Hard to believe that we – my husband and I – have lived 50+ years together, but never in an apartment. (In the early years we rented houses before we bought our first home.) So, bear with me as I recount some of the anomalies and experiences of our yearlong sojourn as lessees at the brand-new Wholesome 55+ Luxury Living Apartments. (NOTE: The names and some details have been changed to protect those we left behind.)
First Anomaly: We are sleeping soundly – our 3rd night in the apartment, when suddenly we are jarred awake by a loud rumbling noise. It is vibrating the walls and the ceiling above us. We sit up and realize it’s almost 3 am. What is going? Frantically I go out into the brightly lit hall and look both ways. Not a soul or a sound. Back inside we realize the noise is originating from the bedroom above ours. Then it stops as suddenly as it started. Joe said it sounded like an air compressor, the kind used to operate power tools. I agree. (He used to have one in the garage and if he forgot to unplug it, the motor would kick on by itself to increase the pressure as needed.) We go back to bed and hope the possessed machine above us stays off. By daybreak it starts again. Joe, who takes a walk each morning through the hallways, says he’ll go to the third floor and see what’s going on. Obviously, some construction, or workers left their equipment on. Joe returns from his reconnaissance mission with no information. All’s quiet above. No work or repairs in progress, inside or out. It seems everyone above us is either asleep or the apartments are empty. Occupancy is still very low. As the day progresses the machine is quiet.
I go to the apartment on our right and ask the couple if they had heard the noise. The woman says yes, this morning, but not during the night. And, she adds, it was the loudest in their back closet. Next, I go to the manager’s office to report the disturbance and ask what might be going on. No one in the office can or will confirm any kind of construction or repairs being done anywhere in our building, especially this morning. Then a lady waiting to see the manager, pipes in that she lives on the 3rd floor and has also heard the noise but couldn’t figure out what it was. So, with two witnesses the manager agrees to file a complaint and have the maintenance staff of one, Johnny, go check on the unit in question. Later that day I receive a message from management, that nothing unusual was going on above us. Luckily that was the last we heard the ‘ghost compressor.’ A mystery with no explanation.
Anomaly #2: This is not the end of noise from above. There seems to be a regular schedule of moving furniture around in the living area above ours, usually early on Saturday mornings. The rubbing and scraping sounds would start around 7 am followed by the vacuum cleaner. We realize we’d sound like jerks, to complain that our neighbor cleans her apartment very thoroughly. But then one morning a new machine begins to hum loudly above our heads. This time it sounds like an electric power sander, one that would be used to refinish wood flooring. What is going on? The floors are all vinyl-plank. Joe again walks the third-floor hall, and he stops and knocks on the door of the unit above ours. He just wants to see for himself what’s going on. A woman answers. Joe reports back that the floor looked wet and shiny, and he saw what looked like an industrial electric floor polisher sitting idle behind her. When he asked what was going on, she replies “Nothing,” as innocent as a child caught stealing candy.
At least we had an explanation for the noise this time.
And the last Anomaly: In early May of this year, after we had been residents for almost six months, the beautiful crystal-clear water of the inground pool turns green overnight, the consistency and color of pea soup. Management informs the residents that a pump went out, and they are waiting for the replacement, promising to have the pool ready for swimmers by Memorial Day weekend. I, for one, enjoy following all the complaints and speculations on our Resident’s Group Chat. One Resident quips “Johnny looks like a Mad Scientist, with his vials and chemicals trying to doctor the pool.”
A few days into the green-swimming-pool saga, as I walk my dog, Little Girl, around the yard, I stop to chat with the group participating in the evening’s Pickle Ball tournament. Of course, the only topic is the gelatinous green goo that is no longer the best amenity here at W 55+ LL. One gentleman laughs when I tell him I thought I heard a bull-frog chorus last night while sitting on my balcony. He responds “Hell, I expected to see Elly May Clampett sitting in her bikini by the cement pond today.”
The chemistry of the pool is restored in time for the holiday weekend and for the rest of the summer, we, the residents, watch Johnny walk around the parameter of the pool with his long-handled pool scrubber trying to release the stubborn algae that clings to the deepest corners and crevices of the cement pond.
Rules: Living in a place you do not own, always comes with some restrictions. The residents at W 55+ LL have all agreed to abide by the rules. So, it came as a surprise to witness so many rule-breakers here.
- NO Smoking: anywhere on the premises. Not ambiguous. But smokers will not be deterred by a rule, even with the threat of a fine. Each night I watch the orange glow of a lit cigarette move up and down on the balcony across from me. The young man who moved in with his 55+ mother lights up when he is sitting in the dog-yard alone with his beast (he brought a big black dog with him). He also stealthily smokes on his balcony behind a shade that is permanently extended. I’m sure this smoking ban covers weed. But in the mornings the scent of marijuana wafts down the first-floor halls and around the doors that lead outside. So, potheads ignore rules too.
- Please pick up your pet waste: Not always adhered to, even though there is a dog waste station with poop bags supplied and signage. On numerous walks, me and LG see the evidence of non-compliance. For those of us who do use the receptacle, there is the issue of getting the can emptied when it is full to overflowing. It seems the only way to resolve this problem is to submit a complaint through the proper channels, which I did, or holler at Johnny to empty it, which my friend B did, more than once. Either way it gets done, only to repeat in a few weeks. One day after we both took umbrage over the smelly waste station, I sat on my balcony and watched as Johnny, with his bare hands – NO gloves – pushes the overflowing stinking leaking dog waste material deep into the can, before pulling the garbage bag out and taking it away.
- 55+ Living: Sounds great. NO KIDS. NO teens or NO loud young adults having parties. Not sure this rule is even enforced. Adult children seem to show up and never leave, back to living with Mom. Some residents have small children, theirs or their grandchildren. On many mornings we see the yellow school bus out front to pick up half dozen or so kids and the reverse in the afternoon. The kids do not hesitate going into the front doors of W 55+ LL. It’s where they live.
Another glaring issue: W 55+ LL has no maintenance staff, just Johnny. No one is responsible for keeping the halls and public places clean. So, as more people move in with their stuff and their dogs, the more dirt and debris accumulate in hallways, stairwells and elevators. Sometimes I just feel like taking a broom and mop and cleaning the floors myself.
Notwithstanding these strange anomalies and daily hiccups, our sojourn at Wholesome 55+ Luxury Living was actually good. Our unit was new and shiny, with stainless steel appliances and a good view from our balcony. We enjoyed the amenities and convenience of apartment living. We met new people, made some friends and got involved in some of the activities provided. And being here for a year gave us time to decide where exactly we wanted to live in Texas.
And through it all we kept our sense of humor. With each new hiccup, we laughed and said “We’re just doing our time at the Wholesome.” We even made up a song for Johnny, called ‘Wholesome Building Blues’. I will end with this. Apartment living is not for the faint of heart, but we did it and now we are in our forever Texas home.
ADENDUM: on my last post of Texas Newbie: I wondered when I will be a real Texan. I believer it’s official as of Nov 11, 2025: I am now a real Texan. I had the AC running and the Furnace in the same 24 hour period. Fall in Texas. Yeee Haw Y’all!
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