TRAVEL DIARY

A weblog regularly updated by Jodi Rose.

Friday, April 1, 2005

9:54 AM
Posted by jodi rose

the neighbours have become totally outrageous after we gave them our mobile numbers to txt if our quietly talking and softly walking disturbed their delicate hearing apparatus. my god they are completely over the top.
really, I could understand if we had wild parties, played loud music, tapdanced, screamed with pleasure or passion all night - but really, all we are doing is moving between rooms, barefoot, almost on tiptoe and talking in whispers. Kate promised she'd teach me to levitate, but so far unfortunately I'm still stuck in this earthly realm.
luckily the situation is so ludicrous that I've stopped being irate and incensed by their bullying harassment and started laughing about it - they write things like 'don't tramp around banging things. don't you know it's night. why must you create this disturbance?' and last night was 'can you not try to be still'. please, if we were any quieter we'd be in a coma.
however, according to our new friend Nichlas, the Finnish building industry in the 70's and 80's was pretty shoddy and it probably is a soundbox of prefab concrete slabs - but maybe the floor needs some insulation if the sound is that amplified. altho he seemed to think it was reasonable that you had to be absolutely silent after 10pm. can you imagine, in australia, or pretty much anywhere, complaining about the people walking upstairs? I mean really, we'd maybe say something if there is constand LOUD music, or screaming, but you learn to be pretty tolerant especially when you live in an apartment. Not these people, oh no, that would be giving in. And you know the Finns never give up - it's their famous sisu! so luckily kate is leaving for linnunlaulu tonight - she's the noisy one ;) lucky girl, she gets a break - but I'm here until the 10th. give me strength.
although to put it all in perspective - Aura and her husband actually SOLD their apartment, largely because after two years with no problems, the neighbours send them a list of complaints, including my favourite: 'you lead too active a social life'.
wtf????
who ARE these people?
I tell you, it's really making me rethink my desire to spend any longer in finland than I absolutely have to.
This will pass once I'm in the gothic mansion by the lake, and having a wild time with 20 radio artists making crazy sonic interventions all over helsinki.
Brings to mind the words of the great Slavoj Zizek: 'The only good neighbour is a dead neighbour!'
... that remark needs a fair bit of contextualisation, preferably delivered by an impassioned Slovenian in a 2 hour rant - read the summary here.