Moving On: Part One

I'm moving to my first real "adult" apartment in 22 days. Of course I have lived on my own for the past four years but it has always been in residence or student apartments, so now that I've graduated this move feels more "real" I guess.

Back in the spring when I had originally decided to move to Halifax I was intent on living by myself. I have lived with F and a variety of different roommates in a variety of "interesting" apartments over the past four years while at university:

Me on my "bed" in residence

First Year: F and me in a residence room that was probably about 3/4 of the size of my bedroom back at my Mum's place in Toronto. Now let me tell you, I have never shared a room with anyone in my entire life (sleepovers and cottage visits exempt). It may sound a little spoiled but that's just how my life worked out. I always has a place of my own to escape to, but in res. that became a lot more difficult. I had also not slept in a single bed since I was eight years old, so you can guess what size the beds were in our room. Needless to say, F and I were looking for an apartment for second year by October of our first.

The infamous wood paneling in our first apartment

Second Year: My first apartment! F and I find a place that we call the Big Blue House. An old house that had been turned into three levels of apartment. We're on the middle floor. Underneath us? Wannabe frat boys. Above us? International students who think BBQing on the wooden staircase, that serves as both the only entrance to the upper level apartments and a fire escape, is okay. The apartment seemed awesome at the time, but looking back only a couple years later all I can see is miles and miles of wood paneling. Also guess who moves in?! F's boyfriend from back home moves to Sackville to be with her. K (the boy) and I go way back to the fourth grade and although we were never close friends we get along okay. However, apparently getting along has nothing to do with being able to live together. Our inability to co-habitate is mostly to do with the fact that he's a dirty, messy boy and though I wouldn't consider myself a clean freak, I still don't appreciate month old apple cores and half eaten pizza slices hanging around. By the end of the year K is back in Toronto, F is a little heart-broken and I....well I'm sad for F but can't help feeling a little relieved.

Vegan cupcakes!

Third Year: F and I stay in the Big Blue House and find a new roommate. A GIRL this time. She's great! A fine arts student, a baker and a vegan. She teaches us to bake vegan goodies, we watch silly movies and make cookies at midnight. We all have the usual roommate spats but nothing out of the ordinary. But despite the great roomies, we are still living in an apartment with carpets an indescribable shade of.......grey?......brown? A toilet from which you can easily reach the sink, and a strange fruit fly infestation that, even when the place is spotless, won't go away.

Me on the roof of our last house

Year Four: F and I part ways with our other magnificent roomie but we stay close friends. We're originally supposed to live with couple other friends from school but things fall apart and F and I are left without a home a month or so before we're supposed to move. Eventually we find a house and pride ourselves in the negotiations we make with the landlord. A six bedroom, two bathroom house for just me and F at only $1,000/month, all inclusive. It's a good deal considering the place was home to some very exuberant soccer boys for the past few years and is now falling apart. But despite the holes in the wall, atrocious paint job and strangest layout for a kitchen I've ever seen, we call the place home for the next year.

So come graduation, after four long years in student housing, I was ready to strike out and find a place to really call home. I was not, however, prepared for the battle field that is finding an apartment in the city.