Keeping up with the neighbors

My residence has been a recurring topic on this blog, so get ready for the latest update.

The neighbor who lived below me has officially moved out. I suspected as much when I returned from New York City, not to mention the fact that it seemed like she and her daughter weren't here often, but confirmation arrived on the last day of August. Of anyone in these units, I had spoken to her more than the occupants of the four other apartments, mainly because I'd encountered her a couple times in the parking lot. While her smoking pretty much meant I could no longer keep the sliding door open in cooler weather or sit on the balcony when she was around, I appreciated that she and her child weren't loud.

Now I bide my time waiting to see who moves in next. Since the other apartment in this unit was filled relatively quickly after the last people moved out, I wouldn't be surprised if someone is in there by the time I get back from Canada.

As for the new next door neighbors, a second one is here now. A young guy was already there. A young woman moved in last weekend. I don't think they're a couple. The names on the mailbox are different, so I don't think they're siblings. If I were to guess, one or both are Ohio State students.

They've been much better neighbors than the previous occupants, at least so far. Noise hasn't been an issue. For that matter, they aren't in and out and in and out and in out like the last ones. (They didn't necessarily go anywhere. If anything, they were here too much. They just had lots of dogs to take out, and sometimes they'd smoke in the stairwell.)

Tonight the guy did do something that never ceases to confuse me. He came out of the apartment talking on a cell phone, conducted some of the conversation in the stairwell, and then walked into the parking lot to continue it for a good long while. If you have your own space, why would you do this? I can't hear it if you're in your apartment. I can, and so can several others, if you're outside.

I've become the old lady keeping tabs on everybody, haven't I?

Randomize!

-I drove by an apartment complex that had a sign outside with "Pets free" on it. I assume that means there is no charge to have a pet while residing there, but couldn't one reasonably think that it means there are no pets in the complex? (I'm not going to propose that one might be misled to think they are giving away pets.)

-Difference I noticed between visits to New York City in March and August: going up flights of stairs from the subway platform was less taxing. Exercise on the recumbent bike has made a difference.

-I need a vacation from coming back from vacation.

-It would seem that my new common wall neighbor is quiet. Since they've moved in, I've not heard anything from that place. Color me relieved.

-While I was out of town, I think the person who lives below me moved out, but I can't say for certain. If so, I can open up the glass sliding doors and sit on the balcony more. The previous (?) occupant smoked really rank cigarettes.

-While working out tonight I saw an ad for a pizza place I haven't been to in a long time. So of course I picked up dinner from them on the way home. Advertising works sometimes.

Fingers crossed

That didn't take long.

The Friday before last I noticed that a maintenance worker had removed the lock box from the door to the recently vacated apartment next to mine. Would somebody be moving in so soon? As it turns out, yes.

Since I've not been home much these past couple days, I haven't seen who lives there now or if they're even fully moved in. There are two names on their mailbox, so at least two people will be occupying the adjoining apartment. Fingers crossed that they're already settled in because there's been no noise at all so far. I welcome this continuing.

Scraps

-Although I'd been to it once before, it was really kind of wonderful yesterday to see a movie in a building surrounded by corn fields on three of its sides.

-Aside from the space in their new house, one of the best things about where my parents now live is that there are places to go within a five-minute drive. Yes, they're still essentially in the country, but they're not quite as isolated. Even if it's just to run to the grocery, to get a coffee, or go to the movies, all these places are within easy reach. That should help with keeping one's sanity while visiting, although the house won't be as cramped anyway since two of my brothers live just a couple miles from them.

-I have returned home to find that the vacated apartment next to mine is still empty. Is it too much to hope for that to be the case for awhile?

-Speaking of neighbors, upon my return I was confronted with a decision whether to be a good one or not. I noticed that the dome light was on in the car driven by the woman who lives in the unit below mine. It was nearly 10 p.m. Do I knock on her door? (Keep in mind I've only a had a couple brief conversations with her.) Ultimately I figured it wouldn't hurt to try, especially since the likelihood was high that she'd otherwise get up to a drained battery. She answered and was grateful I let her know. It may seem weird even to question whether to do this, but what's the likelihood you'd answer the door that late to someone you don't particularly know?

Clippings

-In the parking lot I saw two Indian women hitting a shuttlecock back and forth, back and forth. There was no net and, as far as I could tell, no points being kept. That's kind of how I felt about the writing I worked on today. While I was accomplishing something, I wasn't really getting anywhere with it. At least they were doing it for fun, or so I presume.

-It is official. My noisy neighbors have moved out. In observation I may have waking moments when the television isn't on. (I'm joking but there's an element of truth.)

-Three working days until I take some much needed and extended time off. Can I make it to Thursday without losing my mind? Stay tuned.

Cautiously optimistic

I'm pretty sure that the neighbors whose subwoofer has been a regular irritant for the past year are in the process of moving out. I should know for certain this weekend, but everything I've observed indicates that they're on the way out by the end of the month. Yes, they did turn down the bass somewhat after I said something last fall, but even at this reduced level it was still something that would come pulsing through the one shared wall. It just didn't rumble through every room in my place after I spoke to one of them through a narrowly cracked door.

There's the risk that whoever replaces them in that apartment will be worse, so my relief at their departure is tempered by the uncertainty of the unknown. Regardless, it's out of my control. Such is the way of apartment living.

For now, though, I will enjoy the peace and quiet as long as it lasts and hope for the best.

Morsels

This and that...

The countdown to a firm answer on whether my sometimes loud neighbors are moving draws ever near. If they are, chances are it will be this weekend. I have a sense that they might be on the way out, but maybe my wishes are coloring what I'm observing. A boy can dream.

I'm working extra to cover in advance what I might otherwise need to do when I take some time off in August. This isn't really how it's supposed to work, is it?

Although it will be a faster turnaround than I'd prefer, I'm meeting my dad in Cincinnati to go to baseball games on Wednesday and Thursday. Drive there, go to the game, sleep, breakfast, go to the game, drive home. I can tell I'm desperately in need of a break. While this really isn't one, at least it gets me out of the head space of work for a little bit.

I have more or less worked out my plans for a couple weeks off, though. I plan to go to my parents' home for a few days, come home for a few, go to Washington, D.C. to see some Reds games on the road, and then drive up to New York City, where I want to see Anything Goes and possibly take in a game at Yankee Stadium. That should be a full docket, right?

Willpower

Lessons in doing things I wasn't sure I could do:

-Last weekend I gave my parents' my old standard definition TV. I hadn't turned the thing on since I bought an HDTV, and they could use one in another room. Getting that sucker out of my apartment, down the stairs, and into my car on my own wasn't easy, but I managed to do it. What remained was the entertainment center that the old TV had sat in. Now I didn't need it either.

The entertainment center has been taking up a fair amount of space in my bedroom, and it bore some damage from when I last moved it and the TV. So, the question was when I was going to move it out of my place. The catch: it's heavy, particularly at the bottom, and awkward to try and move. Oh yeah, and the stairs I need to get it down. I suppose it didn't matter if I dinged it up any on the way to the garbage, but I didn't want to make a racket either.

Once I tried lifting the thing, I knew I was in trouble. I told myself that I just needed to get it down the first set of stairs, then down the next set, and finally I could just flip it end over end rather than carrying it. That's basically how it went, plus me sweating like crazy. (I probably could have done this on a cooler day, but I wanted it out.) I wasn't sure I could do it when I started. It wasn't easy. But I got the job done.

-Fast forward to late afternoon and heading to the gym to get in my last day of exercise for the week. As hot as it has been outside this week, it's been as terribly humid in the workout area. I've really had to push myself to finish the other two workouts in these conditions. This would be my third day in a row, and I wasn't exactly feeling it.

I gave myself a mental out. Try to get through a half hour. If I'm feeling gassed, it's OK to stop, especially in this heat. At the 30-minute mark I was pretty much ready to quit but kept telling myself to go just another couple minutes. Now get to 40 minutes. OK, you can stop at 45 minutes. You've made it this far, just finish off the hour. All right, you can lower it one level. This incremental approach led me to getting in the hour-plus workout.

So, at least for one day, I found the determination and will to do the things that were necessary but difficult. It'll be good to have these to look back on for motivation, but the accomplishments themselves are reason enough to feel good.

Telecommute

I've not taken time off from work this summer, and today wasn't any exception even though I'm still at my parents' home. Let us say a few words in praise of the good ol' telecommute.

I needed to write and have found that I have better luck doing that outside of the office. So, I let it be known I'd log my time away from my place of business today. This allowed me to extend my visit and still accomplish what had to be done. I doubt this would fly during the school year, but for the summer it was perfectly acceptable.

Yes, there were interruptions and distractions, and I took longer than necessary to tap out my script. Nevertheless, it was a productive day and one that opens up tomorrow for getting other things done. If I'd been in the office, chances are I'd have not begun any of this, fretted about it, and set myself up to be stressed out on Tuesday while I attacked it.

The big benefit was being able to spend more time with my parents. (Hey it's been almost seven months.) I helped out with some technological questions that they needed answered, something I have more patience for, and probably less knowledge, than my nearby brothers possess.

This kind of freedom isn't something that's a regular thing for me. If anything, the work sometimes will follow me where I go even when I would rather it did not. Still, there's something to be said for a day like this away from the fluorescent lights, lack of windows, and dynamics of the workplace. At least for today, it didn't even feel like work.

Home away from home

I met my brother at my parents' new home and used his help in carrying in my old 27" standard definition television. Their second TV was damaged during the move, and I haven't turned this old thing on since I bought a high definition set. So it was a win-win. I got rid of something I didn't need and gave it to someone who could use it. While it's no match for the HDTV we bought them for Christmas two years ago, it will serve them well when they have split interests in what to watch. (Also, that old TV is heavy. I think I strained every muscle in my arms getting it from my apartment to my car.)

My parents were picking up some last possessions still at the parsonage and attending to some other busy back there, so I had to give myself a tour of their new place. True to what I knew, if this hadn't been a foreclosure, they never would have been able to get this much house for their price range. There's no question it's the nicest house they've ever owned or lived in. Good grief, there's a golf course right out the back door.

They're in a suburban development, which is new for them and a little weird to me. Sure, I've lived on my own in the suburbs for a decade and a half, but I've lived in apartments, one with more of small town surroundings and one with more of a city feel. As I went outside late tonight to move my car from the road into the driveway, I was struck by how alien it was. The street is quiet, and there are all these other houses nearby. Where am I?!

My other brother who lives just a couple miles away also came over for supper, so the experience had this odd feeling of seeming like old times when everyone was under the same roof. The marked difference, of course, was the fact that my siblings left to return to their homes as the day wound down.

I think this house is a terrific fit for them, and it should be a good place for when most or all of us are here at the same time. Eventually the novelty will wear off and I'll feel more like I'm in somewhere I've known than an unfamiliar building I'm a guest in. Plus, with all this space, I think everyone can breathe easier.

Home is where you make it

Tomorrow I'm headed out of town to visit my parents for a couple days. It's probably about time considering I haven't seen them since a shortly after Christmas. I've been busy. They've been busy. This weekend works well for me and probably is what I need to unwind from a summer that has been busier at the office than I anticipated.

My parents bought and moved into a new house a little less than a month ago, so this will be my first time at the place. It's also the first house that I expect to feel more like a home than the last two places they've lived over the previous ten(?) years. My mother's last two pastorates meant that she and my dad lived in parsonages. Sure, they decorated as they wanted and made the places their own, so to speak, but in a sense--and in reality--these were temporary living quarters. They would not be occupied when the job ended.

This isn't to say that I felt uncomfortable in either of those houses, although the last one left something to be desired with its lone bathroom. (This did not cut it at holiday time with up to seven people under one roof.) Still, there was no sense of being rooted, which is what I think of when I think of home. In my mind, going to wherever my parents live is going home. (I distinguish this, though, from where I'm from, which is locked in time and place as where I grew up.)

So I'm curious to get a look at their new place, the building they own, for a change. From what I understand it has a lot of room, more than either of the two homes I lived in as a kid. (It's also 60-90 minutes closer than the last place they lived, which doesn't hurt, especially at wintertime.) I won't be there long, but it will be nice to get familiarized with the new family base.

What's happening

-I made it to my first knit night of the year. I think it's my first since last October. My absence is mostly due to having nothing I was knitting, although being busy in general and some Thursday night film series have kept me away too. (The latter will probably have me skipping knit night the next couple weeks as well.)

-I'm going back and forth whether to run in the 4th of July 5K road race. I've been exercising, but I haven't been running. The question is whether almost 75 miles a week on a stationary recumbent bicycle translates to running endurance. (OK, let's face it, what I would be doing is called jogging.) Part of me is really keen on the idea of going out there Monday morning and letting it rip. My legs do feel stronger. Another part of me says that this is a way to get an injury or paying to find out that I'm not up to the challenge, which is what I sort of suspect. Then again, I've run in this race before with less overall preparation. Decisions, decisions.

-I noticed last night that the air conditioning seemed to be running an awfully long time. A check of the thermostat showed that it wasn't moving, and looking at the unit revealed ice around the pipe coming out of it and going into the wall. This again, eh? Even when it was recharged a month or so ago, it seemed like it took an unusually long time to complete the job. It did get cooler in my place, but I couldn't help but feel as though the unit was having to work harder than is typical. Hopefully this takes care of the issues for good.

Shh

It's been something of a strange week. Between being one of the few people in the office and spending time on my balcony at home, this has been an unusually quiet stretch. That's not a complaint. At a point in time when it seems like most people are more comfortable filling the background with persistent noise than dare inhabit a hushed space, this is a rare thing.

I'll confess to being fried here at the end of the academic year and feeling perpetually distracted. I think that's part of the reason why I've turned to reading and sitting on the balcony. (Or, per tonight's activity, I sat outside in the cool evening and began a knitting project.) The wind blowing through the trees and the birds singing provide a subdued, calming soundtrack. Yes, that relative silence can be interrupted by the pulsing of someone's subwoofer, but those low frequency beats can be ignored a little more with some of nature's white noise.

Outer silence makes it easier to find inner silence. For as pushed and pulled in every direction that I've felt for some time, this break in the sonic landscape seems to be letting me regain some peace. It's a nice transition to the upcoming weekend, which will find me out of town going to a weekend series of baseball games. I don't currently have any other plans. Maybe I'll find something else to do, maybe I'll pick something to read and find a quiet spot to become immersed in it. I could surely stand a little more of that tranquility.

The other neighbors

True to my pledge to do some reading outdoors, I spent the better part of the afternoon on my western balcony enjoying the weather and completing Catching Fire, the second book in The Hunger Games trilogy. (Short review: reads an awful lot like a cynical cash-in to turn this into a trilogy. Not bad, just inessential.) It was a fantastic day to be able to sit outside and take it easy. The morning's rain had cooled things off significantly, and when the sun did emerge, there was a nice, soft breeze that kept the temperature comfortable.

The side of the apartment that I was on is relatively isolated. A culvert borders the grassy area and separates the green space from the back of a shopping center. I was able to kick back and listen to the birds chirping away and practically imagine that I was out in the countryside. I even stole a short nap with my head resting against the wall.

From time to time I'd look up to see what I could see. I spotted an ibis or a heron in the culvert getting a drink, so I was inspired to grab my camera and see if there were any shots I might be able to get of my non-leasing neighbors. I didn't have much luck snapping any photos of birds aside from the picture at the top of this post.

I had more success with the pair of squirrels you see perched in the tree. They stuck around for quite awhile. One of them explored some of the patio furniture below. The other was hassled by a particularly aggressive little bird for a bit. Eventually they took a break on a branch.

As the afternoon wore on, the heat picked up to the point that I moved inside. Still, I'm going to have to make sitting on the balcony a regular part of my routine, as long as the weather permits. It was nice to discover a new space in my apartment and observe what's running and flying around the neighborhood.

Four years

Four years ago this weekend I moved to my current apartment. It hardly seems possible that it's been that long, but the calendar doesn't lie. It's safe to say that this was a move for the best. Although I wish that my neighbors for the last ten months would turn down their stereo system some more, I'm otherwise pretty happy here. (One of the two people living next door has changed since late summer and the fall, which I think has kept the noise a little more in check, but I'd prefer to go back to how things were with the previous tenant, ie., not hearing any thumping bass or noise. Still, they're better than they were.)

Since I have to work the equivalent of two days tomorrow, I stayed close to home today. I saw two movies, dropped off recycling, popped into a couple chain crafts shops to look at yarn, browsed at a bookstore, and got all three meals. I was able to do it all within two or three miles from where I live. I renewed my appreciation for where I'm staked out. I have a lot at my disposal without having to venture far from home. Sure, the traffic can sometimes be on the heavy side, but I can get around relatively easily and have learned some alternative routes to circumvent the biggest backups.

Who knows how long I'll stay here, although I have no imminent plans for going elsewhere. Yes, it would be nice to have a place to my own, where I have no common walls with neighbors, but that's not in the cards for now and would be a big luxury. Really, this place suits my needs very well. When the time comes that I leave it, I hope the departure will be on my terms. This may be just a rental, but having inhabited it for this long, it feels like it's mine.

Zip

I finally got around to signing my lease renewal for another year. I hadn't been in any hurry because I wasn't planning on going anywhere, and there wasn't any rush to get it signed. OK, fine, the rent's going up slightly for the next twelve month stretch, but that's pretty much to be expected. Has anyone's rent ever gone down?

As I initialed and signed the document in the appropriate places, I realized that when this new lease kicks in, I'll be entering into my fifth year in this apartment. Can that be right? Have four years gone by? Yes, just like that I've zipped through four years in this place.

Of the six units in my building, I've occupied mine the third longest. It seems hard to believe. Where did that time go?

The sound of silence

I arrived home around six tonight, and I haven't turned the television on yet. I'm likely to watch something once I'm done with this blog entry, but so far this evening I've been enjoying listening to something: silence (for the most part).

This fall I've written about the bass coming from my neighbors' apartment and reverberating in mine. It would seem that my request for them to turn it down has been successful. The volume has been reduced. That said, I still can hear the thump-thump-thump pretty much whenever they have their sound system on. The low frequency finds it's way through the wall.

I'm hesitant to say anything else simply because I don't want to press my luck. The fact of the matter is that subwoofers weren't made for apartment living, especially for people who like to listen or watch at loud levels. I can mostly deal with where they keep it now, even if I prefer to receive less of it or, ideally, none of it.

Tonight, though, they've either not been home for stretches or are keeping the stereo/home theater system off. That means I can sit in my place and not need to manufacture offsetting noise. (I can somewhat block out the current doses of low frequency I get by having my TV on at what is a low to average volume for most people.) You don't know how much I appreciate simply sitting in my apartment without any auditory intrusions.

Even without the noise from next door, I've probably been prone to turning the TV on as background noise, even if I'm not watching it. I'm not necessarily trying to fill the silence, not in the obnoxious way that so many public and private places do, but it can be comforting to have it droning within range while I'm doing something else. (The exception would be while I'm reading a book.)

But for this night, it's been calming to unwind at home and soak up the silence. With my neighbors, who knows how precious this time may be?

Overcast

I can't think straight with the jackhammering bass coming from the adjoining apartment, so this photo is all I have today. (I left the apartment for the better portion of the evening because the thought of dealing with this seriously stressed me out.) I think I've figured out that it's a video game rather than music, which may actually be worse. I expect these younger guys will be playing it until the dead of night.

Ugh.

Holding my breath

For a little more than four months the apartment next to mine was empty. The father and two kids that previously occupied the unit rarely made enough noise for me to hear anything coming through the one shared wall. That is how it should be.

The vacancy wasn't going to last forever, but you better believe I had been enjoying the little bit of extra quiet. I wasn't overjoyed to see someone (or someones) moving in yesterday, but it was inevitable that the apartment would eventually be rented.

It should be noted that aside from those who live below me slamming their door too often for my taste, I've been satisfied with the lack of noise in the other five apartments in this unit during what is now the start of my fourth year here. Worrier that I am, I fear that the relative silence may be coming to an end.

It started last night. Sometimes I sleep on the futon in my living room because the sun pokes through the blinds in my bedroom and into my eyes too early. Such was the case Thursday night. At 3:20 a.m. I was awakened by a barking dog in, you guessed it, my new neighbor's place. That was followed by someone opening and closing the door a few times. Seriously? Eventually the dog quit barking, and I fell back asleep.

Early this evening my neighbor (or neighbors) cranked their stereo so that the subwoofer was audible in every corner of my place. *%@! That low frequency thump is enough to drive me crazy. It did come down some to a level that, if not pleasing to me, is more like a steady rumble in the background than a pulse invading my head. I hate to say that if that's as noisy as it gets, I can deal with it, but it may be the consolation I have to make. The occupant (or one of them) would appear to be someone who likes it loud. His car has an aftermarket muffler that's more like an amplifier--it sends additional noise out the tailpipe--so I'm steeling myself for what I may now have to live with.

One of my hopes is that this new resident or residents will become aware of what kind of volume emanating from the apartment is appropriate. Having been in a bad situation before, I'm not optimistic on that count but we'll see. My other hope is that the people living on the other side and below will make their complaints heard if it comes to that. I certainly don't want to be the lone griper if it comes to me needing to do that.

I've been looking forward to getting out of town for vacation in the near future. That excitement may have increased due to this development. If the noise becomes a regular problem, my knitting productivity may return to what it was in my early knitting days, although I'd rather not return to that situation again.

While you were out

When I'm out of town for a little bit I'll sometimes have this weird feeling as though home is now a mysterious, far-off place. What happens when I'm not around? Is the landlord going through my apartment unbeknownst to me?

This latter question might sound like something a paranoid person would wonder, but it is rooted in actual experiences. I had one landlord who went into my place from time to time without advance notice, which always felt like a violation. Of course, landlords do have a right to enter--with notice--but since I don't always keep my living quarters as tidy as I should, I fret about access needed at an unexpected time. Go figure, I got home tonight and found one such notice for furnace inspection on Thursday. Fear confirmed.

There are also times when I'm elsewhere that it seems like home ceases to exist because it isn't my current reality, as though I'm the author of all I can see. For all I know, my home could have burned to the ground and I'd be none the wiser. (This thought has crossed my mind on more than one occasion.)

Maybe this sense that something is afoot while I'm away goes back to one summer that I went to camp and returned to find that my family had purchased a new television. I don't know why in particular this incident made such an impression on me. It's not like getting a new TV was a negative development in the order of coming home to find a pet is no longer around. Whatever the reason--I think it has to do with feeling out of the loop--to this day it is strange to me to go away for a short while and come back to find things changed, even a little.

What I'm getting at is that I left town on Friday morning and got back home tonight to find that one of my neighbors has moved out. You mean stuff was going on while I wasn't present?