Happy Families.

First and Foremost: Something about Orange Juice. And there really is something about Orange Juice. I am about to write a whole post about very Orange Juicy people.

The Husband and I live in a big apartment complex. We also lived in a big apartment complex when we lived in Athens, GA (whilst I was in grad school). We do not have the greatest record of living in big apartment complexes.

In Athens, we lived, admittedly, on Fraternity Row. It was in the middle of things and in walking distance to everything (including campus), but it meant that there were A LOT of Frat kids who didn't want to live in their Fraternity houses, but DID want to get drunk every night.

One night, shortly after moving in, we heard our upstairs neighbors come home at a very small hour of the morning. We heard some shouting--loud enough to WAKE us from a sleep. And then...um, we heard quite a lot of ruckus as they beat each other up. And then, some more screaming. And then, the Husband (full of brilliant ideas) decides to go upstairs and ask them to please keep it down. Which he does, all the while I am poised to call 911 on his behalf.

Short story: We got them dumb folks EVICTED. You mess with Burnstopia, you get the HORNS!

Long story: We called our leasing manager--she LOVED the Husband because he is a GOOD tenant who always pays his bills, takes care of the property and doesn't get into fist fights with his roommates! So we called them, told them what happened and they called the renters. One roommate moved out (can't say I blame him, he was just beaten up by his roommate!) and the CRAZY one, was the one that stayed. He got a new roommate and less than a month later they were having drunken musical evenings that involved the guitar and CONGO drums. I called the leasing manager again and she EVICTED his sorry a** post haste. For which we were most grateful.

Fast forward to HERE. Where we live in a big apartment complex. The building we live in has 2 sides to it. We live on the left side where things are fairly quiet. There are some smokers I don't so much approve of, but hey...at least they're QUIET. The right side is another matter. Those folks on the right side are just TRASHY (as my grandmother would say). And we know because share a wall with some of that trashy.

You will remember that when I was pregnant our neighbors were selfish, thoughtless and LOUD at entirely inappropriate hours of the day? Well, we still have the same neighbors and they have not changed. Only now, instead of playing BAD music at BAD times of day, they fight. And I mean Jerry Springer-esque fighting. Screaming, cursing, stomping and maybe some blows. They've woken me up around 1 or 2am with this sort of behavior and this morning at 7:30 it was more of the same. Only this morning it carried out into the parking lot! In pajamas and bathrobes and one of the roommates with a baby on her hip! Because nothing says, "I'm a good mother" like a screaming fight with your roommate in your bathrobe with your child watching.

I can't wait to own our own house.

The sad thing is, that for all of thier misery, they make us happier. The Husband is watching them scream at each other and dive into cars and peel out of the parking lot and he turns to us and smiles and kisses us each on our forehead and tells us that he loves us. And maybe Tolstoy was right that happy families are dull, but if THAT'S what interesting looks like...I'll be dull and happy thankyouverymuch.