Help me help me

[Jester]

Actually, you do have weights at home. Just not gym weights.

Need a light weight? Soup cans. Something heavier? A bag of sugar or flour. Something really heavy? A chair. You can use all sorts of things in your house for weight exercises.

I know a lot of time when I go bicycling, for part of my stretch session, I will lay down over the seawall and press my bicycle, which is a decent 20 lbs or so. And when my body is extended like that, it makes it that much more difficult.

[Der Cute]

Actually, you do have weights at home. Just not gym weights.

Need a light weight? Soup cans. Something heavier? A bag of sugar or flour. Something really heavy? A chair. You can use all sorts of things in your house for weight exercises.

I know a lot of time when I go bicycling, for part of my stretch session, I will lay down over the seawall and press my bicycle, which is a decent 20 lbs or so. And when my body is extended like that, it makes it that much more difficult.

Jester's right. I use the peanut butter jars when I'm in line at the supermarket . Or the whole basket.

But a jar, (not glass) is great for curls, kick backs (triceps) and delts.
You can also use the wall for pushups; put your feet about 18 inches away from the wall. Put your hands on the wall like you'd be on the floor...and do your pushups.

And hey, vacuuming and mopping : decent exercise!

Cutenoob

[BookstoreEscapee]

half-gallon or gallon milk jugs filled with water. Then you can easily vary the weight as you get stronger.

[Eireann]

I've been doing the wall pushups. I rarely eat canned food, and I don't drink milk, but I do get some exercise from vacuuming and mopping.

I went to a farmer's market today, and poked around at the various stalls - two free samples of extremely good juice, a view of a product I'd never imagined (a grinder filled with sugar, orange peel, and ginger, to be used for desserts and such), and then went to the grocery store and picked up some stuff. Now I'm back home. Tired again.

I have made some breakthroughs in thinking in the past couple of days, which is all well and good. What I don't understand is, why have I had so little response from the therapists I contacted earlier this week?

[Whiskey]

, why have I had so little response from the therapists I contacted earlier this week?

Did you show up in person or just leave a message with someone? A lot of people will forget a voicemail, but its hard to forget someone standing in your office.

[Eireann]

I sent emails. I was too distraught to go out.

[Whiskey]

I sent emails. I was too distraught to go out.

The emails were probably filtered by the receptionist. Give them a call (and make an appointment) or go in person. If all else fails, you have to have some kind of emergency mental health center for immediate treatment/advising. I will warn you (i dont know if itll be a shock or not), but there might be a very long wait (1 or more months) to see a therapist. I would work on CBT by yourself and finding positive things to put into your daily routine. When I'm feeling especially down/bad, I go get an ice cream cone.

No, I don't want an ice cream cone.

I don't even like ice cream that much.

But I know when I get an ice cream cone it reminds me of swinging on swings when I was a kid. I was carefree and happy. Sometimes all you need is a little perk somewhere.

My favorite kind is the kind with the syrup/flavoring in it. You know? Green apple syrup or whatever on vanilla ice cream. I loved that stuff. Good memories are the best motivators. Find something you can't help but smiling about when you think of it and hold on to it. The memories, good ones at least, are what get you through. Soon, you'll make more good memories that'll get you through the next tough time.

[Eireann]

There's something I need to address, and I'm not sure how to do it.

You already know about the noise from next door.

There's also the noise from upstairs.

The owners live up there. They have two children and a dog. (I had no idea, at the time I agreed to take this place, that there were any children in the house. Had I known, I would have continued looking for a place to rent.)

The noise up there is getting increasingly annoying. The children spend almost all their time at home, indoors. I don't know why; there's a yard behind the house, and a very nice play area in front, which is used by all the families around here. There's even a playground. However, these children spend their time indoors.

Since I live directly underneath them, all the noise is magnified down here. And it goes on ALL DAY. Thump, tumble, run, shriek, you name it. The dog sometimes starts barking when the play gets particularly intense.

I'm wondering how best to mention the subject to the owners. I've never said anything about it before, so they don't know. They live at the top of the house, so they don't have to deal with it from someone else.

I thought of doing it like this: "Hello, I was wondering if you plan to do any more work on your apartment. The reason that I'm asking, is that when you or your children walk around, it makes a lot of noise in my apartment. I've also noticed a new crack in the bedroom wall, up near the ceiling, and I was wondering if you need to reinforce the house. The footsteps often cause the house to shake, so I'm concerned, what with the noise and the new cracks."

All of this is true; I do feel that they need to do some reinforcement on the house, and there is a new crack in the bedroom. I doubt very much that they have any idea how much noise is being generated when they just walk around.

[Whiskey]

There's something I need to address, and I'm not sure how to do it.

You already know about the noise from next door.

There's also the noise from upstairs.

The owners live up there. They have two children and a dog. (I had no idea, at the time I agreed to take this place, that there were any children in the house. Had I known, I would have continued looking for a place to rent.)

The noise up there is getting increasingly annoying. The children spend almost all their time at home, indoors. I don't know why; there's a yard behind the house, and a very nice play area in front, which is used by all the families around here. There's even a playground. However, these children spend their time indoors.

Since I live directly underneath them, all the noise is magnified down here. And it goes on ALL DAY. Thump, tumble, run, shriek, you name it. The dog sometimes starts barking when the play gets particularly intense.

I'm wondering how best to mention the subject to the owners. I've never said anything about it before, so they don't know. They live at the top of the house, so they don't have to deal with it from someone else.

I thought of doing it like this: "Hello, I was wondering if you plan to do any more work on your apartment. The reason that I'm asking, is that when you or your children walk around, it makes a lot of noise in my apartment. I've also noticed a new crack in the bedroom wall, up near the ceiling, and I was wondering if you need to reinforce the house. The footsteps often cause the house to shake, so I'm concerned, what with the noise and the new cracks."

All of this is true; I do feel that they need to do some reinforcement on the house, and there is a new crack in the bedroom. I doubt very much that they have any idea how much noise is being generated when they just walk around.

You need to move. I'm pretty sure its not a real option, since you havent really mentioned it, but have you looked into it? First the neighbors, then the landlord...

I'd reword the letter a bit, but the general message is good. Try to be a bit more casual, but assertive, if that makes sense.

[Eireann]

Yes, I do need to move. I need to have my own damn HOUSE. Which I don't. Or, yet, the money for one. Apartment living is fraught with such perils. I think I was evicted from a former apartment for complaining about the noise the upstairs neighbors made; God, what a nightmare that was! Front door always slamming, children screaming upstairs and/or directly outside my windows, loud parties lasting well into the night. But, hey, they paid several times as much rent as I did, so the result was a given.

I'm not going to write a letter; I'm going to approach them. If I show some concern for their house, and I am concerned for it (if nothing else, I don't want the ceiling coming down on me), it may help. I complained about Stereo Boy to them, so I don't want them to think I'm going to bitch about every single noise in or near the house.

[Whiskey]

If you do end up moving (I dont know what country youre in) but move somewhere with a Home Owners Association. You don't need to own, you can sublet, but the rules will apply. In my condo (that I rent, but is privately owned) there is to be NO disturbing noises at ANY time. No loud music, no thumper cars, nothing. Its to be relatively quiet and serene at all times. Look into it maybe?

[Eireann]

No HOAs around here. I'd love to live in an area like that, though.

[Whiskey]

:\ the best I got at the moment is the comedy option. Invest in your own sub woofers and blast mozart.

[Eireann]

I did turn up my stereo, once, and put a speaker to the wall, so he would know what it was like. However, I doubt that he even heard it, and knowing what I do about the acoustics in this house, I didn't want to annoy the people downstairs. Mozart is a good idea, though.

[Whiskey]

I did turn up my stereo, once, and put a speaker to the wall, so he would know what it was like. However, I doubt that he even heard it, and knowing what I do about the acoustics in this house, I didn't want to annoy the people downstairs. Mozart is a good idea, though.

Rite of Spring (if you can find it) is a good tune. Swan lake, naturally. The Nutcracker. Tchaikovsky could drive anyone nuts with a subwoofer. You can always claim you were trying to expose him to the arts. Even the deaf can hear Tchaikovsky. (edit: or Beethoven. Har har tacky joke, I know)