Home Is Where You Hang Your Hat?
My last class of nursing school was cancelled today, so I am sitting on the couch, in my pajamas drinking hot tea, eating cold blueberry pancakes, and watching men's synchronized diving on CBC (with the bitchiest commentator ever!). Life could only be better if it were a little bit warmer and my feet weren't cold. Otherwise, I'm blissfully trying to forget that I have yet to write a paper, study for a final, and pack up a 3300 sq foot house. Everything seems achievable other than the packing part.
We've been looking at houses, endlessly-- on the multi-listing, Craigslist, the newspaper-- you name it, we've looked. We have found houses we have loved and missed. "Sorry. Already rented" We have contemplated buying a few and missed those as well. We just need to make a decision already. Any of the moves are going to be challenging. The house I wanted the most (and missed) was smaller than my current master suite. I'm a little daunted about how to minimize my life to such a degree, but excited about it too. Where ever it is that we move to, I'm going to be able to clean it so much faster and have far less shit to clean.
We're down to three choices at the current time. Each has pros and cons.
1. Family housing: Main pro of this? Cheap! Cheap! Obviously very family orientated and tons of kids for Cricket to play with. They even have a gas stove, and since I don't understand how anyone cooks on electric, the gas is definite plus. It's so close to a grocery store that we could walk there. It's also quite close to one of the hospitals I might apply too. I could ride my bike until the snow comes. It's also near parks. The cons? Well, it's family housing. We're going to be 36 and 40 respectively this fall, so in some ways it feels like a lot of backtracking. And you know, it's not exactly luxury housing.
2. Co-housing: Many of the same pros as family housing but without being family housing. Many kids, many eyes watching them. I love the idea of co-housing, but wonder if I'd be able to abide by all the rules. I love the idea of community meals, especially as we are embarking on another busy year. (Partner will be doing the same program I did.) Cons: The rules? And it's a still further out of "town" than we wanted to be. Our goal was to live on the bus line and be within walking distance of different amenities. I wanted to live in a larger neighborhood, and the co-housing we are looking at is located in the back of business park. There's walking, but not really what I envisioned.
3. Private house: They are out there. We found one yesterday that we both liked. The bedrooms were larger than postage stamps, which was refreshing. It was clean and well maintained. The current tenants complained about the landlord, which was worrying. Pros: Private house-- no shared walls! Felt roomy and cool. Had a full basement, which is definitely nice for storage. The other pro? It probably shared a backyard with a very good friend of mine. Cons: The dodgy landlord, for one. The tenants also said it was cold there in the winter, which sucks. It was also on a larger road, and I could hear the expressway. Electric stove.
I vacillate minute to minute-- wherever we live will ultimately be fine. We'll be together and that's what matters. I guess for now I should get off the couch and start packing.
Graduation on Friday! More blogging to come!
We've been looking at houses, endlessly-- on the multi-listing, Craigslist, the newspaper-- you name it, we've looked. We have found houses we have loved and missed. "Sorry. Already rented" We have contemplated buying a few and missed those as well. We just need to make a decision already. Any of the moves are going to be challenging. The house I wanted the most (and missed) was smaller than my current master suite. I'm a little daunted about how to minimize my life to such a degree, but excited about it too. Where ever it is that we move to, I'm going to be able to clean it so much faster and have far less shit to clean.
We're down to three choices at the current time. Each has pros and cons.
1. Family housing: Main pro of this? Cheap! Cheap! Obviously very family orientated and tons of kids for Cricket to play with. They even have a gas stove, and since I don't understand how anyone cooks on electric, the gas is definite plus. It's so close to a grocery store that we could walk there. It's also quite close to one of the hospitals I might apply too. I could ride my bike until the snow comes. It's also near parks. The cons? Well, it's family housing. We're going to be 36 and 40 respectively this fall, so in some ways it feels like a lot of backtracking. And you know, it's not exactly luxury housing.
2. Co-housing: Many of the same pros as family housing but without being family housing. Many kids, many eyes watching them. I love the idea of co-housing, but wonder if I'd be able to abide by all the rules. I love the idea of community meals, especially as we are embarking on another busy year. (Partner will be doing the same program I did.) Cons: The rules? And it's a still further out of "town" than we wanted to be. Our goal was to live on the bus line and be within walking distance of different amenities. I wanted to live in a larger neighborhood, and the co-housing we are looking at is located in the back of business park. There's walking, but not really what I envisioned.
3. Private house: They are out there. We found one yesterday that we both liked. The bedrooms were larger than postage stamps, which was refreshing. It was clean and well maintained. The current tenants complained about the landlord, which was worrying. Pros: Private house-- no shared walls! Felt roomy and cool. Had a full basement, which is definitely nice for storage. The other pro? It probably shared a backyard with a very good friend of mine. Cons: The dodgy landlord, for one. The tenants also said it was cold there in the winter, which sucks. It was also on a larger road, and I could hear the expressway. Electric stove.
I vacillate minute to minute-- wherever we live will ultimately be fine. We'll be together and that's what matters. I guess for now I should get off the couch and start packing.
Graduation on Friday! More blogging to come!
Labels: House
posted by Katie at 9:04 AM
2 Comments:
I hate trying to find a new home. I just hate it. There are so many factors to consider, and nothing meets all criteria--at least for us. Worst so far this round has been finding a beautiful and reasonably priced place that won't take our cats no matter how many references we offered.
Go CoHo! We love it and find the rules/consensus well worth it to gain the benefits.
Does this mean your house sold?
Good luck in whatever you choose!
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