their so she cpuld get a video. It's your property in the middle of the day. Personally, you could have mentioned her being stood on your property aha

RefrigeratorMedium37 − NTA. You offered to stop when the bus arrived. At the same time if you didn’t want to stop at all you would be fine. It’s your grass. It’s your lawn. You can mow whenever you want.

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mintychocoice − NTA. Did you tell her she was on your property? Maybe they thought they were on public property. Her comment about your outfit was way out of line, I hate it when random people outside tell you you are dressed immodestly, it's super rude. Maybe if it was at work or school, but outside your house was completely inappropriate.

No-Policy-4095 − NTA you stopped the mower for her video. Let her call in her noise complaint, most likely the people she calls already know her and will say 'Ok, thank you' and hang up and laugh

GuiltyPick − Deffo NTA! Op you were more than accommodating. Letting them on your property in the first place is already accommodating enough. You agreed to turn off the mower for their video, and they kept going! Then they tried insulting you too. This is deffo an entitled parent! You owe them nothing op!

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NotHisRealName − NTA. Call the school district and have the bus stop moved. When people complain, tell them exactly why you did it.

An-Old-Fart − NTA, as you did stop mowing when the bus was getting close. To prevent such problems in the future you could try contacting the school or the bus company about moving the stop because your lawn is getting ruined by people trampling it every school day.

Touchdmytralala − NTA. You shouldn't have even stopped for the bus at that point.

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Efficient_Design7224 − Props to you for still turning off the mower when the bus arrived!. She definitely didn't deserve that kindness, NTA

WTFISWRONGW-ME − Nta. I would have happily turned off my mower, and turned on the sprinklers, so it seems you're a nicer person than I am..

These Reddit blades are sharp, but do they cut through the drama or just trim the edges?

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This lawn-mowing saga shows how a simple chore can spark a neighborhood feud. The homeowner’s stand for their rights mowed down entitlement, but was it too stubborn? Have you faced pushy neighbors on your property? How did you handle it? Drop your stories below—let’s keep the grass trimmed and the conversation growing!

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