Broken Record

An excerpt from and email I just wrote beautifully showcasing the ever-evolving relationship between my landlady and myself. Apologies if this sounds eerily familiar. I know you all know what the situation is and how I feel about her. This is just another in the litany of gripes for which this place is a relatively benign outlet...

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Oh, Judy came up to see me today (I know I said I was going to save the rest of my updating, but this story just popped into my head and I kind of want to vent.) So, she came up. And I was kind of freaking out, because on Wednesday she'd left a note for me saying she needed to talk to me regarding. That is exactly what the note said - "regarding" and then it stopped. So I wasn't sure if I was in trouble, or if she just had some updates about maintenance or wanted me to watch Baxter for her or what. Of course, since she's insane, I was expecting the worst. (Especially after she took my hooks down from my kitchen wall when she was up here to install the new light fixture...did I tell you about that?!). So this afternoon she shows up with a stack of papers, one of which is the contract I signed when I moved in here, and I'm thinking, "Oh Jesus, I'm getting evicted". It turns out she just wants me to sign her new "pet rules" form that's a part of the contract now. So I do.

But then she brings up the contract, and starts asking if she was unclear about the parts that prohibit me from putting any holes in the wall, and she points to that wire leaf thing we bought at Pier One back in October and a few other things. I won that round though, because I only used preexisting holes to hang that stuff (which is 80% true...I pounded a few new holes, but I was very careful). The other thing she nails me for is hanging things with adhesive, like the posters and cards I had up in the bathroom. I have no good excuse for those, and frankly she scares the hell out of me, so I complied pretty quickly and told her I'd take them down. Here's where it gets insulting. Apparently my good word isn't enough for her, as she proceeds to march me into the bathroom so she can actually watch me take this stuff down, which is pretty ridiculous. Now, I fully intend on putting it back up again soon (I'm leave a few-day window just in case she sneaks back up here to check), but the fact that she's making me be sneaky like that pisses me off. I would much rather she just let me have my decorations up on the walls and then take money for it out of my security deposit if it leaves any oil marks or anything that need to be touched up. How much does a can of paint cost now, twelve dollars or something?

So that happened, and then she left, but ten minutes later she called. She'd forgotten to mention the bedroom (which has the hideous popcorn walls that are in no way, shape, or form original to the building) where I need to take down all of my posters and my glow in the dark stars puttied to the ceiling. Now, I really like those stars. They've been on every ceiling I've slept under since I was like fifteen, and I'm kind of attached to how they look - in fact, I think they help me sleep. Plus they were a pain in the ass to put up, and they'll be equally annoying to take down. So, now I'm trying to decide if Judy trusts me enough not to sneak up here one day while I'm at school to check and see if I followed her instructions (what was I just saying about being indignant that she doesn't trust my good word? :)). I'm thinking I just won't take them down. I mean, technically she shouldn't be up here without checking with me first, and I don't foresee any reason for her to visit any time soon, so I could at least squeeze out a few more months before my walls have to become barren and depressing again. On the other hand, if she does come up to check on me and sees that I haven't complied, she's going to be terribly upset and she'll really crack the whip. Ugh. It's ridiculous that this is even an issue. I shouldn't be dealing with crap like this. Maybe I'll move this summer. Would that be more hassle than it's worth?

I don't feel like I'm being unreasonable about my treatment of the space. I mean, I get the whole thing about it being historical, and preservation is a priority, but the quality of life should also be considered, and she is seriously cramping my lifestyle right now. It's strange for me to be in this situation where I'm constantly worried about displeasing an authority figure and we're butting heads so often; I think the problem is that I've always followed my own standards for behavior that I believed was appropriate, and never before in my life have my standards not been good enough for whoever else happens to be involved. So now I'm still going ahead and being as careful with the apartment as I think is necessary (and I will continue to do so...something I'm just learning about myself - and this goes for things happening at school too - is that I cannot uphold rules that I don't genuinely believe are appropriate and useful), which is clearly not good enough for Judy. So we'll see where this goes.