RING!! RING!!! RING!!! rest, (Fortissimo)
So that's what I woke up to. At 7am this morning, my mouth dry, my throat like fire and brimstone. Quickly my thoughts rifle, shuffle up. Phone? No. Doorbell? It hasn't worked in months. Ah yes. Fire Alarm. Shit.
Three minutes later and I'm down on the sidewalk kindly asking a lady to get off the payphone outside Mr. Tasty burger so I can call 911. She obliged and wished me a happy new year.
A good time to gauge response time from the fire department. 2 minutes 30 seconds later (not bad considering they're 2 blocks away). The fire department shows up with axes. Secretly I wished they would smash all the windows in the office downstairs, saying it was necessary to check the building. They didn't. The apartments were checked while we froze outside in just the bare minimum of clothing.
No fire. None. So that's that. So back into the unit we go. Safe, I guess and that's a good thing. But the alarm won't shut off. The fire department can't shut it off. We need the keyholder. Marion. My landlady, and she's not around till about 9am. Yup. Not around at all. So I'm awake. Whether I want to be or not. And my fingers are click clacking away in rhythm with the ring ring ring rest, always fortissimo. Even with a towel wrapped around the bell.
Three minutes later and I'm down on the sidewalk kindly asking a lady to get off the payphone outside Mr. Tasty burger so I can call 911. She obliged and wished me a happy new year.
A good time to gauge response time from the fire department. 2 minutes 30 seconds later (not bad considering they're 2 blocks away). The fire department shows up with axes. Secretly I wished they would smash all the windows in the office downstairs, saying it was necessary to check the building. They didn't. The apartments were checked while we froze outside in just the bare minimum of clothing.
No fire. None. So that's that. So back into the unit we go. Safe, I guess and that's a good thing. But the alarm won't shut off. The fire department can't shut it off. We need the keyholder. Marion. My landlady, and she's not around till about 9am. Yup. Not around at all. So I'm awake. Whether I want to be or not. And my fingers are click clacking away in rhythm with the ring ring ring rest, always fortissimo. Even with a towel wrapped around the bell.