Monday, November 13, 2006

Rules and Regulations





Last week, we received a copy of the sacred "House Rules" of our apartment complex. The topics covered span the logical (I know, not to everyone), the silly, the annoying, the absurd . . . but most of them are good rules. This is a long manual of about 10 pages, and it is full of a lot of lawyer-ish lingo that immediately translates into "blah, blah, blah" in my head.

In truth, I am great at following the rules. Although I may fancy myself an unconventional non-comformist, and was actually Communist Party leader of my high school (a story for another day), the Raggedys are a pretty boring clan. My family and I live in calm and quiet (save for those 4 a.m. feedings) and generally keep to ourselves. Loud parties and property damage are just not our thing.

Here's a sampling of our house rules. Some of them make this place sound like a prison or a mental institution. Some of them make me very curious as to the real-life situation that occurred in violation of these principles in order to inspire their inclusion into the house rules:





  • No ball playing of any kind, or other sporting activity on the grounds.


  • No tree climbing or playing in trees. Lawns and trees shall not be abused.


  • Windows should only be covered with blinds, shades, curtains, or other products designed for window coverings. At no time should inappropriate items, such as bedspreads, sheets, or shower curtains be used as window coverings.


  • Toilets shall not be used for any purpose other than those for which they were constructed, no shall any rubbish, diapers . . . or other article be thrown into the toilets.


  • No group tour or exhibition of any Apartment or its contents shall be conducted . . .


  • Vehicles may not be washed on the Property.


  • Commercial Breeding of Pets in apartments or the Property is prohibited.
    . . . [F]eeding of animals that are not pets (including squirrels, birds or strays) in apartments or common areas [is prohibited].


  • At the end of the summer season, barbeques should be covered with a green or black covering . . .


  • Except in the event of a health and safety emergency no individual may enter or exit any apartment through the windows.


What are some of your opinions? What do you think of these rules? What I really want to know, though, is: What are some of the stranger rules you have been subject to, in an apartment, a neighborhood, a city, or in any situation?




9 comments:

socialworker/frustrated mom said...

Those sound pretty strict but are they really enforced is the question. The only rule I remember when I was in an apartment was to have carpet as to not make too much noise for the tennants downstairs.

Anonymous said...

In our complex, some refrain from even throwing toilet paper in the toilet...

Jack Steiner said...

I think that I would post my own set of rules in one of the common areas.

Hila said...

LMAO!!! I wish my apartment complex last year would have had rules like this! Maybe then I wouldn't have had to live at the library in order to avoid loud noises and broken items being thrown about all the time. *sigh* oh, college life! :-)

Baleboosteh said...

Some of them are a bit stange, and rather long by the sound of it (10 pages?!) but I suppose rules do have to be enforced, especially in a complex.

As for where I live...Rules?? What for? Our closest neighbour is about a kilometer away, pity we are not the 3am partying kind! Infact we probably couldn't be more quiet in a place where you could make as much noise as you like!

RaggedyMom said...

SWFM: For the most part the rules are enforced. We live upstairs (meaning lots of shlepping strollers and groceries!) so we need 80% of the space to be carpeted.

Anon: Woah - is that a cultural thing? Very unusual!

Jack: I should! My rules would be about cigarette butts left all over the place and horn honking at 3 a.m. What would your rules be?

Hila: Aaah, dorm living! Is this in Sweden? Who knew Swedes were so rowdy? I guess it's a college thing across the board.

Baleboosteh: Having lived in metro NY for almost all my life, I can't imagine such an isolated existence! I'm sure it has its challenges, but from here, it sounds like a dream!

Ezzie said...

Aside from the green/black thing, not too bad. (Why only green or black?)

I could see wanting to let a kid climb a tree, but I could also see why they don't want that in general...

Wasn't sure if you'd see this comment below, so I'm putting it here:

"Richie the super" has been putting in new kitchen cabinets and a sink the last two days (all done but the handles!), after really clearing out the old one, the bad part of the wall behind it, etc. Thanks for the warning, though - maybe I'll ask him when he comes with the handles to make sure to seal everything (if possible). The W's were nice and warned us about everything - A.W.'s family used to live two houses away from us in Cleveland, and his sister (a good friend of my sister from HS) used to babysit for my bro's kids in this very apartment. Small world... :)

btw, our email is my blog at gmail.com (in my profile). Or you can just walk over and say hi. :)

Anonymous said...

when are you leading the expedition through your comlex comrad - i am totally in

RaggedyMom said...

Ezzie - I'm sure it feels like a new place! Glad to hear things have worked out. Thanks for the info, and we'll have to get the two families together one of these days!

MM - How about right after Thanksgiving?