Apartment Living

I thought about it, if only for second or two, after all I had never done this before and although I had imagined what it would be like, I never actually let myself get this close to .. doing it. I started thinking about it, since I was as young as 17. Things got in my way, jobs and commitments, marriage and children, parents and pets. But, still in the back of my mind it kept projecting itself. Since the divorce and the kids moving on and the parents and pets gone these thoughts kept coming back....I was again considering an apartment of my own. No lawn to mow, snow to shovel, just a beautiful small home, surrounded by my new friends and everything in its place. I had my dream right down to the colors of the curtains and the pictures on my walls.

Just as I was about to make the move, my friend invited me to come see her cozy little place and made an appointment for me to talk to her apartment manager.....

Dear Manager

The other day, after a recent visit with some friends of mine, who live in your complex, I felt I had made a decision to meet with you and apply for an application to live next to my friend in your complex. I stepped outside the main entrance of her apartment and noticed a young lady standing on the sidewalk; she was looking off into the distance. I was preoccupied with checking my purse, to see if I had everything I needed to meet with you. I wasn't really paying attention as I also tried to hold open the door, so a young lady with her little boy could enter. I said "Hello" and she responded with, "You Have About 30-Seconds!"

At first, I thought she was threatened by my presence or was making some joke that I was unaware of.

Then she said it again, only with a higher pitched voice and more of an aggravated tone, "Hurry Up, You Have About 30-SECONDS Left!!" Geeze, I thought, was this woman threatening me? Then I noticed "IT" ~ "it" was what she was watching in the distance. My mind pondered my situation for a second, (now 29-seconds left) my head tilted slightly to one side with a curious look and then my mind went to the new beige outfit I was wearing. I looked down at all the fresh mud on the ground from the rain we had just received which was between me and my car. Again, my eyes gazed in the direction she was looking. There "it" was on the outskirts of the lawn, just behind your building, it was in "its" prone position hunched over, going to the bathroom, one of the biggest brown Labradors Retreivers I had ever seen (20-seconds left).

Suddenly, I realized what the girl's warning meant! Oh, Mercy, in other words, I had 30-seconds before the dog finished and then would come bounding back toward our direction, un-leashed and happy from accomplishing its duties.

I am sorry to say, I did not come up with some funny remark to say to the owner or even a brilliantly nasty remark, one of which she would have deserved. Instead, I just took what she said to heart and darted towards my vehicle, after all, by now I only had about 15 of the 30 seconds left!

I flew toward my car, slipping in the mud, one foot one way, the other foot the other. High heels with no grips are not for running in mud. Just as I felt myself going down, I also saw the happy face of "Buster" headed my way! The dog did not knock me down, I was already there, on my knees trying desperately to grab for the handle of my car door. I'm sure the dog didn't have a mean bone in it's body, actually he was very loving. Loving to the extent he was now thinking I was the cutest beige mud covered girlfriend he had ever met. With both front paws wrapped around my back, Buster starting to hump his new found playmate! Buster and I both fell to the ground as his owner, finally grabbed his collar and pulled him toward the door. As she was pushing him inside, she had the nerve to say, "I told you to hurry, I hope your ok, I have to get him in....." and she was gone. No, sorry, are you hurt, can I give you my dry cleaners number...nothing! There I sat, my back against my car, covered with mud, grass and God knows what else. Not hurt, just dazed, thinking about apartment living and curtain colors.....

I thought that owners in your building were supposed to have their dogs on leashes when their pets needed to relieve themselves outside of your apartment buildings. I thought the owners should be made to clean up after their pets? One of my reasons for visiting was to see if I would like to live here, to be closer to my friend. Apparently, I need more time to rethink my thoughts about apartment living, and apparently I don't need more than 30-seconds to come up with the answer.

Signed ~

Not Suing...Just Visiting