Zeroing in

Picking an apartment was a particularly puzzling especially when you haven't lived alone for more than thirty years. It was easier to start with what I didn't want than the other way around. First up was the insane affordability of a studio or loft space. That is what I would consider a reasonable amount of money for a single adult to spend on lodgings. Alas, I am past the part of my life where I will willingly tolerate a living-kitchen-dining-bedroom combination living space. Tiny houses look great until you have to actually live in one.

I should also explain that I am a much larger than average human being. 6'4" 275 larger which takes up a big chunk of most small spaces no matter what configuration I'm in. So, with that in mind, I originally thought I would like a townhouse. Renting a house house is out of the question because I have no desire to manage snow or grass ever again. I've done my time and feel I'm getting off with good behavior. Anyway, on one of my shelter research trips I looked at a lot of online attractive townhomes.

Like most things on the internet the pictures were much better than real life and I caught myself laughing out-loud with more than one real estate person. The other thing that none of the pictures showed was the massive amount of kids toys scattered everywhere. I really don't want to be the creepy/cranky old man in a community (other than what I will naturally deserve that is) and outdoor kids toys in every development I liked scratched those off the list.

Next up was apartments and I really thought that phase was behind me until I started looking in one of my favorite neighborhoods. The rents were a little higher than I wanted but there are restaurants and bars that I already love within walking distance, I'll be less than two miles from work, and around 20 minutes from the airport. The other thing I liked was there were a bunch of buildings under five years old which checked off the NO CREAKY FLOORS box.

There are a lot of old historic things for rent in my new hipster neighborhood and the ones I toured were a noise nightmare. I walked around the top floor unit in an eighty five year old brownstone confident that the entire building could audibly track my every move. nope.

I'm rambling on to this will have to be continued...