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| View of the cluster from outside. |
It was a busy weekend for the two of us as we both needed to just get out of the apartment
and do something. We spent all day on Saturday driving around enjoying some new
scenery, running errands, and trying to stay warm. It was a slower pace than
usual but we still got a number of things done. Today was much of the same for
the first part of the day until we got to the point that we just needed to
close the door, make some dinner, and try to catch up on all the emails and
projects that filled our computers.
While
the plan was simple it was not one that we were able to stick with as not long
after finishing dinner the fire alarm began screeching throughout the building.
Unfortunately, this was not a surprise at it had been nearly a month since the
last time we were forced to grab out coats and sit on the bench outside. After
spending about 10 minutes trying to get our son to calm down a bit and once the
fire department turned off the alarm, I wandered into the lobby to try and
listen in for an update (even though I pretty much knew what had happened).
Unable to hear anything but with the all clear from the fire chief, we headed
back to our apartment to try and resume our routine.
Just
as we had begun recovering from the evening detour and had resumed our plans
for the night, that same familiar sound pierced the apartment walls. At this
point I knew for certain that the same faulty sensor on the 4th
floor was not fixed and causing the interruption to the evening. However, even
with the false alarm, we repeated the steps from an hour prior, grabbed our
coats, and made our way out the door… again.
Moments
later, my wife and I were sitting on the bench trying to calm down the baby as
we watched the same fire crew pull in (with their lights off this time) and go
through the same routine that they had just completed a half our ago. Granted,
they were much grumpier this time as they too knew what the problem was. So, we
waited another 30 minutes, watching the commotion as the President of the Board
finally came down to the lobby (she was nowhere to be found when the alarm went
off the first time) and began pointing her finger at the fire chief. I give the Union fire department credit as they remained calm despite the frustration of the situation.
As
the trucks once again began packing things up, I ventured into the lobby where
I finally heard the confirmation as to the cause of the evening disturbances.
With the lobby now clearing and the trucks pulling away, I decided to ask a few
questions regarding the situation and what is going to be done moving forward
to prevent another reoccurrence (especially since the fire department already
stated that they will not respond to another false alarm without levying a
heavy fine). Simply and polite questions where quickly responded to by the
President with condescending venom.
I can’t
say I was surprised by this reaction as I was not there to kiss her ring so she
wanted nothing to do with me and because she didn’t think of those questions or
options then they must be wrong. So, we exchanged a few words and I left the
lobby simply confirming a common opinion about her which I will not elaborate
upon at this juncture but you can figure it out. This is just another example
of why things aren’t managed properly in the building, why the residential door
keeps revolving, and the reason that small issues have become big expensive problems.
I’m just glad it wasn’t another leak or we would still be dealing with it this
morning.
