Confronting the Karen Next Door

“I didn’t think a single sentence could ruin my entire day — until my Karen neighbor said this

to me.” I was carrying groceries up the stairs when she stopped me. Mid-40s.

Sunglasses indoors. Arms crossed like she was waiting for a fight. “Excuse me,” she

said, loud enough for everyone to hear, “are you allowed to live here?”

I laughed, thinking it was a joke. It wasn’t. She started listing

rules. How I parked wrong. How my footsteps were “too aggressive.” How my door closed

too loudly. Then she said the sentence that flipped a switch in me: “People like you

usually don’t stay long.” I asked what she meant. She smiled.