Where the Heart Is

Update: moving day is over and new home is officially GO!

CONS:

1. Red paint. I severely miscalculated the level of difficulty in painting a white room, dark red (or "Bordello Red", as my Dad lovingly calls it). An entire gallon on a 10 x 10 room and still 715 coats left to apply. Argh!

2. Arbitrarily placed cabinets. Not always a good thing, just ask the huge purple knot on my forehead. Leaning down to fill a brush with more paint does not excuse the need to look above your head before standing up. A cabinet where no cabinet should be located may result in a dented skull, laying crumpled on the floor while listening to the kids upstairs play Star Wars on Wii and wishing you were playing too, instead of waiting for a concussion to set in.

3. Steep stairs. Always fun when moving large, heavy, bulky furniture. Also, when you drive a Toyota Camry instead of a truck and have to make 15 trips from old residence to new ... stairs tend to get old, reaaal fast. I may have to hire a door man to accompany guests from the bottom of the stairs to my door, just to be sure they make it without breaking anything. I suppose this could also be considered a pro, because after the past 48 hours of moving all my earthy belongings, I seriously have buns of steel. My move was the equivalent of at least 5 hours on the StairMaster.

4. Forest green tile. Yes, forest green tile. Umm, I don't really know what to do with this stuff. It's a highly unattractive feature that I should have taken into account before purchasing 'Autumn Leaves Orange' paint for my kitchen. You'll have to let me know if it A) it works, B) it looks like a pumpkin or C)it's a blast from the past, circa 1970. If B) or C), I'll just blame it on the previous tenant.

5. Closet (or lack thereof). I significantly reduced the amount of clothes I own before moving and even took a lot of what was in my previous closet and stuffed it into my dresser. Still, I can't fit everything into where it should go. Still calculating alternatives regarding this issue ...

PROS:

1. Big bathroom. Everything from my previous loo (and more!) can fit into my new bathroom. It's fantastic! I used to have all of my hair and make-up stuff in my bedroom because I had to share one bathroom. It's so nice to have everything related to hygiene and beauty located in one spot. Organization, it's a good thing.

2. Good location. Situated right on the edge of downtown La Mesa, I am close to all my necessities - Starbucks, Wells Fargo, Vons, Henry's, 8W-adjacent, trolley (for school), etc. Plus, still easy to bike everywhere, central to friend's residences and official meeting spot for Oktoberfest!

3. House vs. apartment. There are a few perks to moving into a house from an apartment, including being able to do whatever I want to the interior. Especially awesome because I'm only paying $50 more a month on rent. I have complete control, it's great!

4. Big porch. I kind of feel the need to purchase a rocking chair, brew my own moonshine and sit on this porch, chewing on straw and taking about the weather. It has a pretty view, a nice breeze and makes me want to be lazy. I love it.

5. All mine. Yeah, you heard right, new place all to myself. Can I eat cereal naked? Yep. Can I invite The Labyrinth goblins over for a sleep-over? Yep. Can I blast Ace of Base while rearranging my LOL cat magnets on the fridge? Yep! All without disturbed expressions and awkward comments. Life is grand.