lessons learned: 0.

after our recent trip to florida, missy and i concluded that we are entirely too neurotic to live in glass homes. this became apparent during our first evening there, in our excessively window-ed condo, as we watched tv and drank wine in the living room after a late dinner. as the doorbell rang, we stared panic-stricken at each other about what to do, as we're loathe* to ever open the door. let alone when it's dark out. in an unfamiliar area. most especially an unfamiliar area that looks like the backdrop of dexter**.

as the doorbell chimed for the second time, we sat motionless on the couches and whispered across the room about whether the person at the door would be friend or foe. not surprisingly, we decided foe and didn't answer. the ringing stopped, and we then realized that outside our entire wall of windows and beyond the lawn was a group of vacationers having a jovial little time drinking on their porch. a porch from where they could most likely spy two fellow timeshare stayers also drinking in their home, and being the extra friendly people they probably were (and we most certainly aren't), were most likely stopping by to ask us to join them.

we hurriedly shut the blinds, and left them closed during dark the remainder of our stay. suffice to say, we were not invited to any other gatherings.

and so, here i am today, in my aunt and uncle's excessively window-ed home, where i can watch the neighbor's tv from my perch home office on the dining room table (deadliest catch for most of this afternoon). the doorbell rings, and i take cover, figuring with the lights off and my not being too near the giant front window, whomever is out there would just assume no one was home. a few minutes pass, and i look up from the computer as aforementioned neighbor waves to me from his driveway. he has a piece of mail for this house that he wanted to drop off.

we're going to overcome our answering-the-bell phobia before we ostracize any more communities.


*i don't know why we haven't grown out of the "don't open the door when your parents aren't home phase". i really don't. i'm quite aware that i'm an adult and it would be really hard for someone to just snatch me from my doorstep. i imagine when i live alone someday my packages will just pile up outside as i will never open the door for the fed ex guy.

**we're not even exaggerating this time. the show takes place in miami.