How I went from strangle-the-next-person-I-see to being just simply pissed and why I was mad in the first place.

So yes. We all know of the wonderful snow storm of yesterday that left about a good two feet of snow in Massachusetts.

My apartment complex has this policy that when they start plowing, you have to move your car out of your lot and into an already plowed one so that they can do a straight plow of the entire lot. If you do not move your car, they will tow it. The last snow storm I was feeling healthy and paranoid so I had done things like brush off my car at three in the morning then check to see if the plow was out there every twenty minutes. This time, I am recovering from a probable sinus infection and losing at life in general, so I was not up for all of the above. I looked out at about ten-ish and there were also cars out there that were not cleaned off or moved so I figured I didn't have to rush out there and move it. I also didn't think the other lots were plowed and was not feeling up to getting dressed in thick socks, boots, jacket, hat, and gloves just to go and check whether or not the other lots were plowed. At noon, I did the same thing, look out the window in the stairwell and yep, there were cars still out there. I hadn't heard anything in terms of people yelling for us to move our cars. Last time, they were banging on people's doors (and I mean banging, I could hear them knocking on everyone's doors in the stairwell) and yelling in the stairwells "Move your cars!" so I assumed that they would do the same this time. NO. I WAS WRONG. I go out at 2:20 to move my car because they had to have plowed the other lots at this point AND THERE WASN'T A SINGLE CAR. I looked left. I looked right. I looked left again. I looked right again. Not one car. NOT EVEN MY CAR. So I was pissed, and sad, and not feeling well, and not having any of the universe's shit today so I walk over to the leasing office to figure out what is up. Just like the cars, I came to find out, THERE WAS NO ONE IN THE OFFICE. There was a note "out on the property, will be back". I stood there for about a minute before trudging back to my apartment, calling my mother because I wasn't expecting this and I needed a voice of reason to get me to do something other that curl into a ball of anxiety and self judgment in my apartment and get nothing done.

After calling my mother, I called the leasing office because by then, someone should have been back and they were. I told them what happened and they gave me the number for Ernie's. I tried to explain that I didn't know the plow was out there, to which they responded, "They knocked on the doors and no one came out. You have to be more diligent about watching for the plows." Look bitch, I am in the back-facing room of the apartment, looking into the forest, and I can barely hear a solid knock. Both of my roommates occupy the spaces that have lot-facing windows. THEY SHOULD HAVE KNOCKED LOUDER LIKE LAST TIME. WHAT'S THE DEAL YO. I of course, being the politely anxious little thing that I am reduced to whenever a phone call has to be made, I said none of this to her. So I called Ernie's. I told them what happened and they responded with, "The total comes to $149.91 and we only take cash." ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME. First of all, that's ridiculous. When I first called my mother for the voice of reason and sanity, she said "It will probably be seventy-something and that will be it." BUT NO. AND THEY ONLY TAKE CASH? WHAT IF SOMEONE DOESN'T HAVE ACCESS TO 150 DOLLARS IN CASH?

Sorry, I digress. The only fortunate thing so far is that there was an ATM directly across the street from Ernie's. So I grabbed my things and ran out the door to make the bus that will take me to about two to three blocks from the place where my car was. Remember the first two sentences of this post? The two foot blizzard? Yeah. The bus stop I got off at was badly plowed and there was two feet of un-plowed road between the bus and the cleared sidewalk. I forgot to mention. My nice winter boots are not water proof. Where are my water proof boots you ask? IN THE BACK OF MY CAR. So I am on the sidewalk. It's only cleared for about five feet, and then it becomes this "walk plowed" portion pretty much the rest of the way. For those who do not know, "walk plowed" is what I like to call a snowy area that has been walked on so much that you aren't sinking into inches of snow but there is still at least an inch of slush type stuff. So I trudge over to the ATM and get the money. I trudge over to Ernie's and there is Swooshy, sitting peacefully still covered in snow. I go in and eventually talk to the guy. "Which car?" he asked. I just pointed to Swooshy and said "That one." cause I could.

So he gets out the paper work, and gives me the bill. I say I have $160 because the ATM only gives $20 bills. "I can't give you change. You'll have to go to Cumbies and get change." For those of you New Jersey folks, Cumbies is pretty much a Quick Check. Fantastic. So I trudge back across the street, to the Cumbies that is next to the ATM. Let me take this moment to remind you all of the not-water-proof boots that I was wearing and the "walk plowed" sidewalks. My toes were cold and wet. So I get a Mountain Dew to break the twenty so I could pay the people and get my car back. I trudge back over. I pay for my car. WOO! I am allowed to now take my car back from whence it was stupidly taken. I go to unlock my car and guess what. THE ENTIRE CAR WAS UNLOCKED. Ok, so they broke into my car to take it out of park, I can understand that on a very, very, VERY, low level. BUT THEY LEFT IT UNLOCKED. ARE YOU KIDDING ME. Anyway, I digress again. I start it up and clear the foot of snow off my car. I put my car in drive and try to drive it out but the people at Ernie's put my car on top of a solid two inches of snow slush. This is the part of the story where I tell you how I went from strangle-the-next-person-I-see to being just simply pissed. One of the tow truck drivers walked out of the office on his phone and noticed me struggling with my car. He walks over and begins to attempt to direct me in a "this way may make this easier" fashion. I tried it. It didn't work. He has that "Hm. This isn't going to work." face. So he walks over and grabs a shovel and tries to help clear the snow from in front of my tires. I try again. It still doesn't work. Then I remembered that my dad is an awesome person. I put the car in park (not that it was going to go anywhere or anything) and get out. "Hold on, I got something." The guy just looked a little confused. I open the back of my car and pull out two emergency treads that you wedge under the wheels to get you out of a slippery situation. (My dad is the one who got them for me, that's why he is awesome.) The guy just looks at them, then at me, and says in surprise, "Well, you're prepared." Then he goes on to joke about how I have to use them at an impound lot to get my car back. Finally, Swooshy was freed from her slushy prison! He helped me collect the treads, said "Have a nice day." and walked off. Finally having my car back and not stuck in slush, I drive on home to my apartment.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how I went from strangle-the-next-person-I-see to being just simply pissed and why I was mad in the first place. Lunch out.