Bringing the Bird

Hip Hip Hooray! I was given permission today to have Vinnie live with us in our new apartment.

Basically I told my realtor that I needed a place that allowed pets and he kind of shrugged it off and said there was a law that states once you have the pet in the apartment they can't make you get rid of it. Since I could tell this guy was a total crackpot I didn't trust him one bit. I ended up reading the rule that states that if your lease doesn't mention pets at all then you have a right to obtain a pet but if it states that you can't, then you can't.
So here I am, signing the lease and there is a section that reads No Pets and this massive clause that comes after it that hints to the fact that you have to have written permission but if it's discovered that you are harboring animals (especially dogs, this lease doesn't like dogs) they have permission to cancel your lease. So of course, I start to panic.

I casually ask about the clause and the leasing agent (who was very nice) says that people in the building do have pets, the clause really exists because they want to keep people from bringing in highly aggressive dogs such as pit bulls and rottweilers. I understand that a pit bull can be a perfectly normal dog, if raised appropriately, but my neighborhood had (still has?) a bad pit bull/dog fighting reputation. So they created the approval clause because they want little old lady dogs in, scary gangsta dogs out.

So I start to really get nervous as moving day approaches because my first experience with the property manager wasn't a very positive one and I'm thinking I'm going to ask him to have a bird and he's going to say no. Just because he can. So we wait and wait and then finally I can't take it anymore and I email him asking if we can have a small, caged bird. Six minutes later he emails me: Yeah, small bird okay. Your welcome. (grammatical error his, not mine)

So, I'm thrilled. Vinnie isn't a barking dog but he's not a mute either. I'd be panicked about a nosy neighbor or a visiting super discovering him and caring enough to report his presence. But, alas, everything is slowly falling into place.

Now all I need is a bed...and a sofa...and a table with chairs...and a bureau. Or two.