6.39 pm

The kids in my building partied hard last night, and set off the smoke detector around three in the morning. Which proceeded to go off about every five minutes for the next hour. When I went next door to ask if they could please put out the cigarettes so at least the smoke alarm would stop going off, they told me that once it triggered, it kept going for the next hour or two.

"But," one of the guys told me, "it goes off, I push this button to stop it. See. How about I make you breakfast tomorrow? Yes? You like strawberries, cream? What's your favorite, I'll make it?"

I asked what the connection was between the alarm going off at three in the morning and breakfast. He shrugged. The girl next to him explained to me that he was Spanish, and the Spanish consider breakfast to be the most important meal of the day. So I went back to my room, and read a book until the alarm finally stopped going off.

Which may explain why, when I got up to go to the bathroom around six in the morning, I didn't really wake up all the way. Which shouldn't have been a problem, except that there is a door between my bedroom and the bathroom, which I keep closed because it cuts down on the noise from the kids next door. I also leave a night light on in the bathroom, so I can tell at a glance if the bedroom door is open or closed. But, as I said, I was still half asleep and rather confused. So when I got up and only saw black in front of me, it didn't immediately register that the door was closed and I needed to open it. Instead, I somehow decided this meant the door was open.

I walked into it full speed and promptly woke all the way up. The intense pain of smashing your nose into the door and the warm feeling of blood running down your face will do that.

Luckily, I had a bag of peas in the fridge (they're now in the freezer, in case of future emergencies) and so my nose is not nearly as bruised and swollen as I thought it would be.