move

from my bedroom window…our deck and garden!

here is the front entrance. I love it.
the best part is the thousand groovy touches she has added, lots of mexican art and colorful pieces.

• photo boxes, full of class notes, old projects and a lens that keeps on going moldy.
• and the funky blue cinderella dress I wore to the hash snowball 5 years ago. what to do with this treasure?
• my wetsuit. will I ever really come to love surfing with the sharks?
• the air purifier from sharper image, you know, that one that everyone has, that I NEVER really believed did anything.
• boxes of dearly loved books, including my faithful lonely planets. these are more sentimental than anything. and there are some places that I have no desire to return to (cuba) and some that I will (colombia, india), but the books will be outdated. solution?
• a huge box of photos from childhook, college, grad school, and my travels. my true goal is to learn how to scan these and then get rid of the originals and negatives.
• huge folder of recipes. how to organize these? I need help!
• at least one box of race tshirts and cal gear, from when I worked with the teams. I’ve purged many, many of these, but again, sentimental.

I was starting to get a bit discouraged and the last few days have been packed with craigslist, phone calls and hours and hours of checking out people and places. the woman in rockridge finally called and we went for a two hour hike to get to know each other. and a place in berkeley (by thai temple!) I checked out on thursday after spanish class.
in the end, I had to decide between two perfect places. berkeley had a really fabulous roomie, a huge garden, and the light!! ahh. but rockridge is close to the trail, is three blocks to market and coffee and also has a kick-ass roomie and garden. and the house is a classic craftsman filled with travel goodies and beautiful furniture.
I move in in two weeks!

• groovy yellow room, for cheap! but young roommates, fridge share with six. no go.
• spooky house on king and alcatraz, with spookier roomies.
• house share with a guy on my swim team. nice quiet guy, cute house, bad neighborhood.
• dilapidated house on telegraph, sharing with two down-to-earth, friendly roomies. rent is low, might work.
• amazing house in rockridge, share with one woman as my friend m. (her current housemate) transitions from school life to life back in so cal. this is my best option, with a beautiful yard, peaceful vibe (she keeps to herself, which I like to do at home) and three blocks the best coffee shop in the world, cole coffee.

i broke the news to my housemate, and even though i’ve told her several times i wouldn’t be signing another lease, she was disappointed.
i have 6 weeks to find another casa de la chica fabulosa. i would love it to be a room in a house with a yard, lots of light, in rockridge, temescal, or berkeley. i really want to be close enough to walk to a market and bart (easier for the airport), and of course a coffee shop.