Out Run My Gun

So, we're moving this weekend.

It’s just down stairs, but it’s rather sudden.

I guess I should start with some background information first, huh?

On Thursday last, I was in the shower at about 10:15 when I heard a really loud bang. It was metallic and my first though was that Earl had dropped something heavy on the floor and crushed some pop cans (we stomp our cans and then take them to scrap yards) but he came in a few minutes later, asking if I heard it and he had no idea what it was either.

Fast forward to Friday morning, Earl goes out on the balcony to smoke, and he sees this:

That, ladies and gents, is a bullet hole in our neighbor's window.

So on Friday after work, I went to the office and told the leasing agent I always deal with about it. Because A) I’m obligated by my lease to inform them of any damage to the exterior of the building, B) Someone could have gotten hurt, and C) someone really did need to be told.

He came back up to our apartment to check it out and less than an hour later, there were about 7 cops in the hall way.

The leasing office hadn’t been able to get a hold of the tenant, and they have a clause in the lease where they can perform a wellness check under circumstances that include a bullet hole in a window.

At this point, Earl and I had run to the grocery store for a few things for the Tea Party Prep, and we turned the corner in the parking garage to see the gaggle of police officers and to hear someone say: “Yeah, that’s him, The yellow Jeep.”

(Point of note: Our neighbor drives a big WHITE Jeep that is loaded down with off road gear – after all this, I think he might be a Holn survivalist. We drive a yellow X-Terra.)

So we had to inform the police that we were not the tenant, but in fact, the neighbors who reported the whole thing.

The police came into our apartment to look at the window as they waited for the locksmith – because el duderino had changed his locks…. So the Maintenance supervisor’s key didn’t work for his apartment. (Anyone else feel like this is a bit shady?)

Anyway, they did eventually get into the apartment and I – being a little nosey – watched through the shotgun skewed blinds as their flash lights flitted about in the space… and then stopped on a military grade assault rifle leaning against the wall.

I went back inside at this point, because I didn’t really need to see anything else.

Shortly thereafter, an officer came to the door and told us that no one was at home, and there was no sign that anyone had been harmed. What they think “Probably” happened… was that he was cleaning his shot gun and it accidentally discharged. (Let me just tell you: every one of us at my tea party the next day knew that that was the sign of someone who should not own a gun.)

The neighbor did come home that night and Earl saw him seemingly trying to unjam one of his guns…

So basically, I don’t feel all that safe living with just drywall and metal studs between us and the guy with an unknown number of guns*… who apparently needs a lesson in gun safety.

(Chances are he’s probably going to be evicted. Or forced to get rid of the guns, but I’m not a trusting person, and so, in the event that the office is lenient – which, it was an accident, I understand that – and lets him stay, only making him pay for the window’s replacement… I do not feel comfortable living next door.)

As a result, we went down to the office, looked at our options, worked out what fits in our budget and long story short… we’re moving into the apartment our good friends Natalie and Dave moved out of mid September.

I have tomorrow off (Earl couldn’t get the day off) and I’ll be moving some little things down, finishing up the packing and starting the cleaning process. Then on Saturday afternoon, we'll be moving everything else down there.

And you know what’s awesome. Minutes after I put the transfer paperwork in with the office, Natalie and Dave offered to help us move without even needing to be asked – something I’m super thankful for!