Freedom Isn't Free

"Freedom is a violent blessing and independence, an explosive brilliance." ~ Rachel Peden

A Shocking Surprise At The Homestead

Three weeks ago, we took a little trip up to the Homestead. 


The road frontage to our Homestead is approximately 186 feet. The lay of the road frontage runs from steep to level (The level part joins our neighbor’s property). For some reason unknown to me, the former owner of this property took out a section of fence, between two posts, and made an entrance way into this property at the beginning of the steep part. I’m sure he didn’t have any problem driving his tractor up and down through this steep opening. It’s down driving in. Up driving out. And it is difficult on our pickup truck, and more so whenever our truck is fully loaded with a half-ton John Deere Lawn and Garden Tractor, weed eater, 15 gallons fuel, and other tools.

When my wife and I first purchased this property, it was being used for growing and harvesting hay. And by the time we were the true owners, it was overgrown with tall grass, huge weeds, and small saplings that averaged from 1-inch to 2-inch in diameter and 5-6 feet tall. It looked more like a jungle than a basic hayfield. One day I walked down to lower part, and when I started to walk back up to the pickup parked on top of the hill, I thought I would not make it back to the truck. I am a heart patient and also have COPD.  

I wasn’t sure how I would mow this overgrown jungle. It was too overgrown for my 15HP Murray Riding Mower to mow. It occurred to me to put an ad in the local newspaper seeking someone to bus- hog it. Fortunately, a young man answered my ad and said he would bush-hog it. He used a large International Tractor and a Batwing Bush-Hog and was finished in about an hour. This property is 3.89 acres, and most of it is steep/hilly. I paid the young man $200.00 per mowing, every two weeks. It was more that I could avoid. And after the first month, I asked him if he would be willing to bush-hog it just each month. He agreed he would.

In the meantime, I was able to purchase a new John Deere Lawn and Garden Tractor (2016). With the mower, my wife and I begin mowing immediately after the young man bush-hogged it. Little by little we were able to get it in shape, but only where our John Deere Mower could mow.

But it didn’t come easy. The bush-hog didn’t mow low, and in some places the tall grass was only knocked over. And those 1-2-inch saplings was rough on the mower blades, not to mention the many rocks I slammed into with the mower deck and blades. A thorn punctured one of the front tires. With an axe and a machete, I was able to cut down some of the sapling stubs the bush-hog had left behind. With an iron bar and a sledgehammer, I was able to dig up and break up some of the rocks that was damaging my mower.

Finally, I was able to mow all of it (3.89 acres) with the John Deere Lawn and Garden Tractor. Only by the grace of God have we been able to turn this piece of property into a beautiful 3.89 acres of green grass. The saplings are all gone. The weeds are all gone. We have hauled tons of rocks off of it. We no longer see snakes and field mice. It has taken us 4-years to accomplish all this.

During this time, probably 3-years ago, my wife and I planted some pears trees and apple trees.  We planted the pears trees first. Then later we planted the apples trees. I remember when we were planting the apple trees, I looked up and there stood our adjoining neighbor at the fence, on his property, just staring at us. I shut the weed eater off and spoke to him. He asked if we were going to week eat the entire property. I laughed and said “no”. I immediately walked to the top of the hill where he was standing. I took of my right work glove and extended my hand to him over the fence. He shook my hand.

I don’t think his handshake was sincere. Why? Because he immediately asked what we going to put on the property. I said a small cabin. The he wanted to know what kind of cabin. He then wanted to know what kind of work I did. As we talked, his persona seemed to change. He appeared to suddenly be angry about something. Then he said, “I tried to buy this property from Mavis, and she asked me a fortune for it.” I don’t remember if I revealed the money amount my wife and gave for it or not. I’m sure I didn’t, since I am hesitant to do so.

Anyway, I had been searching for the surveyor pins and had found only two (the one located at the walnut tree and the one located at the hackberry tree). There are five corners, and five pins. So, I asked him about the corner pin joining his property. His reply was short and snappy. “Get it surveyed!” That was the last time I talked to the guy.            

After my little chat with this not-so-friendly and unhelpful guy, I called the same surveyor who had surveyed this property back in 2002. I explained to him that I could not find three of corner pins. He started asking me several questions, which I didn’t think was inappropriate. I simply thought he was trying to find out which three pins I was talking about. He had a copy of the 2002 survey on file in his computer and gave me a date to meet him at the property.

My wife and I met the surveyor at the property. He seemed friendly enough. He only needed to show me where the three pins were. He set up his surveying equipment. Then he said we would all walk down to the bottom part of the property to find that corner pin, and then we would work back to the third pin.

1. He found that corner pin, quickly. It was/is located several feet over in the adjoining property which is being used for a cattle pasture. Without hesitation, he drove a surveyor stake beside the pin, and tied a surveyor tape to the stake.  

2. From the walnut tree, he was able to find the second pin, quickly. It was/is located about 6-feet over on us from the old fence line. Without hesitation, he drove a surveyor stake beside that pin and tied a surveyor tape to the stake.

Then he headed for his truck, while telling me “Now you know where your corners are.” I asked where the third pin was. He said, “It’s up there.” I asked if he would show me where it was. He said, “It’s right up there.” I asked, “Will you show me where it is.”

3. We walked together to the water meter belonging to the not-so-friendly neighbor. Behind the meter, he (surveyor) took his foot and scratched the grass back, and there was the pin. Then he said, “I will put a stake beside the pin if you want me to. But I don’t want trouble with the neighbor. His wife and I went to school together.” I agreed to not place a stake there. Note: This pin was (and hopefully still is) located about 3-feet behind the water meter, which gives me 156-feet of road frontage – and which also means that several feet of the not-so-friendly neighbor’s backyard belongs to us. His one, if not both, outside buildings are on us. 

I regret that we didn’t have a good camera to record the whole surveying job. Because it became crystal clear that the surveyor had notified the not-so-friendly neighbor and gave him heads up. In other words, the surveyor knew something the moment I first contacted him about re-surveying the property. That was his reason for all the questions.



 Now back to the trip we took to the Homestead three weeks ago and The Shocking Surprise. As usual, our adjoining neighbor had mowed his yard, and mowed all of the level part of our road frontage. He has been doing this since the day we purchased this property. And I have always wondered why he has kept doing this. It’s all clear to me now. He is trying to landlock my wife and me. He wanted this property long before we purchased it. He didn’t get it. He is now determined to run my wife and me off.

Here is why I know. I decided to contact the Magistrate and see if he would help me with some dirt to build a decent driveway into the property. I went a neighbor a nearby neighbor, and she didn’t know. Leastwise that’s what she told me. But she told me to go talk to another neighbor who lives further up the road from our property.   

Instead, I went to the Judge Executive Office and explained why I wanted to talk with the Magistrate. The two women there acted like they weren’t very interested in giving me the name of the Magistrate, but she/they did anyway.

Then I decided to go talk to the neighbor who lives further up the road from our property. He told me the road running by our property is a State road and said I should go talk to the Department of Transportation.

I went to the Department of Transportation, and some guy there with a bread told me I had to have a permit to build a driveway of any kind. He said it is a lengthy process. He gave some papers to fill out for the permit. He also made it clear to me that if I build a driveway without a permit, the State would send him down there and he would rip it out. Period! There’s something else he said that caught my attention. He said, “Your road frontage ends where the fence makes a bend.” I said, “No. My road frontage runs to the water meter.”

On my way back to the property, I stopped beside the road to get me a drink of water. While sitting there, the neighbor who lives further up the road from our property come by and stopped on the State road. He asked me what the State said. I told him what the guy told me. He just shook his head.

I brought the papers home and filled them out. I took them back the next week. It was about 10:30 am when I walked into the office at the Department of Transportation. The back door of the office going into the garage was open. There was no trucks or equipment in the garage. Instead, there were some couches and lazy-boy recliners lining the far wall. On those couches and recliners sit several men. The beardy guy was sitting in one of the recliners. He pulled himself up and come over and took the paper. He never gave me any proof to show that I had dropped off the paper. I don’t trust his word. Period!     

Are ALL these people in cahoots? I don’t know. Are ALL these people colluding or conspiring together secretly against my wife and me. I don’t know. But I do believe the not-so-friendly neighbor is. I believe the surveyor was/is. I believe the beardy-faced guy at the Department of Transportation is.  

 So, now, I don’t know what to do. My wife and I have worked hard to pay off the loan on this property and getting it cleared and cleaned up. Our hard work has not only improved the value of this Homestead, but also the value of the not-so-friendly neighbor’s property. And, now, the taxes on this Homestead will probably increase because of the improvements we have done. It’s disappointing to pay property tax (which includes $35.00 to the Fire Department), and now it appears we may be basically landlocked. Incidentally, there are no buildings on this property, but I am still paying $35.00 tax to the Fire Department. Somebody doesn’t want us to own this 3.89 acres. I believe it is the not-so-friendly neighbor who doesn’t want us here. He wanted this property. He didn’t get it, which was his fault. The first time I chatted with him over the fence, I knew that day that he was going to be trouble.