When we had our son so many things changed and one of them was the relationship with our downstairs neighbor. There is no way to avoid the noise that comes with a toddler learning to walk, playing and throwing his toys, and shrieking at the top of his lungs when he can't reach his binky (or just out of boredom). Majority of city dwellers live in apartments with people living above and or below them and sometimes frustrations rise when the people above you have visitors until midnight and you have work the next morning. I think we can all relate to grabbing the broom and banging on the ceiling to give a gentle reminder that there are people living under you. I have sometimes knocked on the door in my PJs with my hair a mess and sleep in my eye to scare the neighbors into being quiet, here is our story of the scary monster neighbor downstairs.
It began on a quiet Sunday afternoon, our son was on his usual rounds of taking a few steps them plopping heavily on his butt after he lost his balance and all of a sudden we heard a loud "
thump, thump, thump" coming from downstairs. I actually felt the thump because I was sitting on the floor playing with him. I was a bit confused but I put away a heavy toy that our son was playing with and gave him some softer toys. After hearing (and feeling) the thump twice more I asked my husband to go downstairs and see what the problem was. Our neighbor complained of running and loud crashing sounds. At first we were concerned and tried to keep it quiet but there is no way to control a baby who is just learning how to walk. We did as much as we could to keep quiet (or so I thought) we got a rug and play mat, we made sure he played quietly in the living room in the morning and we took walks on the weekends or went out when we knew our grumpy neighbor would be home to complain but as soon as we'd get back from our long walk we would hear an obnoxious thump again.
I've lived in every borough of New York City and know about loud neighbors. In one apartment I had neighbors that played music loudly on Sundays at ten am when I was recovering from the late night out before, in one apartment I could smell cigarette smoke when I woke up in the morning, in another I smelled pancakes in the morning and heard feet getting ready for school and work and in another I heard a couple get into raging arguments and throw each others things out the windows at two am. The point is that when you live in a city, in a building, with other people around you are going to hear, and even smell things that have nothing to do with you. They may annoy you but that is what comes with the territory and you have to learn to live with it. Of course, there were some days that I screamed "smoke outside!" or got my broom when I couldn't handle the noise but most of the time you just had to deal. I had to learn the common courtesy rules like everyone else.
Monday night I had my music on in the living room while cooking in the kitchen. It was a bit loud but no one was home just yet at six and I was moving and shaking while making my meatballs. I heard my neighbor come home and a few minutes later I turned my music down. All of a sudden I felt vibrations and when I walked into the living room the whole room was shaking. Our monster had a bad day at work and was retaliating tenfold. I turned my music off and let it go but when my husband got home I complained. He said to just let it slide but when it went on through the time I was putting my son to bed I hit my boiling point. I went downstairs, knocked on the door, and let him have it. We have tried our best to accommodate this guy, even brought him a peacemaking treat and still he was a stubborn little monster (I used more choice words). My husband came down to diffuse the argument. We left it at having a conversation with the landlord about putting carpeting down but until then I am putting on my tap shoes at six pm when I hear him come in and inviting my three nephews over for a play date every Sunday at five pm. Who wants to play ball?
: P
Every fall I look forward to the leaves turning colors, family birthday parties and the fashion of hooded sweatshirts, boots and comfy hats. Another fall tradition is football. From picking a fantasy football squad to getting football gear and lining up the games we must watch, football has become part of our schedule like church on Sundays. It is amazing how I have gotten to learn the language of football because my husband is so into it. I can't imagine being so involved in something without it being directly related to my life. He and his friends can have hour long conversations about football and yet not even remember to mention or ask about each other spouses, kids etc... It amazes me (and used to enrage me) to see the extent of the obsession but I have learned that unfortunately, like church, you just have to deal with it because it isn't going anywhere. I have tried to get involved but the most interesting football stats to me are; who is dating who and who the cutest quarterback is. While channel surfing I found a show on FX called "The League". It is about a group of guy friends who are in a football fantasy league together. It is one show both my husband and I can agree to watch. It is a hilarious show because not only do the friends rag on each other about their fantasy teams, they make fun of each others lives and their families are involved in the show as well. It reminds us of the crew of friends we have here in Queens. I would recommend it for any couple trying to connect during football season or giving it to your guy after you "accidentally" let his computer fall in the sink. 
