Bang-Bangs

So you all know I live at Wits End, literally.....and figuratively.  I've also written about my neighbors.  Specifically, my lower neighbors.  For 6 months I had awesome neighbors.  An elderly couple, Nancy & John.  I adored them.  Such a sweet couple, with wonderful kids.  But they moved out & that has made me sad.  I also really enjoy my neighbor Maryellen & her boyfriend Bill.  Maryellen has the most wonderful pit bull mix dog, Rufus & German Shepard Sadie, who both adore my Hailey girl.  Recently, I got new neighbors downstairs.

What Maryellen has gotten from the office is it's a young woman & her 4 year old daughter & their pit bull.

***Disclaimer - I have nothing against pit bulls.  I believe the breed gets a bad rap because of how they are raised/trained etc.

Maryellen said the office advised the young woman downstairs that is there is one complaint about the dog, the dog has to go.  Maryellen spoke with the young woman who assured her several times in one conversation that the dog is friendly.  When I walk Hailey & we pass the door since we share an entryway, the dog scratches, barks, snarls & body slams the door.  It scares Hailey & sometimes I have trouble getting her back inside.  But that isn't really what I'm writing about.

These fuckers downstairs make noise constantly.  LOUD noise, constantly.  Rolling, slamming, banging.  CONSTANTLY.  For hours at a time.  I'm not joking.  One night, in less than a minute, they slammed open & closed the slider 7 times.  7 fucking times in less than a minute!!!!  Right now, there is rolling & banging & running going on, along with a radio I can hear - all over my TV which isn't even at a loud level.  And this is constant.

When they were moving in, they were using a power saw out back to build something.  Oh, which their little deck area.....the Christmas tree is still lying back there, rather than put it in the dumpster 15 feet away, they just left it out there.  We haven't determined what was being built.

Aside from the constant noise, there have been at least 3 different guys there.  We aren't sure what the deal is, but they are there, often.  Jay suggested that maybe it's a flop house.  I don't think that's what it is, but you never know.  We just really wonder what the constant noise is all about.  One night, Jay had headphones in watching videos on youtube & he could still hear the noise.

I have told the office, which they tell me to call the emergency line, that maybe they don't realize they are making that much noise.  They are quiet (with an occasional slam) during the night, so they do have some apartment etiquette.  I told the office yesterday that if Fruity Nutcake thought I was loud, her fucking head would have exploded with the people downstairs.  You can refresh your memories about her here & here.

At the moment, I don't feel the need to call the maintenance line.  But the noise is amazing.  I have not met her yet, I think she's avoiding me.  She hasn't spoken to Maryellen but once.  When she's outside with one of the "gentleman callers" she won't make eye contact with Maryellen but when she's alone, she will.  Maryellen plans to ask her about that.  I like Maryellen, she's a cool cat.  I need to get some of her assertiveness.

I'm trying to think of a name for downstairs.  I'm thinking of calling them the Bang-Bangs.

I'm sure I will have more to write about them once the warmer weather comes.  This could get interesting.

:)

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Tis But a Flesh Wound......

***WARNING*** If you have a queasy stomach or blood makes you light headed then you better skip today's post. Consider yourself warned.

Before I get to my actual post, I thought I'd update you on something.  You all know my neighbor, the Conspiracy Theorist (CT), right?  Well, I learned from my one normal neighbor, Maryellen, that he is in the hospital on life support.  Sad.  Apparently he had an awful seizure and his being in the hospital on life support is the outcome.  It's possible it was caused my medication he takes & his large consumption of alcohol.  So sad.

Ok, on to my actual post.

Back at the very end of July, in the middle of the whole bed bug ordeal, I had yet another cutlery incident.  It is becoming apparent that I don't have very good knife skills & probably should only own butter knives.  I was cutting a roll for dinner with Jay, it was a good thing he was here, and I put a serrated bread knife pretty deep into my left ring finger.  I guess you aren't supposed to hold a roll in your hand to cut it, you're supposed to lay it flat on the counter.  Who knew?? Mind you, a couple of weeks before, I cut myself in the exact same spot, but it was very minor, a flesh wound.  :)

Now I rip my finger open & I'm hanging into my kitchen sink, running it under cold water, trying to get the blood to stop.  It wasn't working.  At all.  My conversation with Jay:

Me:  I think I need to get stitches.
Jay:  Nah, just put a band aid on it to get it to stop bleeding.
Me:  I don't think it's going to stop, I think I need stitches.
Jay:  I will get a band aid, we will put it on tight.
Me:  Just bring me a washcloth, I think we need to go to the E.R.
Jay:  I can't find the band aids!! (mind you, stuff was all over due to me having to shift shit around for the exterminators)

Needless to say, we went to the E.R.  Oddly I was out in less than an hour.  Hard to believe, right?   I got in right away & they had me sitting in a room.  Mind you, I'm still bleeding, profusely & that is not one of my typical exaggerations.  Every time I took the washcloth off, blood spurted out.

I have a nurse, an aid & a doctor all checking on me.  I'm one lucky girl!!  So I ask if I have to get a tetanus
shot, because, you know, tetanus shots hurt like a bitch & you can't lift your arm for days.  The doctor thought I was afraid of needles.  If I were afraid of needles, I wouldn't have tattoos.

So the doctor starts to check me out & he takes my washcloth off & is looking at my open, sucking wound.  Next thing I know, he jams his finger right into it!!!!!!  Muther Effer!!!  He's lucky I didn't swing at him!!!  He said he was checking to see if I did nerve damage.  Oh, I felt that alright!!!  Ass.

The aide got my finger a little cleaned up & had me hold some gauze on it.

He walked by at one point at asked if I was giving him the finger.  I told him I wasn't but if he'd like me to I would.  Wasn't that nice of me??  HAHAHA

So, he numbs me right up & gives me 5 lovely stitches.  Here is what it looked like right after, picture courtesy of Jay:  

I was still bleeding profusely & extremely numb.  They didn't give me any pain pills.  So sad :(

The bleeding finally stopped & I got this freshly stitched picture:

The nurse, who was very nice, gave me my tetanus shot & told me if I swung my arm around like a windmill, it wouldn't hurt & I'd be able to lift my arm the next day without pain.  Yeah right, she was full of it.  So they bandaged me up & sent me on my way.  

We stopped to get some ibuprofen, that was the strongest thing they would let me take, WTF?!?!  We got home & the numbness started wearing off, which wasn't pleasant.  

The next day I showered, with a rubber glove & finally took the bandage off to examine my flesh wound:

Pretty good, right?  I told the Doctor I contemplated getting stitches.  He said it was good I decided to.  He said it wouldn't have healed right at all if I didn't.  A band aid wouldn't have fixed that flesh wound.  

Here is a picture a month after I cut myself.  I left my stitches in for almost the 2 weeks they suggested.  I think they lasted 12 days.  I also removed my own stitches.  One of them, the middle one, came untied after a few days, so I took it out.  When I took the rest out, I did sterilize my scissors & finger & tweezers.  I didn't have the money to go to my doctor to have it done.  

I healed up pretty well, right?  It is good I went to get stitches!!!  Hahaha

Here is a picture from today, can barely tell I cut myself at all....except when a knife is in my presence, then it throbs & pulsates!!!!

If anyone needs help with stitch removal, please feel free to give me a call!!!  I hope you weren't grossed out too much!!!

:)

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