Time To Meet Some Neighbors...The Unconventional Way

I was trying to relax at home tonight. I popped open a beer, turned on the TV to watch No Reservations and made my dinner. It was going so well. Then it happened...

Usually in our apartment complex, when another apartments smoke detector goes off, you can hear it but just barely...when the building's fire alarms go off, you can't miss them!

I had just finished my dinner and had rinsed off the plate and headed back to the couch to finish my beer and enjoy the remainder of the movie when...

WHOOP
WHOOP
WHOOP

WHOOP
WHOOP
WHOOP

Trust me when I say it wasn't Arsenio Hall that was "whooping" outside my door.

I headed into my room to grab my phones and keys before heading out to see what was happening. Through the curtains in my room I could see the flashing lights and thought "ruh-roh!"

I headed outside to see that I was the first one out of my building, but that the building attached to mine was being evacuated by firemen. These same men headed over to our building to start evacuating us as well. Two of my neighbors who live above us chatted with me about what we thought was going on. The two boys asked if it was real and how this was inconveniently happening during American Idol.

Great.

Anyway, I called my roommate (who wasn't home yet) and explained how she was missing the 'fun' and she happened to be on her way home. Once she arrived, I had discovered that it was an alarm about a natural gas leak so we hung out in the cold as we waiting for news of what would happen next.

After a grand total of about 15 minutes outside for me, the sirens were shut off and we were allowed back inside with the words 'false alarm' ringing in our ears like those alarms.

So, now I'm warm again and heading to bed...while visions of fire engines dance in my head!