18 Things We All Should Do (But Don't Because 'It's Weird')

16. Check On The Neighbors When We Hear Their House Alarm

It's 3am and the neighbor's house alarm has been screaming for two hours, yet while we should go outside, knock on their door and check they're ok, instead we waste vital time debating whether it will look nosy, weird or downright insane before deciding that they'll probably resent our interference and going back to sleep. How many disasters could have been averted by someone being just a little bit neighborly? Let€™s not feel bad about it though, for it€™s not really the thought of having to leave our cozy bedroom nest to check on another€™s safety that makes us hesitate, rather the social convention of not getting involved in someone else€™s business. Still, when someone else€™s business might involve a murderous burglar, raging inferno or fatal carbon monoxide leak, shouldn€™t we set aside the fear of looking a bit weird and check it out regardless?
 
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Feature and fiction writer based in the north of England.