sooaap

My downstairs neighbors are fucking killing me...so if you didn't know, I'm a smoker...my downstairs neighbors aren't...and they take exception to the fact that I smoke...so much so that the woman of the household came and knocked on my door at 8 o'clock in the morning on 3rd of 4th day I lived here, full of drama about how miserable they were...so I talked to her and tried to work out some type of compromise...I told her this is NOT a nonsmoking apartment complex but that I would try to accommodate them as best I could...we stayed in communication for the next couple of weeks and worked out a schedule regarding where I would smoke and when I would smoke there...a little bit of a pain in the ass but I figure it's worth it to get off on the right foot with the new neighbors...long story short they've been calling the leasing agent, property manager, and owner and complaining about me smoking in spite of the schedule we worked out..they stopped talking to me all together and started talking shit about me...the property manager gave me a fan to put outside when I smoke to blow the smoke away from the area I'm smoking in and they still complain...no matter what I do, they still complain...the problem is when they moved in the leasing agent assured them that this was a nonsmoking building, even though the property manager smokes, and so do 5-6 other tenants (out of 14 total apartments - the other tenants that smoke live on the other side of the complex)...so I looked at the lease today and here is what I found...and I quote item "o" from the maintenance, repairs, and alterations section:

"resident understands and agrees that any damage caused by or related to cigarette/pipe/cigar smoking or any tobacco product use, or use of candles, incense, oil lamps, or burning of any other prodcut (except for proper use of Owner installed fireplaces), shall not constiture wear resulting from ordinary use of the Premises. The cost of such repair, which shall be borne by Resient may include the following: deodorizing the Premises, cleaning of the drapes and blinds, sealing and painting of walls and ceiling etc etc etc..," In other words, if you smoke in your apartment then be prepared to pay to clean it when you move out...

Now obviously, if this were a nonsmoking apartment complex, there would be no such need for a clause the specifically references cigarette/pipecigar smoking or any tobacco product use...because it wouldn't be allowed...instead there would be a section in the lease regarding the specific ban on any type of tobacco use on the Premises point blank motherfucking period.

So what do I do here? I really like this place...and I'm not doing anything wrong by smoking...I don't smoke in my apartment (even though that would be ok according to the lease), but my neighbors keep contacting the powers that be to tell them how much of a nuisance I am...and of course in the health conscious new age, I'm the bad guy because I'm a smoker and smoking is bad...god forbid I start a meth lab or opium den over here...despite my health habits and the fact I'm not going to quit smoking, I'm open to reasonable compromise...am I the bad guy?