Today's view out the windows of my new neighborhood coffee shop.
It's cold outside today, and, as you can see, it snowed.
GrrlScientist 2008 [larger view].
This past week has been a real challenge because my bathroom is apparently disintegrating, which has caused the building "super" and his assistant to bang loudly on my apartment door bright and early every morning this past week, even last Monday, which was supposed to be a holiday. Worse, they hang around most of the day, so that I cannot leave my apartment during business hours so I can, you know, do things.
Normally, I wake up between 430 and 5am, but this past month, I have been unable to sleep, because I have probably been experiencing what I suspect is a "mixed state", a situation that is exacerbated by the ultra-loud stereo system that the neighborhood center that is three blocks away has apparently just gotten, which they use to produce shockingly loud noise that easily rivals a commercial airliner during take-off (I know, this sounds funny, as if I am exaggerating for comedic effect, but I was absolutely serious when I wrote that). Of course, the police come around three or four times per night, sirens wailing, to enforce NYC's "quality of life" laws, causing the noise to be reduced to tolerable levels, only to be turned up about ten minutes after their departure, which makes it all the more difficult to sleep. This goes on all night long, until 5am, to be precise.
After spending my nights listening to this unbearable racket, I finally manage to drift off to sleep by 6am or so, only to have the building super banging on my door at 9am. So there I am, barely conscious and angry, sipping tea and watching two men tear my bathroom apart. Every morning this week.
Yesterday morning, the super and his assistant had two plumbers came around and rip up my bathroom. Between the four of them, they left a huge, gaping hole that extends from under my sink to behind the toilet, but at least the main problem was finally fixed. So I went to my local coffee shop (it was too late to go anywhere else) and did some writing until 130am, and planned to sleep late this morning to catch up with the previous five days of nearly no sleep at all.
But this was not to be. I walked in to my apartment and found that the ceiling of my bathroom had collapsed onto the floor and toilet, and into the sink and bathtub in a stinking heap of water, mud, plaster, lath, paint and tiles. So I called the emergency number and the building super appeared at 2am to survey the damage. He went away, leaving me to listen to ominous rumblings emanating from the bathroom all night long as pieces of the ceiling continued to rain down.
Predictably, the super returned with his assistant bright and early this morning, to turn off the water to my apartment and to completely dismantle the bathroom. Currently, my bathroom has more holes than walls, it seems. And this is how it will remain until sometime on Monday afternoon, at the earliest.
I want to scream.
Things wouldn't be so bad if I could at least pee and take a shower, but alas, this is not to be. Until Monday. Honestly, I don't think I can hold it that long.
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Oh, that's awful. Can't you ask your loud neighbours to let you use their bathroom?
Bob
well, it's the neighborhood center that's three blocks away that is so loud. since it's jammed with dancing teens, it's unlikely that i would even have the courage to go in there.
Devorah, You must get some good sleep...it's important for overall health at every level....
I have to put on a fan in my bedroom each night to help drown out the neighborhood/traffic noise and the apt. neighbors noise. I've had to be a "bitch' and ask inconsiderate drunk young neighbors to turn down their frickin' blasting music at 3:30 am in the morning, standing there with my cellphone in hand ready to call police if necessary.
Get the repairs done ASAP (call landlord as often as necessary) as quickly as you can and take the measures necessary to get things done.
God how I miss the wilderness where I used to live amidst all the insanity here in Austin!
If all this junk and noise there in NYC continues to cause havoc in your life and psyche, you might need to move somewhere else, somewhere more quiet. I know a very quiet town that is a haven for writers seeking quiet (and good sleep!) but it's quite remote in West Texas. However, it's becoming "famous" as a "mini-Santa Fe", and a recent movie filmed out there is now nominated for several Oscars this weekend. I used to live out there so I'm familiar with the area.
Let me know (private email) if you want additional info and contacts for this place.
A lathe is a tool for cutting spindles. Lath is thin strips of wood used as backing for plaster.
Oh, this is awful.
This going without sleep is the worst thing in the world. I know from experience, any problems lurking beneath the surface, this will bring them rumbling out to overwhelm you. Sleep deprivation is the worst thing in the world for bringing on losing control over your emotions, too.
I've dumped some money in PayPal for you; I don't know how practical this is, but maybe you can get one night in a motel somewhere just to get some uninterrupted sleep and a shower.
...As for your noisy neighbourhood center, this is where my ignorance of current New York law comes in. But, over here, if the police have been called out for noise a certain number of times, and they continue to get complaints, they are actually able to seize stereo equipment and put essentially a restraining order (except we call them ASBOs) against their getting new equipment and starting again. Doesn't New York City have anything in place for dealing with repeated troublemakers who degrade the quality of a neighbourhood?
A quick Google turned up
http://www.nyccouncil.info/brochures/noise.pdf
and
http://nyc.gov/html/dep/html/air_and_noise/index.shtml , especially section 24-241.1 Commercial music of the Noise Code on the top link,
-- from the initial evidence, it would seem that they should at least be able to start levying hefty fines against these pillocks, and from a little further reading, they can even seal a club's audio equipment if they are repeatedly too loud. Maybe you can drop a letter or phone the Department of Environmental Protection. The sooner you do this, maybe the sooner they'll do something, because obviously this just can't go on.
I agree, really, that it would be a lot better for your health to live in a quieter city. I understand loving New York, but is there another reason why you need to live there? Sorry if that's a cheeky question, it's not meant to be.