Neighbors

Remember that horrific tune, sung(?) by none other than Eddie Murphy called “Party All the Time?” Yeah I know, it does bring back some images we’d rather not remember. However, why is it that some of our neighbors seem to use that song as their mantra? You know the ones. The frat boys who come home close to three in the morning and party from the car to their apartment, leaving beer bottles strewn along the way; the three guys in Apartment 3C who are trying to form the next power-rock trio; the Hugh Hefner-wannabe whose friends take over the pool area, and the half-deaf woman living above you who gets a hankering for Neil Diamond when the sun goes down. Ah, the joys of apartment living.

With the holidays behind us, there are thousands of people cramming the Internet, gift cards in hand, buying the gifts that they really wanted. As a matter of fact, I went online this morning and discovered that the leopard fur foot massager I ordered is due to be delivered today, and not a moment too soon–those bunions have been killing me!

When your apartment is separated from your neighbors’ by nothing more than a thin wall, it’s inevitable that you hear what’s happening on the other side. You hear their music, their fights, and their routine comings and goings. But most of the time, you can expect things to be quiet … unless your neighbor has a dog that won’t stop barking. When dog barking doesn’t stop, it can really make life in your apartment miserable. Even worse is a dog that barks throughout the night, causing you to lose sleep and be less productive at work. So what can you do to stop your neighbor’s barking dog?

Whether you’ve just moved into a new apartment, or are feeling a sudden rush of sociability, there are plenty of ways to get to know your neighbors. Some ways take planning and work, and others are as simple as saying “hi” in the elevator. Whatever your level of motivation, there’s a way that can work for you. Here are a few simple ideas to meet your neighbors, and possibly make some friends in the process.

At one time or another, all of us have caught a glimpse of a stranger inside of his or her apartment. We’ve seen them in their kitchens as we walk down the street, or looked up at the flickering blue lights of a basketball game playing on their living room TV. If you live in a large apartment complex or on a densely populated street, you may frequently see the same neighbor in his apartment before he pulls down the shade at night.

We’ve all experienced them: noisy neighbors. Whether they fight constantly, play loud music, have big parties, own dogs who love to bark, or make noise in other ways, noisy neighbors aren’t fun to deal with. You can take a variety of approaches to asking your neighbors to quiet down, ranging from polite conversations to getting the police involved. You don’t want to get confrontational, but you also don’t want to be plagued by constant commotion. Here are some tips for successfully dealing with noisy neighbors.

You haven’t gotten any sleep in two weeks because the neighbors above you seem to be part of a marathon, practicing every night by running from their bedroom to the kitchen, the bathroom, the living room, and even down the stairs. And of course, the neighbors on both sides of you are having a competition to see who can drown out the other’s music at 3 in the morning. What about the neighbor whose dog pees all over your patio furniture? What do all of your neighbors have in common? They make your life hell and just renewed their lease for another year. What can you do? Learn how to deal with a bad neighbor.