[NotInchoateHand1]

Altercation with neighbor.

You are a reasonable neighbor (you being me, but for the sake of argument, you). Your downstairs neighbor has a quasi-legitimate complaint, one that you have consciously heeded and sought to ameliorate.

However, on this very evening, say fifteen minutes ago, he comes raring out of his apartment and gets very up in your face about said complaint, at a point when it is marginally, if at all, occuring.

A heated exchange ensues. He's got three or four inches on you, but you are about equal in the pound department.

Now, despite being a bit of a brawler in my wayward adolescence, it has been a number of years since I have gotten in a sound physical altercation. Luckily (for one of us, still not sure who), I'm not as drunk as I normally am at this hour, so the situation didn't escalate further, but it came just short of blows.

Would you hope it blows over and strive a little harder to avoid irritating this short-tempered prick?

Would you let it come to blows, make sure he throws the first one, and trust that you haven't lost your youthful violent nature, trounce his ass?
(This seems like a poor idea, because I don't envision the problem going away, even if I managed to completely shitkick him, in fact, it is a reasonable supposition that the problem would be worse).

Would you wait for him to get violent, and take the admittedly pussy route of involving the authorities? (I don't want to jeopordize my life situation in general, so this is a reasonable alternative).

Would you do something else, and what?

Thanks.