My conservative neighbors odd behavior

[Hortensis]

10. Maybe have a friend display those signs for you.

Seriously. Also maybe throw his beer cans in a bag instead of his yard. It sounds like this creep needs defusing, and that might help somewhat.

In your place, if I really were concerned, I'd write up my observations in detail and report them to the police, including my belief that he was armed. Just to get my concerns on the record and ask them to at least search his history for violent behavior.

Bottom line, if you're worried he just might escalate to killing, start acting like it.

Btw, notice you asked about experiences. Our only hostile neighbor wasn't creepy. He was an old crank given to bad periods when his lifetime anger/emotional imbalance problems would cut loose. He actually called the police twice -- on us! -- when he came really unglued about nothing, but they had no trouble understanding what was going on. He was okay most of the time and a kind neighbor to our children, and for years most of the time we were able to keep up a decent relationship by accepting him for what he was and not escalating problems by responding to his anger attacks with anger. Fortunately for our own tempers, no beer cans were involved, though we did have to live with a spite fence that made it harder to maneuver the boat trailer up our driveway.