I had a scary experience this morning. Jacob decided to go to school to study which I wasn’t happy about. He said he had to go for the whole day and stay until 2:00 AM to do all the studying he needed to do. I was in a huff when he left.
When I went into the bathroom I shut the door harder than I usually would. What you should know about our apartment is that there are 20 layers of paint on every surface so none of the interior doors actually shut. But apparently I shut the bathroom door fairly hard because when I went to open it, it had latched. And unfortunately the handle doesn’t work. It turns around and around but doesn’t work the latch. I pushed and kicked on the door as hard as I could but it didn’t budge at all. I played with the handle but couldn’t see any way to get it open. There weren’t any tools in the bathroom, of course. I tried to undo the screws with the toenail clippers but the screws were too damaged to even work.
At this point I could feel myself panicking. It was 11:45 AM and Jacob wasn’t going to be home until 2:00 AM. There was pretty much no chance he would decide to turn around and come back home in a few minutes time. I opened the window to check my options, as well as get some air. The fire escape doesn’t connect to the bathroom window, only the bedroom, and even if it did, there were bars on the window that I couldn’t get off without tools.
The small alleyway and yards behind our building are usually deserted but one of our neighbors has been working on building a patio this weekend. Everyone was inside except one man who was sitting outside talking on his cell phone. I couldn’t hear him very well and I wasn’t sure if he spoke English. When he got off the phone I called out to him. He spoke English at least well enough to understand me asking him to call my husband. I told him the number and he called Jacob. The conversation took longer than I expected and I was worried Jacob thought it was some kind of prank call. After he hung up the phone the neighbor went back inside so I was alone again. I didn’t know how long it would take Jacob to come home, if he even did.
But, of course, he did. He biked home from school as fast as he could. He rushed in so fast he was covered in sweat and he left his bike in the hall. He opened the door (it opened right up from the outside!) and grabbed my hand, pulling me out into his arms where I proceeded to cry.
“I couldn’t get the door open!” I cried.
“I know,” he said and rubbed my back.
I know it sounds like a pretty hilarious story, being locked in the bathroom. And someday I’ll tell it as a funny anecdote at parties. But it was a pretty terrifying 30 minutes or so.
Jacob was so sweet. He laid on the bed with me while I cried. Then he set me up on the couch to watch conference. He covered me with a blanket, filled up my water bottle and kissed me on the head. He’s a pretty nice guy. An urban knight in shining armor.
Yikes! I know I’d have started to panic too! Actually…this kind of happened to me before, at a friend’s house. Fortunately there were people outside in the hallway who were able to help me, but I panicked after like 2 minutes…def’ly not 30. Glad Jacob was able to come home and help you!!
Out of all rooms to be trapped in, that would definitely have been the worst!! You poor thing! And without a cell phone! The tragedy!!
Nice photo of the door handle. How brave of you to call out to the neighbor from the bathroom window! And how sweet of Jacob to rush home and rescue you and take good care of you.
You’ve got a good guy there. I’m glad he was able to come & rescue you!
husbands are great for laying with you while you cry. one of my favorite husband features. that is scary though!
hey and we are pretty sure we’re getting the Davis’s apartment since they moved to DC! So we’ll be in your ward! pretty exciting.
Emily…that sounds awful. Seriously. I got stuck in a bathroom (interestingly enough) the other day for about five seconds and thought I was going to die!
oh man that does bad! i think i would’ve freaked! yay for jacob!
Oh that is so sweet what Jacob did, I am not going to lie I got a little emotional when I read it. I have been a blubbering baby all day. Crazy story though I would have been too chicken to even ask the guy for help, good for you!
AGHHH! How scary~you are the bravest woman in the world. I’m SOOO glad Jacob came home — I would have been freaked out! What would you have done if that guy hadn’t been there? i guess you could’ve taken the longest bath in history. Wow.
P.S. Brian is in love with the picture you took of the door handle [and I think its super awesome too — he just keeps repeating how much he likes it…he REALLY likes it:)
P.P.S I absolutely love the nattik living blog! I tried to comment, but I couldn’t figure it out. Just know, there would be a comment there if I were smarter than the computer.
P.P.P.S I’ll call you this week. Last week wasn’t my best. I’ll fill you in when we chat. Love you!
Julie- You would have been brave enough to ask the guy outside if you were trapped, believe me. I was surprised how willing I was to do something crazy to get out of that tiny bathroom. I suppose it’s better to be trapped INSIDE the bathroom than outside, right?? Like a closet, that would be terrible.
Miss Hill- I don’t think the comments are working on the Nattik Living blog. I’ve been meaning to ask Lori about it. We’ll try and get it fixed soon.
I’m so glad Jacob could save you!!! That happened to one of my former visiting teachers when her roommates were gone for the weekend.
Oooohhh no! That story made ME want to cry! I loved the doorknob on Nattik Living, but now that I know the story behind it I’m not so in love;) I am glad you have such a good husband!
Heidi, what did that poor girl do!?!?! Oh my gosh my heart is racing just thinking about it. It’s the worst feeling in the world.
So many emotions! I’m glad it all turned out well. Great photography btw!
She freaked out for awhile and then prayed and the Spirit talked her through how to take the hinges off the door.
And that doorknob is awesome!
oh my goodness. That is such a scary, but so totally SWEET, romantic story! How wonderful to have a guy that takes such good care of you!
yikes. i would’ve freaked out too!!!
and jacob is supersweet. i remember asking you if he had a twin brother back in the day, LOL
I would totally freak out and panic! Jacob sounds like a good catch to take care of you!!!
Poo, that sounds like a really crappy situation to be in. Did you get flushed with fear? If it hadn’t been so horrendous, you probably could have entertained yourself by coming up with as many bathroom puns as you could.
I’m so glad you were saved though. I can’t imagine the feelings. I’m claustrophobic so that would be unbearable.
I hope it has been long enough that you can laugh now. I think it is an excellent story. I had an ironically similar situation and have decided to stock all kinds of exciting things to do in the bathroom. Though I could probably climb off the roof and jump… but you should definitely stash some fun things in there for the future. Fingers Crossed there isn’t a future re experience
I’m amazed at all these comments from people saying that something similar happened to them! I think I’m going to follow Kalie’s advice to stash “things to do” in rooms you might get locked in! Plus tools to try and extricate yourself.
What a horrifying experience! I’m glad you had your knight come to your rescue. Missing you – La
Poor thing! That’s so cute how your DH came home so quickly, too! I was trapped in an elevator once, and I was so glad I didn’t have to go to the bathroom. At least you were trapped in a room with a toilet.
Hey…and the potential for a relaxing bubble bath while you were waiting. 