Well - I am pretty new here, and I hope I am not speaking "out of turn".
I grew up in Texas. We respected others rights- and we lived in the country. I think at the heart of the matter you are dealing with is that the neighbor had in his mind - his form of "paradise" when he bought his property. You and your activities fall outside of his vision of perfect, and he cannot easily adjust - or at least he will need time and encouragement/education
.
We now live in the mountains of western NC, and I see this all of the time. We have a lot of folks that we call "half-backs". These are people that originally lived in the heavily metropolitan-ized and concrete covered northeast - and retired to Florida, and discovered they did not like 12 months of summer ( no offense to Florida
) SO - they move about "half-back" to NY or NJ... and wind up here. In the country. Beautiful mountains, lots of wildlife, trees, clod running streams, etc.
The problem is that they have always lived in highly controlled, heavily regulated "sub-divisions" - and are shocked that someone might actually want to paint their house a different color than everyone else's
. Makes them feel "un-safe" with their investment in their home.
My property borders a loosely allied mountian "sub-division"/ HOA .....And - when they come here - all is perfect...but let ONE MORE person move into their area - and have the temerity to do anything different than the established "norms" and the poo hits the fan!
Example: We allowed one of the folks in the sub-divion to build a paddock and shed for their miniature donkey that they had been boarding elsewhere. They were desperate, and needed a home for the donkey. I felt for the animal, and said - sure, you build it - and I will not charge you anything for use of the land.
You would have thought I had started WWIII !
It seems the other neighbors were peeved at their HOA member f doing this - although it was not on their HOA side of the road - it was on MY property. I got phone calls and e-mails from folks that had built their vacation homes here, tho they lived in Miami, or NY, or.......One said he had no intention of driving past a petting zoo to get to his vacation home. ( My response was, "Well, don't stop to pet the donkey - and I will not charge you a zoo entry fee.
Another said they could not imagine having farm animals along the common road between our property. My response: "Well - it is ONE lil' donkey....But now you mention it - I think I will build a HOG PEN RIGHT NEXT TO THE ROAD"
. I sent out certified letters to all of their members explaining that property lines mean something. And that I had no intention of making anyone of them un-comfortable in their houses. Having said that, they could buy me out if they choose, at my price. Or I could offer to keep them informed of further developments. My wife wants Alpacas - and that was what we acquired the land for originally.
As I am not under any of the constraints of their HOA codes, - but I do not want to be a "bad neighbor, I will take into consideration their concerns, and hear what they have to say - given it is of a civilized and social nature. (BTW - I *DO* love to target practice with several firearms - and I highly recommend you do the same. Not as a threat....just as a "proficiency exercise"
.) BTW - we have become good friends with most of these HOA neighbors.
They have all since fallen in love with the donkey - and feed him when they are around...funny how that happens with animals and people that have never been around any before.....
Summation: We all tend to be afraid of that which we have no familiarity. TIme may help him come around. He is just feeling stupid with his un-realistic vision of "his paradise", and angry about that.
BUT - in the meantime - document everything, and note the dates and times. Photos can be valuable as well. And - restraining orders and injunctions may be a part of the solution should you feel genuinely threatened for your safety or that of your livestock/property.
Best of Luck on this - I know it can be a bit taxing on your nerves. In the meantime just remember:
"Illegitimi non carborundum"
T