There's a 1st time for everything

Including calling 911. Welcome to the world, baby girl, oh yeah I called 911 last night. I've never had to do that before. Right around 2:30AM I awoke to the melodious sounds of screaming and mumbling, then more screaming, grunting, banging, then screaming again. Once I fully realized that I was, in fact, awake and this wasn't the bad soundtrack to a dream the nerves set in. Screaming, hmmm. Windows are shut, so it's got to be pretty loud. OK, Melissa, listen closely and see if you can make out what the words are, if there are any. The words were surprisingly easy to understand. I heard them clear as day. They consisted mostly of a woman screaming at full volume, "C'mon! Let me in! Nigga, you best open this door! Open this fucking door! C'mon now!!" In case you haven't figured it out yet, this was no friendly exchange. I don't believe it was a sober one, either.

The woman's voice was followed by a man's, somewhat muffled, yet still clearly understandable. "Bitch, you ain't even gone act like that! I can't beleee you! How you even gone act like that? You don't want in here, bitch. I'll fucking kill you, bitch! I... will... fuck... ing... kill... you!"

Nice, eh? She kept beating on the door and begging him to let her in and he kept insisting he'd end her life. The fact that she kept trying to get in makes me immensely sad, but this is what women with no where else to go do. Well, that went on in one form or another for about 10 minutes and then it dawned on me - he might actually kill her. This could very well culminate with gun shots and sirens. Not really the way I want to spend the wee hours of a Sunday morning. This is going to sound a bit heartless, but there are several motels about half a block from the new apartment on Biscayne Blvd. that don't exactly have the most upstanding of clientele (dealers, hookers, you get the point) and if they want to shoot each other up I'm not exactly going to mourn their loss. However, it's the middle of the night and someone may seriously get shot half a block away from where I'm trying to sleep. I decided I'd call 911 to perhaps keep someone alive for one more night (until the next crack binge and fist fight) and maybe get a few more winks.

After putting me on hold for about a minute, the dispatcher takes the info, says they'll send a squad car, then tells me that if I'm able to get a physical description to call back. I replied, "No offense, but I'm not going out there." After about another 20 minutes the screams died down and the man and I both fell back asleep. About an hour later it started up again and lasted for about a half an hour. Then again at 4:15, but after that my body was so done with being awake that I slept through whatever else may have happened. There was never any indication that the cops came. Nice. Thanks, Miami's finest. It's one thing to be a resident who's sick and tired of the bad element in this city, but it's another to have a police force that blatantly ignores it. Protect and serve, assholes. Ever heard of it?