My 'hood

This is my neighborhood. I do love it. It's only a mile away from the BART, a block away from Mexicana Produce, and only two blocks away from Artichoke Joe's (our local casino) and a 7-eleven. Some of you may think you have the best neighborhood, but here are some of the things that make our neighborhood special:

1. The week before we moved in, there was a homicide. But according to the police officer, I shouldn't worry because it was just gang related.

2. Six months ago, I was taking out the trash and saw several cop cars right in front of our apartment and in our driveway. I asked them what was going on, and they told me that someone had just been beaten up. But again, they assured me that it was gang related and not to worry.

3. A few weeks after that, Justin found a drunk man wandering around our backyard around 10am. Apparently, he'd been drinking at Artichoke Joe's and couldn't find his way home. The police kindly escorted him back.

4. About six weeks ago, our bedroom lit up at 3:00am with bright lights and the sound of gun shots. I called the police, and they told me that they had officers looking into the situation already.

5. Two nights ago, we were awakened around midnight to the sound of our new upstairs neighbors screaming at each other. (not the nice Indian family, but a young guy and his girlfriend.) She was screaming, "Stop hitting me! I hate you! Let me go!" all the while sobbing uncontrollably at volume levels I didn't realize were possible. And then suddenly her screaming abrubtly ended, and we didn't hear another peep. I called 911 to report domestic violence, and an officer came and talked to us, then went and knocked on the door. Our neighbor never answered, so the officer went away. We heard our male neighbor walking around a few minutes later, but not the girlfriend. I for sure thought she was dead.

But then last night, Justin and I heard them "making up" (in the Biblical sense). We're glad she wasn't murdered, but come on.

So, for all of you who think that your neighborhood is nice because you have a house, with trees, and quiet neighbors, you have nothin' on all the action that happens around our neck of the woods.