Wednesday, February 02, 2005

The Old Bag

As noted in my previous post I was pretty nervous about Jackson and the landlord. Well today was the day of the inspection. So Josh left with Jackson at 1:20pm and headed to Columbus. Driving with Jackson is what I assume driving with a cranky baby is like. He is constantly moving, he can't sit still, he whines and cries. So Josh returned home assuming the inspection was done. Josh proceeded to leave for his dentist apt. When he returned home there was a light on. Meaning that the inspector didn't come when we thought that he did/would. Meaning Jackson was home and Josh took him for a drive for NOTHING! My stomach started churning. I kept thinking "the old bag is going to make us get rid of the dog because they were late." Jackson was probably a barking mess!!!!! So I got off the phone with Josh and called the landlord (LL). I must have sounded very frantic and apologetic. LL assured me that it was ok. That we were good tenants and that there were no problems. I told her that I wanted to make her aware that the inspector came when Jackson was here alone.

So I got off the phone feeling better. When I arrived there were 2 gentlemen that I didn't recognize and our neighbor outside. As I exited my car there was a guy poking around the garage. I assumed that this was the inspector and the guy talking to the neighbor was the LL's son. The inspector asked if everything worked ok. I asked him if the dog was there when he went through. He said yes. I asked him if he was barking obnoxiously. The inspector said that he was fine. He barked a little when they came in. Jackson was a little leery when the guy came into the bathroom to check the toilet. The guy said that he was fine. He has dogs too so he understands. I was relieved. As long as the son didn't complain it would be alright. I ran inside to get Josh so that he could meet the neighbor. Let's call him R

We stood outside chatting with the neighbor for a little bit. We learned that our LL likes to complain. He said once that he accidentally left his alarm clock on. It sounded all day, someone finally called the LL so that it could be shut off. He said that she chewed him a new one. The same happened to the guy who used to live in our apt. R called the LL about his alarm and she chewed him a new one too. He told us not to worry about the dog. That he really honestly hasn't heard him for a while and when he does hear him it isn't very much or loud. I was so happy. Not only did we learn that the LL is a complainer, we learned that we have a cool neighbor and Jackson isn't a nuisance!!!! Yeah!

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Captain Barks-a-lot

I don't even know where to start begin because this situation frustrated me so much. Yesterday I go to the mail box and there is a letter from our landlord. The letter states that their rental load has become to much for them. That they are looking to sell the apartments. There will be an inspection done on Wednesday the 2nd from 1:30pm-5:30pm. On the bottom of the letter there is a note:
P.S. I am not sure of the precise time of the inspection though please keep your dog from barking during the inspection. I came to drop off your manuals and disposal wrench last week and it was barking quite loudly and for a long time and I hadn't even rung the bell!

This is of course paraphrased as I do not have the letter in front of me. So here were the thoughts running through my head:

1. He is a dog. Dogs bark.
2. He is a puppy still puppies bark.
3. At the time of the visit we lived in our apt for maybe 10 days. I know we aren't completely
adjusted how can we expect him to be?
4. If we aren't home we cannot stop our dog from barking.
5. If strangers enter our home when we are not present he will bark.
6. You were outside our home rustling a plastic bag. Hello that is noise.
7. He is locked up right next to the front door he can hear you.
8. How long did you stand outside the door? Did you think that maybe he was barking because
he could still hear you???????
9. If we have a baby are we going to have to sell it because it cries?

So I spent 15 minutes on the phone last night with this woman assuring her that the dog is and was still adjusting. We lived on a quiet street in a 1 level home. Now we live in a noisy neighborhood with an elephant family living upstairs. He and we need to adjust. We are thinking of locking the dog up in the bathroom in our bedroom so that he isn't so close to the door and door noises. 15 MINUTES!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot explain how frustrated I was. We then devised a plan that they would come and look at our place first. Josh will leave at 1:30pm with the dog bring him back by 2:15p so Josh can go to his dentist apt. Ugh! Stupid old Bag!!!!! Next thing you know the new landlord will say we are making this a pet free apt complex. Well then what are we going to do? I know my parents would be a foster home for Jackson. We would miss the little guy. He is our baby. I love coming home to him. He is so excited when we return he cannot contain his excitement. He is a loving dog and a snuggly dog. I wouldn't want to give that up.......