Annoying Neighbors

Does anyone else have the misfortune of sharing a building with annoying people? When Neal first moved out here, I excitedly asked him about his neighbors. I had visions of them chatting by the mailboxes or stopping by just to say hi. Of course Neal thought this was ludicrous.

When I moved into my own apartment in Chicago, I learned why. While I heard plenty from my upstairs neighbors, I rarely saw them. My landlords really wanted me to meet the guys across the hall, but the fact that they wanted me to deterred me instantly.

Our new apartment is really a step up for both of us. It's on a quiet, tree-lined street. And we were lucky enough that it includes a garage parking spot! The neighbors, however, are less than desirable.

A few months ago, some new people moved in to an apartment on the first floor. We don't really have any contact with them, other than the fact that we park our car next to their car. While they don't hit our car when they open their car door (like the last tenants), they rarely close the garage door when they leave. What's the point of having a garage if you don't close the door? It lets snow, rain, dust and PEOPLE in!

In addition, they own two of the most ill-behaved dogs I've ever come across. They don't walk the dogs. Instead, they choose to close our front gate and treat the little lawn area like their own private yard. AND since the dogs never get enough exercise, they are uber aggressive toward any other dog. Even Ellie. They bark viciously and try to attack all other dogs. The owners stand by idly. On numerous occasions, Neal & I have come home only to find we can't enter our front door without being accosted by these animals. We're forced to enter our back door.

Tonight pushed me over the edge. They are treating the front steps and yard as their personal party space. For hours they've had friends over, drinking and smoking and laughing really, really loudly. Our living room now smells like smoke and I've had to leave it to save my sanity from the most annoying laugh ever.

I really hope they read my blog, because I have a message: PLEASE MOVE OUT!