For the past 28 years I have lived in multiple places and with multiple people. Let’s start with age 1: me and my Ma lived in the trailer on my grandparents property. (This is the only time in my life I ever lived or ever will live in a trailer. Not that living in one is bad…) By the end of age 1 we moved into my grandparents where I lived there for 15 years. My Ma decided to get married and we packed up and moved to Carmel, Indiana (which is the Scottsdale of Indiana). I went from a country bumpkin to…a country bumkin living in a ritzy town. While living in Carmel, we moved twice. (Total moves: 4)
When I graduated High School I moved to Evansville, Indiana to attend the University of Southern Indiana (USI). I attended USI for a year and a half and decided it was not the right college for me.
While I was in college, Ma and her husband got a divorce. Ma had to move into my aunt’s basement with three small children until she could get back on her feet. I moved back into my grandparents (their attic to be exact).
After a year, Ma got an apartment down the street from my grandparents. I decided it was time for me to move on and I moved into an apartment with a co-worker. This lasted a year. I didn’t want to live with a roommate any longer and got an apartment on my own. (A VERY small apartment.) Once I was in this apartment for a year I thought it would be wise to get a bigger one. This only lasted a few months. I ended up moving in with my aunt (in her famous basement) due to financial reasons. (Thus goal #7: Pay off debt.)
I enrolled back into college and worked two jobs. I loved both my jobs and school. It wasn’t until my best friend Julie asked me go on an adventure. She asked me if I would move somewhere with her anywhere so she could find a teaching job. (She is a kindergarten teacher.) I thought about this long and hard…My only stipulation was: we have to move somewhere where it is warm. WELCOME ARIZONA
Julie and I visited Scottsdale, Arizona and immediatley fell in love. The weather was perfect (it was in the Spring), there were things to do year-round, and the restaurants were outstanding. After our wonderful experience there. we went back to Indiana and put in our two-weeks notice to our current employers. Then we moved. (Total moves: 9)
The apartment we moved into looked nice when we visited it. This was the time when the “Baseline Killer” was on the lose. (We lived ON Baseline.) Julie became paranoid (no surprise there, she always is) and did not feel safe living where we could potentially be killed.
We befriend a girl who lived in a very nice apartment in North Scottsdale. We got a deal and moved in after only living on Baseline for 7 months. (This will be move# 10)
I absolutley loved that apartment. It was large dog friendly (yes I have been dragging around my Mutt for about 5 years of this) with multiple dog parks in the complex. It was the perfect living situation in the perfect apartment in the perfect location. I had moved up in my position at work and was making really good money…then homesickness and some family issues entered into the picture.
I had to move back home. It was a horrible decision.
I ended up moving in with Ma (who by now owns a house) and taking care of my much younger siblings (ages now range from 10-17). I have always been the “mother” to them..but that is a whole other story.
Living back with Ma and playing “mother” took a toll on me. I had no social life, and I was working two jobs again. (One of my previous employers hired me back.) I enrolled back in school again, determined this time to graduate. (Please refer to goal #8)
After living in this situation for about 7 months I had had enough. I made the craziest decision: it was time to move back to Arizona. I survived one winter in Indiana and that was enough for me. Waking up early in the morning and scraping off my car is not something someone wishes upon themselves. (Total moves: 12)
Back to Arizona I go. I have hauled my shit (pardon me) across the country not once, but THREE times. (If I EVER move again, I will sell all my stuff and start from scratch.) So I move back to AZ and stay with my then boyfriend in his house. We had agreed prior to me moving in that it was only temporary. We co-habited for six months. During those six months, I learned a lot about him. I learned so much, in fact, that it lead our relationship to abrupt end.
Through all of this Julie has been such a great friend. Her lease with a roommate was up and me, her and another friend decided to rent a house together. (Total moves: 14)
As of now, I am still living in this house. It is Julie, Kerry, Me, my dog (Phoebee) and Kerry’s mutt (Heidi May). We have a pool, I have the master bedroom and my own bathroom, we have a yard for the dogs. So why you ask do I want to move out? Well because I am crazy. Ok, seriously. Once you have experienced living by yourself, it is amazing. I have realized over the years that I like my privacy. So much, in fact, that I love coming home to just me and my dog. Kerry, bless her heart, is very nosey. She wants to know where I have been, what I was doing, who I was with, who was I talking on the phone to, etc.
By the end of 2010 I will have my car payed off. (This will be an amazing feeling). I figured after a year of no car payment I can get out of some of my debt and save up for my own apartment.
Wish me luck.
