Walking on Eggshells, Anvil Drops Anyhow

HELP!

I met my new neighbor, in the unit directly under me as she was moving in a couple of months ago. She was extremely friendly and very energetic

and conversational, which was actually a refreshing change , as I am friendly too, and don’t mind learning about my neighbors. We both have small dogs, and we’re single girls living in an apartment complex.  

I told her if there were any issues not to hesitate to come up and talk to me.  I meant it too.  Every complex has a different acoustical dynamic, as well as structural.  I know what it’s like to live under a petite woman who’s normal gait made it sound like I was living under Sasquatch on a rampage.  I never complained.  There are some things that go with the territory.  I would call the police ONLY if the noise made me believe someone was about to be beaten to death, ( domestic violence disturbance ).  Not to whine, but to make sure no one was getting murdered.  

Anyhow, I don’t even  have TV service, by choice.  Last year’s Cowboy’s football season aged me 10 years, and I am shocked that no one called the police due to my enthusiasm and involvement in those games.  Good thing I decided when I moved in here in July, that I was not getting TV service until after football season.  Weird coincidence because my neighbor turns into a noise detecting whippersnapper when the sun goes down.  

She has a boyfriend, and I don’t know what their arrangement is, but it just seems to me that he might stay here a few nights, she might stay with him once in a while, and the nights that they do neither, she sits there, down below me, alone in her apartment, lonely in the quiet still dark just waiting for a move so she can jump up here and bark.

I hear them when he’s here, and I’ve been woken up, but unless they’re killing each other, I ain’t draggin booty outa bed to complain.  I wouldn’t complain even if I had all the wakeful energy to run up and down the stairs 50 times. That’s just how I roll.. AND when I’m up here, I’m very conscientious about walking around, and noise.  

Last Friday I was gone all day, it was gorgeous out, and a friend had his car break down, and since he lives a mile or two down the road and I was out and about, I picked him up, he had to do some guy errands at Home Depot, and I needed to go to the grocery store, and it was the first cold day that was perfect to break in my fireplace, so we stopped and got a few cords of wood, leaving all but one package in the car.

We walked up the stairs both of us with our hands full, and his also with the packaged wood.  When we got to my door, a piece of the wood slipped out and fell on the hallway floor, which made us both cringe a little, but other than that, we got in quietly…This was a Friday night, at around 12:45am.  About an hour and a half before the bar hoppers come home.  I always expect a little wake up on the weekends after bars close.. It’s a given.

A few minutes later, there’s some knocking at the door..  I was taken aback, and looked in the peep hole, it didn’t look like my neighbor so I asked who it was and she put her face up to the door and made a pointing down gesture, with an irritated look on her face.   It wasn’t necessary for her to get out of bed and freeze for a few seconds , I apologized, and she kept whining about getting woken up and having to work early in the morning.  Well that sucks, she has to get up early Saturday mornings, but I didn’t force her to get that job schedule, and I am not par of the bar crowd that goes out and stumbles around with other drunks  making noise for a couple of hours.  I was overly apologetic, and foolishly so., it turns out.. I did feel bad, but we didn’t play toss the firewood on the concrete hallway floor.  AND it was temporary noise, inherent to the natural flow of sharing a dwelling area with other residents.

I was a fool to be so apologetic… Sorry, would have sufficed.  

Tuesday night, election night 2010, I’m keeping up with my Lt. Col., now congressman’s election results, and I was alone in my apartment, on the phone with a friend.  He had told me they counted 90% of the votes and it was 58% in his favor, which is usually, by magical mathematician’s formulas when they call it.  I look at the computer screen and watch the green check pop up in the winner’s box, and with excitement, I let out a hearty "WHOO-HOO HE"S IN BABY, YEAH, WHOO-HOO!" and that’s it, I said sorry if that was in your ear, and my boy friend said he would expect that because this guy unseated a guy who was deemed irremovable, and he’s going to save Congress.  We talk a little, hang up, I go to my Facebook page, and make a written update on the victory, (after the verbal one)..  This is good because Facebook has exact time stamps on posts, and I know the "Excessive Noise" (alleged) took place at least 5 minutes before that time… 

All of a sudden my door is being assaulted, I’m talking Federal Agent with warrant style door banging.  ( I’ve seen CSI ). I jumped out of my skin, and had no clue who that would be or why.. Seriously, it scared me, and I wasn’t answering my door to that kind of psycho whacking out.  So I just bang on the door and say "go away".. And I hear a screeching with the words "I Already Called the Cops"!!  

I’m thinking WHAT?!!! No she didn’t bother the police with this matter, that is just disrespectful to them and supremely excessive in her over reaction to my minor infraction at 10:30 pm, taking place for about 5 maybe 10 seconds.   Well shoot, my nerves were shot from the initial accost .. then I’m waiting for law enforcement.  I’m by myself, and shaking like a leaf, worn out, but unable to sleep… I heard every noise and thought they were coming for me..

The next day, Wed. Nov. 3, I call the office to say we may need to discuss an issue that needs a neutral party there to draw boundaries so we could solve it without violent out bursts..   That was nuts, and I don’t know this girl from Crazy Town.  I left voicemails.  Never got a call back, but I got a Lease Violation notice charging me with the offenses of EXCESSIVE NOISE and creating a DISTURBANCE.   

ummmmmmmm….. breathe… think…… wait it out… leave it for a few hours….. 

The lease violation states, that if another one is brought against me, I would likely be evicted….. ok, breathe…… I just moved here in July, and I’m not moving any time soon because a spoiled, whiney split borderline personality disordered brat is miserable with her life.. 

I remember from our initial conversation that she implied a friend of hers had just gotten a job as a leasing agent here… I also noticed that the Notice of Lease Violation was put together by and signed by a leasing agent.  I was wondering if her supervisor had to approve it with her signature as well.. The great lady who leased me this place is the leasing manager because the leasing agent, I believe it was this one, went on vacation, and they were short handed.    I had already called and ended up leaving a voicemail BEFORE the lease violation notice, to discuss what I said above… 

I’m not sure how to handle this because I guarantee, if this girl has gone bezerko for these past 2 tiny infractions that  wouldn’t, if done together in the same night, even warrant such retaliation, she’s gonna hear my dog bark at the wrong time, or as I walk on eggshells that’s when a shelf I  put up comes crashing to the floor right when she happens to be standing under it, with just the floor to separate them..

Do I deny these excessive charges, and say politely and apologetically, that I don’t deserve this one bit, and if anything, her behavior was the disturbance, for sure, against me.  If I have to accept a lease violation notice, I’ll take the excessive noise, and she gets one for the disturbance, otherwise, I’m going to file a restraining order against her for harassment.   

I have lawyers all around me, my dad too, but they’re only going to refer me to someone, and I’m not paying for this situation, I can’t . I don’t have extra psycho nut neighbor attack money put aside.  

She claimed it was after midnight, making the incident seem more offensive.  My phone calls and my Facebook update prove it was ten thirty something.. Not even eleven.. AND she said I was screaming and yelling and fighting with someone..  ?? Um, I was alone, and on the phone..  

So I think I can deny it based on those facts being straight up outright WRONG, and her exaggerations, untruthful statements, and the date and time is totally wrong.

I don’t know, but this thing has me stressed.  So much I kept waking up, and here I am, writing a novel about it… 

Does anyone know if her over reactions which were hostile, intimidating, and threatening can be considered grounds to file a complaint against her for harassment?  I don’t want to mess with all this, but I’m not going to risk a heart attack if I drop something, and she’s alone, brewing, and decides to complain again.  She needs to have an incentive to control herself knowing that I am not going to let her bully me and create an unpleasant living situation for me because of two tiny things that most decent, normal people would ignore as they were fleeting and part of the nature of living in an apartment…

Thanks for your help, in advance :))