An excuse for not paying rent

I thought I had heard it all when a tenant in one of my duplexes assured me in early March that I'd have the rent by the 24th, when she got her income tax refund, and that she' d pay April's rent then, too.

I never got March or April's rent. She didn't return my phone call. I sent a pay or quit, let five days after it's arrival pass, and then got a court date to begin the eviction process. My court date was May 6.

At the end of April, I called the power company to see if the power was still on since we were wondering if she had moved out. My water bill had dropped noticeably. The power had been shut of April 9. We made arrangements (by providing her notice through her mail slot) to enter her apartment that weekend (the weekend before court).

The day before court (I think it was), I get a call from her telling me that she's been incarcerated, and I'm the first call she's made since she got out. Her family moved her stuff out earlier in the month (most of her stuff), and she told me they found the back door wide opened and the washer and dryer (ours) had been stolen. She assured me her stuff was moved out and that I could re-rent the place. (We moved her leftover stuff into the shed.)

I thought that was the most original excuse (I was in jail) for not paying the rent. I just got another, along the same vein, but with more detail. My fingers are sore and I'm out of time to write about it. Maybe later.