I didn’t really realize it right away, but an anniversary just came and went for me without much fanfare. I suppose it doesn’t really warrant too much attention, but I feel like writing about it. August 4th marks the day that I got possession of my condo; August 5th marks the day that I moved all of stuff into my newly acquired space. That’s insane! I still remember the craziness of the first month or two, just trying to get everything organized. Depending on your point of view, I was either sensible or foolish in rushing to get the place furnished with the big items. To me, it was important to get my comfort items purchased and in place. For me, that was a decision that paid off. I love the fact that my stuff is in line with what I deem to be my style, and not a mix of hand me downs. All of that has certainly made my last year here that much easier to adjust to. That’s not to say that I’m done–there’s still a fair amount of stuff here that I need to get furnished and settled, but I’m at a point where I’m content here.

Moving here, there’s been a lot for me to adjust to. The obvious thing is the whole thing about living alone. Even when I was away from the parents in Waterloo, I still had roommates that I had to deal with. That itself had a lot of good things and bad things. At that point I learned so much in terms of domestic life skills. It certainly prepared me for this eventuality. Now that I’ve been on my own for a year, I can honestly say that living on my own suits me just fine. I almost feel like there’s something of a bit of sanctity about this space. Even if I’ve had a bad day at work, or a rough run, or a harsh day socially, I love that I have a space that I can retreat to in order to unwind and recharge. My place isn’t really that large, but it’s sufficient for me. I tried sharing my space with a cat when I babysat Gloria, but in the end I just couldn’t deal with the feeling of another living creature in here. Maybe if I had more space, you know? Anyway, there is no judgment within these walls. That’s important. Perhaps it’s a different story outside of these walls.

Going from a detached house with the parents to a place where you have to be considerate of others was an adjustment. On one side of my unit I have to deal with the passive aggressive woman. If she was the norm, I’d probably already have gone crazy. There’s an online forum for my neighbourhood, and there’s so much negative energy on there. Fortunately, the forum and the neighbourhood aren’t entirely representative of my place. The neighbours on the other side are a new family, and they’ve been friendly to me. There are other small families that I run into regularly on my floor and we’re always cordial and polite to each other. I’ve had to learn to adjust my habits too. God, bringing a sound system with a subwoofer was a bad idea. I can only imagine how much that annoyed the neighbour even if it was turned down to the lowest setting. Of course, why didn’t she just come to talk with me? Whatever. I think we’re all used to each other now. That’s a great thing. I’m also used to this building. God, there are a good number of things associated with this building that make me want to curse. All the same, I’ve adjusted because I know that things can only get better. The neighbourhood is changing. There’s a lot of potential for growth around here, and I am a patient person. Given time, I will be ready to climb the property ladder. For now, I’m happy just being here.

There’s a lot going for the area. I mean, being steps from a major subway line is insanely convenient. If I was still out on the edges of this big city, I never would have taken up something like improv. I’m slowly becoming more and more acquainted with the city at night. That sounds kind of silly, but when I lived on the edges it was just far too much effort to do anything on a whim. Now it’s a little bit easier. Sure, I’m not downtown where all the action is, but it’s at least several times more accessible.

So yeah, one year at this address. I don’t know how long I’m going to stay here before I get a major itch to relocate to better digs, but that’s something to worry about later on. Meanwhile, I’m going to continue to do my best to live here with a positive attitude, taking the good and the bad and everything in between.