Monday, October 30th, 2006

Home Sweet Home

posted by lizzie    « 3 Comments »    tied to Uncategorized   

For the sake of comparison, we used to live in the house on the right, but now we live in the house on the left. Although it looks like it may have been a downgrade, and although our new place is older, it is also cheaper and we like it a lot more than the fancy-schmancy mansion house. Why? You ask. I will tell you why.

1. It is carpeted. Yes, the carpet is kind of old and not very pretty, but it is nice on our feet after the tile in our old place.

2. It is separate from the landlord’s house (although there are two boys that live in half of the downstairs).

3. It is two stories. Never mind that the stairs are pretty steep and not of uniform height. It gives the apartment a nice feel to have things separated.

4. It is roomier. It was advertised as a studio, but is definitely a one bedroom. The bedroom (or bed closet, as we like to call it) is definitely separated from the office/walk-in closet, which is kind of separated from the living room. The kitchen and bathroom are downstairs.

5. It has a yard. Or at least, the landlord has a yard and our house is in the middle of it. But they are okay with sharing it with us, and even have a nice spot for our garden (which has perked up a lot since the move). And they have a lilikoi (passion fruit) vine that they said we can pick off if we want.

6. It is homey. And when I say this, I mean that it is kind of quirky and homemade looking. As I mentioned, the stairs are kind of tricky to navigate. Also, the rafters are exposed, so we can see that it looks like they just took whatever piece of wood was handy and pounded it in to place.

7. It is well ventilated. Our other apartment would get hot and stuffy because we couldn’t open the windows for fear of bugs. We have no such fears with this place. The windows are also bigger, so we can get a decent breeze blowing through on occasion. It has been so cold, we’ve actually needed a blanket at night. Weird.

8. Walkability. It is within walking distance of just about everything: work, church, temple, doctor, grocery store, etc. Not only that but there are three (count them, three!) streets with sidewalks: Naniloa Loop, which runs in front of the temple and the university, Kulanui St., which is the street the university is on, and Hale Laa, the street the temple is on. The streets are also better lit than Hauula streets.

9. We get to paint it. And when I say “we” I mean Micah and some of our friends. Pregnant women don’t paint. I was going to post more pictures of the apartment, but then I would just have to post more when we get the painting done, so you’re just going to have to wait to get the grand tour.

Of course, it isn’t all sugar and spice. The stairs are really steep, which makes me nervous for five months from now when I’m huge and clumsy. There is (or was) virtually no counterspace in the kitchen although the situation has been rectified with a shelving set from Wal-mart. And there are chickens. Lots and lots of chickens. The first week we could hardly sleep, but we’re getting used to them now. Still, we have been strongly tempted to get a bb gun for the little monsters. That’s about it.

Comments

  1. Mom B. says:
    October 30, 2006 at 11:07 pm

    I can hardly wait to see your apartment in person! It clearly has personality. The contrast between the two houses is something you will want to save and show your children. My only concern is the banister along the stairs. I hope there is one. If not, I strongly urge that be a higher priority than paint.

  2. Sarah says:
    October 31, 2006 at 12:58 am

    What colors are you thinking of for painting?

  3. liz&micah says:
    October 31, 2006 at 6:29 pm

    We are painting red and gray. This has nothing to do with either Ohio State or Bountiful High School. We just wanted to do red and the only color we could agree on to complement it was gray. It is going to be really cool. And Mom, no worries about the banister. It is strong as an ox.

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