Pro-Soup Propaganda

(This photo of a giant lobster claw that I found on the beach in Ketchikan has nothing to do with this post, but "they" say you should have a photo in every post, so that's what you're getting. I have more beach pictures to post later!)

I've now been home in Portland for a couple of days. Today is the only full day off I'll have for awhile and I have been spending most of the day doing about 10 different projects. I have been wanting to switch my small dresser in our spare bedroom with the large record player holder (for the record player we do not yet have...hmph) because I have been wanting to put my coffee tree in front of the window. So, I moved that stuff around and then set to moving other things around, as well. I got a lot of cleaning done!

It's weird that I have gotten rid of so much stuff in our apartment and yet it still feels like I own SO MUCH. I look around and it seems like I have a ton of things everywhere. We have been talking about moving into a small house for quite awhile now and had been thinking that when our lease is up in February that it might be a good time to do that, but now I'm not so sure.

PROS OF LIVING HERE:

*It's relatively cheap. We pay $790 a month for a two bedroom apartment that is spacious and bright.

*We are pretty darn close to our works. Jonathan works 3 miles away and I work 5.5 miles away. It's an easy bike ride for both of us. It's also easy to drive, take the MAX, or the bus from here.

*Our apartment is cute and I like how I have it set up.

*There is nothing but residential stuff around us, which I like because I like not being tempted by coffee shops and little stores or whatnot to spend money in.

*I know there are more pros to living here, because I'm almost always happy here, but I am pretty accepting of things. :o)

CONS OF LIVING HERE:

*It would be nice to have a dishwasher or at least a washer and dryer of our own. We do solely use our clothes drying rack to dry things on, but it would be nice to be able to toss sheets in the dryer or if we had a bunch of things to wash to not have to stagger it out.

*Neighbours coming and going. Right now the neighbours above us are great for the most part. They do fight occasionally and the woman will stomp around and slam doors for hours sometimes. This can happen during any time of the day.

*No outdoor space that is ours. I'd love to have plants, a garden, and a compost area outside. We have talked about having chickens for years! And bees!

*My kayak lives at my friend's grandmother's house. It would be nice to have it closer to me! (Not really a con, but it would be nice to not have to store it at someone else's place.)

Because my job situation fluctuates so much I am kind of thinking that maybe now would not be a good time to be looking for different housing. We are also going to be needing to buy a different car within the next few years, as my car is starting to show signs of its age. Jonathan will also be going to bike frame building school next fall and that's around $3,000. I would like to take a couple smaller trips next year or maybe one bigger trip with Jonathan (we'd love to go to Greece, Turkey, visit his mom's family in Maine, visit my mom in Alaska).

So that all costs money and renting a house would definitely be more expensive than renting our apartment. Houses seem to average about $1,200 a month here. I guess it technically boils down to right now that our finances are already kinda tight and we would be spending $400 a month more on not living with people above us, more or less. Since that pans out to $4,800 a year, that's a big chunk! That could easily help be a down payment for a car, pay for part of Jonathan's tuition, or be a good part of a trip. I will also have to have extra money in the bank to help pay the bills when I am out of town on my weeks-long trips.

I guess my mind is just whirring because I have moved so much stuff around today and done so much cleaning!

In good news, I will soon be the proud owner of a 15 gallon aquarium setup! I have been wanting fish for the past few years. I miss owning them. I am such a catfish nerd. I miss having these little guys, especially! I was looking on CraigsList today for bookshelves and an aquarium stand for my (someday) fish, but then I found out that there was a complete setup listed for a good price! I will still have to get some of my own accessories and I'm hoping I can sell some of the stuff that I know I won't need. I'm just happy to have fish again and to not be spending a bunch of money on getting started a second time around!