Apartment Living
“Unfair Mom”, my super-hero alter-ego has always been an independent, successful woman, living in a 3 bedroom house with a nice yard.
Real-life Michelle has been raising her daughter in an apartment for almost 9 years now. What was supposed to be a short-term housing solution has lasted far too long.
Not all bad, Not all good
Don’t get me wrong. There are some nice things about living in my apartment. It is:
- Affordable
- Well maintained
- Good neighbors can quickly become close friends or feel like a part of the family
- I like knowing that if I am stuck at work when my daughter gets off the school bus, someone is close enough to hear if she yells for help from inside our apartment. And if she forgets her key, or just doesn’t feel right about being alone, she can easily walk one or two doors down and ask to stay with a neighbor until I get home.
- Also, the landlords are really awesome people. I love visiting with them once a month when I pay rent.
Then, there are the downsides:
- No Pets Allowed
- No proper yard for the kids to play
- No good space for a garden, grill, or bicycles
- No Washing Machine, Dryer, or Dish Washer
- Roaches – one of my few fears. But if one neighbor gets them, it isn’t long before they spread to all
- No control over maintenance scheduling (Although they usually do give 1 or 2 days warning)
- Loud neighbors
- Creepy Neighbors
- Smelly Neighbors (cigarette smoke and bad cooking easily drift from one unit to the next)
- Neighbors who don’t know how to share the parking lot (blocking access by parking in the no parking zone front of their unit, or driving so fast that you are afraid to let the kids go outside)
I know that many of these things can still be a problem when you live in a house. But there is a difference between the neighbor who plays loud music next door and the neighbor who plays loud music on the other side of your bedroom wall.
The verdict is in
Apartment living is not right for me. … My guests often comment on how small and cramped our apartment is. (maybe 600 sq ft) Honestly, if I had a storage shed out back to hold our off-season items I wouldn’t mind living in a similar size house. But I feel lost without a yard. And I get frustrated when there are no good places to park.