one last thing, and then I swear I'll drop it... (or at least I'll try)

Things seem to be getting worse with the neighbors, although this morning, they proved that they do, in fact, know how to close the door quietly, and just haven't been doing so all along. I pray to Jeff, the God of Doorknobs, that this low-level animosity between us keeps them turning that doorknob before closing the door. In truth, though, it seems too good to last.

Yesterday morning I left them a note that read:

I am BEGGING you, if it is before 8 a.m. or after midnight (i.e., especially 3 a.m. Friday night), please CLOSE THE DOOR QUIETLY. I don't expect you to live by my schedule, but I do ask that you show it some respect.

You know I would do the same for you.

Last night I came home to a typed letter that had been slipped under my door, reading:

Kate,

Got your 15th note and knocked on your door immediately as to be honest I can't take this anymore. [My husband] and I are not intentionally slamming the door and in fact have been mature about the fact that our new door is less than desirable and was installed during my only vacation this year. We can not help it when we have weddings, events or lives that lead us to return home late.

We are not trying to slam the door at specific times, we are living our lives. Most times that we have company you are ALWAYS on our minds and we modify the time or volume as your complaints have been so frequent.

We have also noticed the slamming of your door recently, which I can only assume is intentional or perhaps it is just that you are living your life and closing your door is part of it. Either way we WOULD NEVER COMPLAIN.

We are leaving the apartment on April 1, 2007 and realize this is quite a few months away but there will finally be an end to this one sided situation. A cupcake simply didn't do the trick for me when part of our lives was disrupted and the overall appearance of our place altered.

We will do our best to live around your sleeping patterns (i.e. try not to breathe at any time that won't work for you) if you could please LEAVE US ALONE!

As you can tell from the tone of this letter, I am beyond sick of getting complaints after a HARD day of work. Many people in this building make noise but we would NEVER complain. We all pay rent and unless we are intentionally arguing, screaming in the hall or playin gmusic etc. etc, we should be allowed to live our lives.

Please knock if you want to chat about this further, as I initially knocked on your door to discuss this face to face.

If not good luck with your new neighbors in April or May, I hope they will work out better for your routine.

Best,
Angry Non-slammington

While I'm sorely tempted to comment on this letter, truthfully, I think it speaks for itself. Obviously we're both victims, and think our side is more important. But what they don't understand is that, while my behavior makes them angry, their behavior makes me angry... and it wakes me up.

And to clarify... a) I've only ever complained about the noise level of a party of theirs once, and it was 12:30 at night on a school night and all I did was tell them I was going to bed, and b) I haven't heard anyone else in the building (besides the stupid dog, obviously) make any noise.