A woman penned an angry note to her neighbor in the apartment upstairs, complaining about the noise she was making, unaware of the valid reason behind it.
Danyelle Whitaker, 26, who is originally from New York, only moved into her new apartment in July having upped roots to take a job in a different state.
But it would appear she has already upset one of her neighbors. In a video posted to Whitaker’s TikTok, @danyelllleeee_, she revealed the note she found attached to her door one day saying “please read.”
“Hello, I live in room A on the 2nd floor and for the past week I’ve been hearing loud stomping and feeling the room shake through the ceiling throughout the day but mostly at night between 10pm and 12pm,” the note read.
The next part, all of which was underlined, continued: “Please be aware that there are people below and likely we are studying/sleeping.”
It finished “if you have any questions or issues then please reach out.”
@danyelllleeee_/TikTok
Whitaker told Newsweek: “At first I was definitely annoyed, and thought it was a little funny because I’ve been here and heard people stomping and running up and down the stairs, which is next to my apartment all day and night, so that should just show how thin everything is here since we share the same apartment. I’m just a floor above.”
She also felt the “underlining seemed a little unnecessary.” What that made it clear though was that whoever wrote the note was far from happy.
In a 2017 survey of 2,000 U.S. adults, conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Homes.com, 36 percent of respondents said that they had had issues with neighbors that escalated into full-blown arguments while 25 percent were even embroiled in long-running feuds with the person next door.
Whitaker had more reason than most to feel aggrieved about the note from her neighbor. “I was born with a rare birth defect called PFFD [Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency] and they decided to amputate my leg when I was 4 years old above the knee,” she said.
Whitaker has never let her disability hold her back from doing anything in life.
“I’ve always been a super independent person who thrives on inspiring others,” she said. “I was a cheerleader from middle school into sophomore year of college. I like working out and trying new activities.”
So she had no qualms about texting her neighbor and explaining the situation. Though she stressed she always tries to be “mindful” of others, there are times when she “does not want to wear” her prosthetic leg like if she is using the bathroom late at night.
@danyelllleeee_/TikTok
It can be heavy and cumbersome to put on, so she would rather hop in that kind of scenario, even if it does result in a momentary increase in noise.
“I decided to text them out of respect to explain it’s not on purpose, I’m just living in my apartment,” she said. “Luckily they were fine and appreciative that I reached out, but it still gave me so much anxiety (and still does) to just do normal daily things in my own apartment and room.”
Whitaker decided to share the clip since it was something that had “never happened before.” While plenty saw the funny side, there were those who felt a change was needed.
One said: “Can you always request that they give you units on the bottom floor?” with another writing: “Would it be possible for you to switch apartments? I feel like it would benefit both parties involved.”
Whitaker said responses like this remind her how “limited” some assume people with disabilities are. “I’m not ‘allowed’ to ride roller coasters (which I do and love), or apparently live on upper floors,” she said. “I think the world has advanced so much, yet expectations of people with disabilities and their ability to do just normal things are kind of stuck.”
Whitaker has no plans to do either but hopes her experience encourages “empathy and compassion” and that some try to be less “ableist.” She added: “Some situations that you may have gotten mad over can be resolved with respect and kindness.”
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