About two months ago, I relocated to a triplex and took up residence in the middle unit. The unit next to me remained vacant until very recently. My new neighbor made quite the entrance last week by knocking aggressively on my door at 9 in the morning. Opening the door to a complete stranger, I was bluntly told to move my car from her designated parking spot. She introduced herself as the new tenant next door but hardly offered any pleasantries before making her demand.

Later that evening after finishing my shift, which runs from 6pm to 2am, I unwound with my routine of showering, eating, and watching some television before heading to bed. That following morning, she was back at my door complaining about the noise of my late-night movements. Despite explaining my work schedule, she insisted I keep the noise down and left visibly upset.

A couple of days afterwards, I returned home to find her car parked in my designated spot. Forced to park on the street, I decided to confront her with the same fervor she had shown. When she opened the door, her immediate response was to critique my approach and flatly refuse to move her car since I wasn’t home to claim the spot.

Fed up, I filed a complaint with our landlord after just her first few days of moving in. When she learned of this, she accused me of bothering her like some petulant child. My colleagues think my actions may have been petty. Am I really the bad guy here?

If this scenario played out on a reality show, audiences would probably be split. Some might cheer for standing up to such brash behavior, while others might criticize the complaint to the landlord as an overreaction. It’s easy to imagine this leading to a dramatic, tension-filled episode with viewers eagerly waiting to see who the landlord sides with or if the neighbors manage to resolve their differences.

What should I have done with the parking dispute?