#allthepersonalthings

[crystaljanescissorhands-blog]

I Moved to the City of my Dreams!

There, you saw that very scary and stressful word.

“Moved”… “Moving”… “Help me move.”

And when I found out that my partner’s family had to sell the house he and I (and our roommate at the time) lived in, I felt the anxiety begin.

The scariest part was that I had never had to actually look for a place to live. The second scariest part; neither had my partner. We both laid awake, looking at the ceiling I had become so accustomed to looking at for the last 3 years before I fell asleep, and talked about where we would want to live. Did we want roommates? Did we want to find friends to room with or trust all the strangers out there? What about our cat? What about all of his things from the last 23 or so years of his life that had accumulated in his house? He had never lived anywhere else in his life.

Then one night, when we were talking about shortening my commute that was San Jose to San Francisco, I said that I would be happy to even just cut my commute in half. He looked at me very sternly and said, “Why don’t we just move to the city? You would have next to no commute depending on where we lived.”

“But you would still have to commute!” I protested, knowing what an absolute pain that drive is and how excruciatingly long the train is.

“It’s my turn to do this for a little while.”

It was the best response possible and makes me swoon thinking about it even now. It’s one of the many reasons I love my partner; he always considers me and is usually pretty fair.

We began the terrible process of apartment/studio hunting in San Francisco, California.

Some tips for beginners: the prices are OUTRAGEOUS but become suddenly reasonable when you split it in half. Also, you should think about the things you can and cannot live without. Then there is how competitive things are.

We looked at several places and all of them seemed to be deal breakers; no sinks, no kitchens, no real showers… the list goes on and on. The price would be great, but they would not allow cats. I knew the city a little better, and he would find an apartment that I would have to break the news of it being in a terrible neighborhood. He would look at places while I was at work and he would meet me at the end of the day looking defeated.

We were about to give up. Maybe we could settle for South San Francisco. Or Daly City. Or wherever.

Until one day, we were told about another studio that was owned by the same rental company as one that had gotten rented out from under our feet. I was in the city the day of the open house and went alone to look at it. It was in a neighborhood I was not familiar with at all. I did not really know what to expect.

However, I showed up, walked into the room, and something about it felt,,, special. There was a backyard! They would let us have our cat. We could get permit parking placards and keep our cars. No broken car window glass to be found outside on the street. People were walking their dogs and out with their kids.

I promptly called the manager and told her how interested we were. She told me to call back the next day.

I did. She was skeptical that we could afford the place. I told her about my growing clientele, about how we made a budget. She seemed skeptical still.

My partner came home from work and I told him I did not think we got the place. He looked defeated. I cried a little in frustration. He went to lay down and rest. I sat and watched TV, trying desperately to forget it all. I hated this process. I hated that I felt that I had taken on a full time second job as a craigslist/facebook ad surfer. I hated reading ads and seeing at the very end that they did not take cats or couples or men.

And then… my phone buzzed alerting me of an email. I opened it, expecting a newsletter from Killstar or Spotify. Low and behold, it was from the building manager, offering the studio to us! I could not even finish the email, I ran down the hallway screaming my partner’s name and that we were going to live in San Francisco! We were going to live where I had always dreamed! We had a place to live.

We magically packed all of our things in 2 weeks and moved in at the beginning of November. We did a lot of it in stages, our cat being the last thing we brought from the San Jose house (don’t worry our old roommate looked out for him).

I now enjoy a 20 minute bus ride to work. It takes a total of an hour to clean our entire space. We have a cozy kitchen with a stove AND oven. We live in a safe neighborhood. Parking sucks sometimes but what can you do?

I’m sorry I have been kind of dysfunctional on social media the last few weeks, but I hope you all can forgive me for the sake of MOVING. I am living happily and more rested since we moved here. I am inspired to take care of our little space because it is the first space that is all ours. Going to our favorite clubs and events is now a decision of if we really feel like going out rather than DO WE HAVE THE TIME TO DRIVE FROM SAN JOSE AND BACK? My partner is still tying up some loose ends at the old place, but we believe by the end of this month he will spend every night here with me and our furbaby.

I am incredibly inspired by work and the city. Expect great things and growth here in the next few months. I have big plans and drive being here. Looking forward to much more content, expression, and growth in the New Year.

xxx

Crystal Jane