Blog : people = shit

158 posts
2/26/2014 9:37 pm

people = shit

This last weekend, punkin and I were supposed to go on vacation. I mean, we did go, but it didn't turn out to be much of a vacation. Instead, it wound up being one of the worst weekends I've had in a very long time.

Using a site that specializes in vacation rentals, I booked what I thought was going to be a nice, quiet condominium. The name of the property had "house" in it, but it also had the words "condo complex" so I was expecting a large structure that was once considered a house, but had been turned into several condos. What I did not expect, was a 200+ unit monstrosity that was obviously an old hotel. The "condos" were really just hotel rooms that had been converted by providing a full-size refrigerator in place of a mini-fridge, and adding a very tiny, self-contained fireplace. There were, otherwise, zero additions or changes that, to me, would have made the place worthy of the designation; condominium. Of course, the advertisement did not inform me of the fact that I would essentially be staying in a glorified hotel room. Had I known, I would have made a different choice, or used a different site to get a much better rate.

I should have known something was wrong when the property I was looking at did not provide a photo of the actual structure. All the other vacation rentals had pictures of the building, as well as what lay inside. Many provided views from the windows, and so on. This particular "condo" had pictures of what was inside, and a single shot from the single window at the far end of the room, but that was it. I have to remind myself to trust my gut in these situations, because that fact alone gave me pause. Having to book at the last moment, which narrowed my options down greatly, made me second-guess myself. I hope I'm smart enough to never do that again.

When we arrived, I could see that "Gearhart House" was definitely not a house, nor had it ever been one. As mentioned, it was a huge building that probably held over 200 units. When we entered our rented "condo" the first thing we noticed was that we could hear our neighbors in the next room. They were yelling at each other, and their music was so loud you could actually tell what song was playing. At various, random intervals, we heard/experienced what I can only describe as "thumps" or "bangs" against the wall that separated our two units. You could both feel it and hear it. I got on the phone with the people I had booked the vacation rental through right away, but their only option was to cancel our stay and refund my money, leaving us without a place to stay, and me with absolutely no money for the entire weekend. If that last sentence makes no sense, I'll remind you that it would have probably taken at least 3 business days for my money to be available for use, and I did not have an additional $500+ available to cover making reservations at another place. We were basically stuck, so we did what we could to make the best of it.

We decided to stay, and it took a little while for both of us to calm down and settle in. At some point during that first evening, punkin and I heard someone at the door to our "condo". They weren't knocking, and the rattling of the handle made it pretty clear they were trying to gain entry, so I got up to investigate. I opened the door to find an elderly couple standing there, keycard in hand, trying to get into the room they'd been assigned. Excuse me, the "condo" they'd been assigned. I had to briefly explain to them that we were in a room that wasn't actually available unless you booked it online, and they admitted that it was the staff at the front desk that had given them their card and room assignment. I sent them away bewildered, but I'm guessing their weekend was 1000 times better for not having stayed where we did.

The thumping against the wall, loud music, and loud conversation went on until about 11pm that first night. By that time, punkin and I were both pretty tired and stressed, so I think we went to bed shortly after that. The majority of the next day was blissfully quiet, but the moment our next door neighbors came back into their room, it was obvious. The yelling and music I maybe could have dealt with, but the thumping against the wall eventually got to me. It was probably early in the evening when I knocked on their door and asked the people next to us what the thumping was about, and if they would please cease doing it? I'm sure there were at least two people in the room, maybe more. The first reaction from the asshole that answered the door was one of confusion. What thumping against the wall? We spoke for a brief moment, about the fact that we could clearly hear his conversations, his music, and the thumping. I asked politely if he could be quieter, and if the thumping could stop. With a smile on his face, the guy assured me that it would.

I think we were in the middle of trying to watch a movie at that time. The couch was basically pushed up against the loud neighbors' wall, so you can image how it must have felt when, less than 20 minutes later, a thump/bang came from their side that was so severe it actually jolted punkin and I in our seats. I was instantly furious, and stormed outside to pound on the neighbors door. This time the words we exchanged were a lot less pleasant, and it ended with the piece of garbage telling me that if I knocked on his door again I would be assaulted. Three times I called the front desk for help, and the only thing they would do was call the room next to us and ask the people to quiet down. Each time, the music actually got a bit louder, and I swear that by the end of the night they'd pushed the television against the wall and turned it around so the sound was coming toward us as loud and clear as possible. Throughout the evening, the next door neighbor(s) would exit, slamming his/thier door and literally stomping like a to and from the elevator. It would have been comical if it hadn't been so over-the-top annoying and blatantly rude. Eventually I had no choice but to call the police non-emergency number and ask that an officer come have a word with him/them. Considering we were on the coast, this was actually feasible. Had we been in Portland, I think they'd have laughed at me, and told me they didn't have time for petty crap like that. I felt ridiculous, having to call the cops on the next door neighbor, but it was my final bid to get the guy to quiet down. That's how desperate the situation was for me.

Eventually I heard the police knock on the door next to ours. Later there would be a knock on our door as well. The officer explained that he really couldn't do anything, but that the guy next to us had freely admitted to threatening me, so if anything did actually happen he'd be going directly to jail for a long time. I apologized for wasting the officer's time, but he seemed pretty cool about it, and admitted that it was a rough part of the job, not actually being able to help in a situation like ours. I let him out the door, and I don't think an hour went by before the loud music started up again. We literally had to unplug the t.v. and DVD player and move them into the bedroom so we could finish our movie. Several times we heard the next door neighbor exit his room, slam the door, stomp around, and eventually stomp back to enter it again. And of course, always the slamming of the door.

The movie ended, and punkin and I began to fool around. I remember I had two of my fingers in her cunt, when another ridiculously loud and violent thump came from the other side of the wall. It was a single, solid blow, and it startled both of us. This time, it was not from the neighbor we'd been having problems with though. At first I thought perhaps he was outside, pounding on the wall, but realized our bedroom shared a wall with a different unit on the opposite side, so that certainly couldn't be the case. I honestly don't know what the hell happened, in that instance, but by that time punkin and I were so worn down that all we could do was laugh in surprise. Then we went back to fooling around, and fucking.

The next morning, the music started pretty early. We're talking 6am early. Both of us were still in bed, but I got up to go to the bathroom, and when I returned to the bedroom realized I could hear it in the living room. Closing the door and crawling into bed cancelled that, but it never quite cancelled the other noises that go with staying at any cheap hotel. Any time anyone nearby opened or closed a door, we heard and felt it. We were treated to footsteps coming from the unit above, and overall I'd say it was a very noisy place. Certainly not relaxing. Certainly not what anyone thinks of when they use the word "vacation". This sort of living is what millions of people have to deal with in their day-to-day life, so taking a vacation from it is very important.

Did I mention the toilet seat was practically falling off the toilet? Did I also tell you about the safety bar in the shower, which is designed to help people support themselves, was about to pull out of the wall? Or that the shower in general was a bit of a filthy mess? No, I probably didn't bother you with those details because they seem petty compared to the rest. Still, it all adds up.

We checked out Sunday, instead of Monday. By early Sunday morning, we were both very tired of the place. Tired of the music, the banging, the whole thing. We cut our vacation short one day. Now, I won't say we didn't have some fun, because we certainly did, and that will be my other post. What I can say, is that zero of what I had planned, or really wanted to feel and experience came to fruition. Still, punkin and I are pretty magical together, especially when we fuck and get otherwise intimate, so you can bet it wasn't all bad...


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