Out and About :) My life lesson learned

If you want to hear a once in a life time story....keep on reading.  First off I'd like to clarify Ian titled this post for me.  Since I was lost for the right words to sum up what I am about to tell you.

Okay so here it goes....It was a Thursday afternoon I had just gotten home from school and had a couple hours before I had to be to work.  So I decided to clean a bit around the house.  The sliding glass door needed to be windex'd. "I'll start there" I thought.  So after stepping out on our porch to clean the window from the outside I realized our glass door locks automatically when you close it.   Yep. so there I am, a cold winter day.  Now locked out on my balcony......Three stories up. 

First thought, pull my phone out and call someone!  Oh wait...(checking pockets) I left it inside.  Well lets see, do I have anything? No car keys, no house keys, nothing.  Okay, Okay don't panic lets weigh the options.

1.  I could find something on the patio to break the window with and climb back inside.  We'd just end up having to pay for the window....hmmm...okay next option

2.  I could possibly jump from our balcony over the ledge onto the stairway up to the apartments on our level, but if i don't make it....that's a long way down and that could be dangerous. so next option...


3.  I could probably climb over the railing and hold onto the support beams and climb my way down to the main level, but there again I could loose my grip and fall....well that's risky too...so what else.


 4. Well lastly, I could sit and wait for someone to come by and see if they can help me. 

Alright, so let's say I do get down though, my keys are locked in my house.  The only way I can get back in is hoping the office has a spare key they will let me in with!


Well it's risky and not a for sure plan, but after a good 15 min or so without anyone coming by to save the day I decide to climb down myself.  So throwing one foot over supporting myself on a tiny 1/2 inch hangover from the floor of our porch i grab onto the beam and lower my hands to fit in the spaces between each board in the railing as I try to reach my feet around the next beam that belongs to the apartment below us.  So picture this.  I am HANGING from a THREE STORY apartment building hands above my head.  Feet dangling struggling to wrap a pole on SOMEONE ELSES APARTMENT.  Oh my.  but it gets better.  So after I manage to scramble to the last level I have to jump from the last patio to the main level (about 6-7 ft up i'd say) then head straight to the office.

I rush into the office, panting COMPLETELY out of breath and manage to spit out I need keys to my apartment because I got locked out.  Confused but obedient they go to get the key.  Bad news its not there.  They call maintenance to see if they possibly have it.  (they did just come out and fix our disposal the other day come to think of it.)  They do.  So someone meets me at my apartment to let me in, but the key doesnt work.  After a call to the maintenance manager and double check that that's the only key for our apartment, asking me about 5'xs over if we've changed our locks.  They decide the only way to get me in is by busting our locks. 

Okay so I patiently wait in the main office until the maitnence crew can bust the lock and let me in.  As I'm sitting there (by this time I could breath and my adrenaline wasn't pumping so hard through my veins)  I start to realize my foot is killing me.  I must have done something to it when I jumped from the balcony. (Which is a good possibility considering I was in 3 inch boots the whole time, oh wait I didn't mention that?) Well, finally they break into my house and let me in.  All's over, but now its time for work!  The office said they would put in a new lock, but in the meantime I can't lock my doors as I leave for work and Ian doesn't get home for a few hours.  Weirdest feeling leaving your door unlocked with the lock busted and no one home to watch it!

So to make the rest of the story short.  I went to work,  Ian came home, and nothing was stolen.  My ankle was sprained just a little.  They fixed the lock the next day after Ian went into the office and explained the situation all over again. It seems they were all very familiar with it. They replied "That was your wife?!"  "She came running in here with blue lips, out of breath, and in 3 inch high boots saying she just climbed down from the third floor!" It seems the story had acquired i bit of attention.  Even the maintenance crew couldnt believe it.
All is well now.  I survived.  We have a new lock that now works better than ever, at no charge to us, a great story to tell for the rest of our lives, Ian recieved a new appreciation for having such an awesome wife, and we learned a great lesson.  Never close the sliding glass door from the outside when you live three stories up and no one else is home to let you in.  {unless you need a new lock on your door I guess!}  (cha ching! we totally lucked out on that. ha!