Neighbors leave hallway window wide open to keep their perishable foods fresh in an old, poorly-insulated apartment building: ‘Genuine indifference [and] arrogance’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Dec 21, 2025 9:00 PM EST

The brutal winter is unforgiving, especially in northern cities in the United States. Buffalo, New York, is one of the coldest places in the northeast, as it exists right on the border of Lake Erie. In the next story, a Buffalo resident laments that their neighbors are keeping the shared hallway window open in freezing weather so they can keep their perishable food fresh. What happened to good, old-fashioned freezers?

How do you prepare for cold weather? First, you need to find a nice, well-insulated coat and a good pair of thermals. For socks, think fluffy and hisour (these will give you the best warmth results). Grab yourself a knit hat, a chunky scarf, and a wind-resistant pair of gloves. For Buffalo NYers, waterproof and wind-resistant snow boots only. You anticipate that you'll need these pieces of clothing and accessories outside, but planning to use them inside means you either haven't paid your heat bill in months, or you're the resident in this story.

One thing neighbors will always have is the audacity, evident here on Fail Blog. Opening a window to keep your food cold is… interesting. No harm done if it's in the confines of your space, but in a shared hallway? Entitled and preposterous. This resident is at their wits' end. Scroll to read (and go Bills).

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  • 01
    a photo of a window with frosted snowflakes on it and a photo of a man with his hands to his face overlayed
    via Chloe Ridgway for Unsplash

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02

    "My upstairs neighbors keep the window open in the hallway during winter to store their perishable food"

    My boyfriend and I live in an upper and lower apartment in Buffalo NY. Our house was built in the 60s so it's pretty drafty, but we've figured out ways to get around that to keep the house warm during the winter.
    via trippycheese_
  • 03
    This is our 3rd winter here, and the house seems to be a lot more frigid and drafty no matter what we do.
    via trippycheese_
  • 04
    We live in the downstairs apt with a private entrance in the front and a shared entrance with the neighbors through the side door.
    via trippycheese_
  • 05
    The hallway leads to my kitchen door then to a staircase that goes up to the neighbors apartment.
    via trippycheese_
  • 06
    We got two space heaters because of how cold it's been, and still aren't comfortable. Come to find out we're so cold because they are keeping the window in the hallway open, during the wintertime, to keep a cooler of perishable food from going bad!!!!!
    via trippycheese_
  • 07
    Our heat is escaping mostly through the cracks in kitchen door and going out that window, and through the other parts of the house that aren't well insulated.
    via trippycheese_
  • 08
    The rooms in my apartment that are on either side of the staircase are the coldest, one of those being our bedroom!!
    via trippycheese_
  • 09
    :) Our electric bill has been $300+ the last two months, and our gas bill has also been abnormally high.
    via trippycheese_
  • 10
    We've never suffered these high costs during previous winters. We even started turning the space heaters off more often to try to avoid the electric being super high, but it hasn't made a difference.
    via trippycheese_
  • 11
    After finding out they're keeping the window open when the temperatures have been around 30° or less, I'm enraged.
    via trippycheese_
  • 12
    Especially at night when it drops to 15° and below. One of us will go and shut the window when we realize it's open.
    via trippycheese_
  • 13
    Just for one of them upstairs to come out and open it back up later on.
    via trippycheese_
  • 14
    It's a constant back and forth. I can feel an immediate difference in the house's temperature when
    via trippycheese_
  • 15
    So I sent them a VERY nice text stating that all of our heat is escaping out that window (because heat rises, as I'd figure most adults would understand), that it's causing our utility bills to be EXTREMELY high.
    via trippycheese_
  • 16
    a man sitting at a table with a warm coffee cup in front of him
    via Aakash Malik For Unsplash+

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 17
    And that we're freezing down here, because cold air sinks!!! Pleading with them to please please keep the window shut.
    via trippycheese_
  • 18
    Guess what they said? NOTHING! Left me on read! The fucking audacity of people dude. Open a window in your own apartment and put your food in front of it.
    via trippycheese_
  • 19
    We shouldn't have to shiver and pay triple in utilities because you want to treat the hallway like your personal freezer.
    via trippycheese_
  • 20
    Buy a fucking fridge or a freezer and stop being a literal piece of shit human with no regard to anyone else.
    via trippycheese_
  • 21
    I'm about to tell them they can pay the difference in our electric and gas bill if they want to continue to be fucking assholes and disregard the fact that they're fucking with our quality of life.
    via trippycheese_
  • 22
    I don't know if it's genuine indifference & arrogance, or if they don't understand that heat rises and cold sinks.
    via trippycheese_
  • 23
    I should suggest they utilize the snow outside as a cooler instead of wildly inconveniencing their downstairs neighbors and putting them through hell.
    via trippycheese_
  • 24
    They've proven through past experiences that they are not capable of having a mature discussion about anything without escalating to unnecessary screaming & yelling, hence why I've held off on saying anything face to face.
    via trippycheese_
  • 25
    What do you guys suggest I do?? Because there's probably no legal recourse for people who suck beyond belief.
    via trippycheese_
  • 26
    I am just so fucking grossed out by the lack of consideration they have. I just want to scream and pull my hair out
    via trippycheese_

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neighborhood-stories cold weather winter apartment living Bad Neighbor entitled people
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