Hi Taurisk, thanks for kind words - sorry for the late reply but...

Hi Taurisk, thanks for kind words - sorry for the late reply but I just got back from my dinner...
And please accept my sympathies for this gross violation of your privacy. I hope the scum contract leprosy of the eyes.
I'm happy to hear that you have taken stock of your fitness levels, I know it's time consuming and sometimes we're all just weary from the day but keeping up the exercise not only gives you an additional edge if things incidents like this escalate; it's also just good be healthy! And also - I'm a strong advocate for getting the hell out of a nasty situation instead of engaging the other party but never underestimate your abilities and with the appropriate "force multiplier" in hand: you'd be surprised what you can do regardless of age and size. As one of my favourite authors Mark Twain once said : It's not the size of the dog in the fight but the size of fight in the dog.
Sounds like you have nice neighbours - outstanding! I'm sure after hearing about this, they'll keep a closer eye on your property! Yeah....I'm not liking the sound of the layout from your description. As you've noted yourself - I strongly recommend that you break lines of sight to your house and put up/grow some visual barriers. Unfortunately, gardening is not my thing - I'm completely useless at it - I'm currently doing battle with a cheeky possum who attacks my fruit trees and keeps staring at me from the roof when I come home late so I'm sure there's plenty of HC guys with much greener thumbs than I who can perhaps recommend some fast growing plants that may provide not only visual cover but even a physical obstacle.
I'm very happy to elaborate on any gear that you may want to pick up - I'll keep in mind whatever budget suits you and perhaps can even recommend where to get it from so you don't get ripped off on shipping. Please feel free to ask if you have any questions about anything - if I can help, I will. Definitely purchase number one should be a good torch - @pintohoo can recommend a few as you've seen and I can provide specifics tomorrow if you like after I jump online and do some research for you (if you're happy to specify a budget). If I think of anything else that will make your property safer/less vulnerable - I'll just stick it up on here on HC.

signing off now as my dinner went much later than expected and my eyes are getting blurry - hope you're resting up ok and if you think of anything you want to buy that could make your place safer/make you feel safer - let us know and I'll put some links up after I consult the interweb.

Night!