False Alarm

It started around 4:00am this morning; a shrill, brain-piercing noise, jolting us from our sleep. We cleared the cobwebs from our brain, trying to comprehend what it was and where it was coming from. We briefly stumbled around in our early-morning confusion, finally realizing it was the fire alarm in the stairwell directly above us. We investigated, didn't see smoke or detect other evidence of fire, so we puttered with the alarm until it was silent. This was a short-lived victory; it didn’t stay off for long. We called the emergency maintenance number several times, without any result. (Apparently, an early-morning fire alarm is not enough of an emergency to elicit a response from our landlord.) Out of frustration, we called the fire brigade, assuring them it wasn’t a life-threatening emergency. They came howling onto our doorstep in full gear, axes in hand, ready to save lives. It would have been comical if we hadn’t been so tired. They looked at the faulty alarm and decided it was private system, thus out of their jurisdiction. They gave us their condolences and went on their way. We were on our own. Afraid to disconnect it from the system, we decided muffling it would be our best option. So we wrapped towels and plastic bags around it, securing them with medical tape, hoping to bring the decibel level down a few notches. It looked ridiculous, hanging from the ceiling like a piece of bad abstract art, but was somewhat effective. We were able to steal a couple more hours of restless sleep. It’s now early afternoon and the alarm is driving us mad, the sound permeating every thought. So we’re off to run errands, exiled from our own apartment by a fire alarm. I don’t think I’ve ever been so relieved to go to a laundry mat. We can only hope that someone or something will silence it while we’re gone. I hope and pray we come back to peace and quiet.