Disgrace

You were deliberately avoiding it, were you? Then why did you even mention the fact that noise travels easily, if you were trying to avoid that subject you would not have mentioned the fact whatsoever. On the contrary, I think you were fishing for it and looking for an argument, simply because you could not win any arguments you had with me face to face and you wanted a chance to get your point across without me shooting down every single ridiculous thing you say within seconds.


I have never played loud music at 4am, or indeed any hour that I would personally consider to be unreasonable. If even one person came and told me that the sound I was making was stopping them from sleeping, working hearing themselves think, then I would most certainly put in headphones or turn it off (as opposed to saying that it's "not the same through <the> headphones <I offered to lend you>". Not one person in R-block has ever spoken to me or asked me to turn down my music, in fact, I even voluntarily asked people on my floor if I'd ever disturbed them, to which the answer was no. Victoria once played "where is the love" 4 times in a row, while I was trying to sleep one afternoon, and turned it off immediately when I asked her to change the track (hint: very repetitive bassline). She did ONCE say to me in conversation that she'd been able to hear me playing my guitar (early one evening), and I apologised profusely, to which she'd replied that she liked listening to me and that it was no problem, but she'd come and knock if there was one.

I have had people living in the room above me for two terms out of three and not one person has ever said anything to me about making noise. It is interesting to note that you use the term "making noise" instead of "playing music". I've been able to hear you making noise late at night (I can't imagine why you needed to open so many drawers that late at night), but I have no problem with that; people DO make noise, simply by walking about or moving chairs, or talking. I'm also wondering who the other people who heard noise from us were.

I have spoken with my roommate, and he assures me that it was you who was playing music in order to show off the capabilities of your brand new laptop (after you'd poured Ribena over your old one. Even if he is not telling the truth to me either through malice or forgetfullness, it's irrelevant who was playing the music. The only reason he went in to talk to you was because you were playing music, and when, after 10 minutes of waiting for the music to stop, it hadn't, I decided to give up reasoning with you (If you remember, I had been up earlier in the night to ask you to turn down your music, as had Claire's boyfriend, Chris, and possibly others, I don't know.) Do you really think I'm so unreasonable as to simply burst in unannounced and steal your cables without having previously tried reasoning?


HA! You didn't exactly do your best to enamour yourself to your new neighbours! You started your time here by inviting about a dozen random people from the undie back to your room for free alcohol, not one of which lived in this block. It is no wonder that you didn't get a particularly warm reception, especially when you played "under the influence" and hit the resonant frequency of EVERYTHING. Don't try to blame Fav for this, I've spoken to him and others, and they assure me that it was YOU who turned the volume up, not Fav, who merely told you that IF you turned the volume up, the whole building would shake. Which it did, alerting everyone to your presence. No-one who was outside your door that night had the slightest idea that there was anybody else in there, which is why we were so surprised when we opened the door.
It was in fact decided after this by us in the block that we should give you a chance despite the fact that you got off to a bad start. I'm not sure if I've already told you this, but it's irrelevant, you used up your chance, and several more. You gatecrashed our party in R7 (not a late night one, and without loud music, just people sitting, chatting), you started feeling up my (female) friend's leg (despite the fact that it had been her and I who had explained to you that you were called "Creepy James" precisely for this reason), and when I sat between the two of you, you went to feel up MY leg. Do you remember that? How I grabbed your arm and told you exactly what I thought of this, and how, despite the fact that I was stone cold sober, I would punch you if you did it again? Do you remember very nearly doing it again? Do you remember how everybody in the room fell silent? Do you remember how everybody was bristling towards you? I know if I'd been in that situation, I'd have made my excuses pretty sharpish and left, but you didn't, you hung around for ages. Do you remember being asked to stop playing air drums because it was irritating Jen (amongst others), who you'd sat down on the bed next to, and then continuing to mime.


Well I'm glad that you're admitting that your behaviour hasn't been perfect. In fact your behaviour towards me (amongst others) was downright disgraceful. I, personally, never did anything to you, and nor did any of the other residents of R-block (with one exception). Taking up your problems with one person against 17 others is completely unacceptable, as is playing loud music at night in "revenge" for others playing it during the day, especially since you never actually told us that you had a problem with it until that moment. I'd also like to point out that even though you did physically assault me (remember trying to get me in a headlock, pushing me in the chest and attempting to force me to leave the room?) I never used anything other than reasonable force against you. The two times I pushed you over, you had made the move towards me and I moved in self defence, and you had also had so much to drink that you were having difficulty in standing anyway. I had also tried reasoning with you, and had said that I would give you your leads back if you sat down and talked through the situation like an adult. However, this did not appear to be acceptable to you, so you screamed like a toddler, despite the pleas of Ed, Jenny, and Andrew, until you got what you wanted - or didn't, since I simply went to bed.
I hope you'll also remember that I never lost my temper with you, except in Studio, when I told you to stop drinking and f*ck off home (after having started saying "come on mate, you've had enough") because you'd had too much and had just bought another drink (I expect you don't remember tipping half a pint of beer down Geoff's back?).
Oh, and by the way, both the times I argued with you in the night I was sober; ("but you were as drunk as me") the first time because I simply hadn't drunk more than my wine at formal 9 hours previously and the second because I had given blood that day and was, in fact, stone cold sober (that was the time I saved you getting beaten to a pulp). Admittedly, when I passed you in the corridor one Tuesday night and just asked you to do me a personal favour by not playing loud music that night because I had a tutorial the next morning, and ended up with you walking away from me like a sulky child simply because you didn't have any comeback to what I'd said, I was drunk, but that has been the only time I've argued with you and not been sober (If I was drunk I'd just have fallen asleep anyway).

I'll bet you are, you're in the biggest double room in the castle to yourself, simply because no-one in your own year wants to live with you.

Well bully for you. You actually have had complaints of noise, and I know because I was there when you got them, at the end of Michaelmas term after the Big Band gig, when you threw a party in your room and were so pissed that you couldn't even talk, and all the while everyone in the room was laughing at you as you downed another bottle of wine, on top of the bottle (ish) of spirits in your belly already. The third year in the room next door kept asking you to keep your volume down because he was trying to work. I'll bet you also don't remember that I put you into your bed and stopped you smashing your "amazing" glasses too. I won't comment any more about that night.
I've also heard that there are people in GS who are less than happy about both your return and your music noise, but since I don't know whether the issue has been raised with you, I won't push it any further.
Oh, and another thing, perhaps the reason you may have had less noise complaints in GS is because it's part of a Norman fortress and the walls and floors are ridiculously thick and made of stone - not known for its sound-carrying capabilities.

I wonder if there'll be a reply to this post...

CALM

So... Changing the subject. What's anyone else done that's a disgrace? I could tell everyone the very embarassing story of what happened to me at Formal in Michaelmas term, if they want to hear...

As could i

We're not safe from embarrassment eh Kathryn?

To JonnyB, sorry for snapping at you, it was uncalled for. I'd like to correct you; I'm not complaining about his music (since he now doesn't live above me), I'm trying to show him the error of his ways, much like the ghost of Christmas past, but without the dodgy beard. However much I dislike James, I still see him as a human being, with human errors; one of which is a tendancy to being unreasonable.
In order to placate the crowds, I'll create a "Valen" thread which we can then argue in, so you don't have to bother scanning through what I've read if you don't want to.
I have no particular desire to win a web audience, but it'll be interesting to see how many people view the thread - if any.
EDIT:
yes, tell the story, oh disgraceful Hatfielder.

yes, tell the story, oh disgraceful Hatfielder.