I’m finally in my new apartment. There are still boxes all over … in the ‘dining room’ and in my bedroom. But the bathroom and ‘living room’ are pretty much set up. And as of about 20 minutes ago, I’ve got cable and internet and the Speed Channel …

I also noticed that I have the movie channels. I’m not sure if that’s a promotion or not. I didn’t think that was part of the package I signed up for, but maybe it was. All I know is that I have it now and will take advantage of it.

I also have SoapNet too. Talk about cool. It’s 9:30am and we’re watching Days of Our Lives.

The carpet cleaners are over at my old place. They were about a half hour late. They had the address wrong. I’m not sure how long it’ll take ‘em to finish. But this afternoon, Lisa and I will be going over there this afternoon to clean the bathroom and kitchen. Hopefully it won’t take us too long. I check out of that place at 6pm tomorrow. Then I’m done with it.

Well … I’d better go unpack some boxes. Lisa is checking out all of the channels. I know that at 11am we’ll have it on the Speed Channel … … they’re reairing this weekend’s race … and I *think* it’s the Busch race.

I’ll make a longer entry later to catch you all up on what’s been up with me since I’ve been posting so sparcely lately. Later …

Mood: ecstatic

Well. I made my decision today. I decided on the second one I mentioned in this post … the one at the top of my budget. I took the one on the 3rd floor because it had a bigger storage room. It’s not huge … but it’s good size. I’d say around what I have now … maybe a little bigger. And it’s got a balcony … I’ve always wanted a balcony. I had one in the last apartment I had. But I was there during the winter. It might be too late to enjoy it too much since I won’t be in there ’til October. But maybe we’ll have a mild fall, and I can get out there a little.

Another good thing is that it’s currently vacant. I should hopefully be able to move in early. Even if it’s only a couple days … that would be great. I have to be out of this one by noon on Sept. 30th. And if I can move in early, maybe I’ll still be able to go see Avalanche at Pete’s that weekend.

I’ll have to talk to Mona to see if she can round me up some people to help me move. I’ll take all the help I can get. Any volunteers?

Mood: happy

I’ve now seen 5 different apartments. Just got home from looking at the last one. That one was really nice. Rent in my range … heat paid … underground heated parking … 2 exercise rooms … washer/dryer hookups … an elevator … a balcony facing south. There’s just one thing though … it seemed like there were a lot of older people who lived there. And it had that kind of feel. I saw wooden signs or things hanging outside of apartments that said things like ‘Retired’, ‘Grandma’. And quite a few of the apartments had things outside of their doors. Now … I’m not trying to be rude. I’m just stating what I felt. And this IS MY blog … I’m allowed to do that.

Even with all of those nice things … I think I’m still leaning toward the second one I saw. The one that’s only a couple blocks from where I currently am. The one at the high range of my budget.

I’m gonna call a couple of apartment finding services tomorrow at lunch. I’ll see if they have anything promising. If not … then I’m gonna bite the bullet and take the one I just mentioned.

I don’t wanna take too long to decide. I don’t want to end up having the good ones taken before I make up my mind. I don’t want to end up in another cheap apartment. I want a nice one. I DESERVE a nice one dammit!!

I’m gonna go eat. I’m hungry. I really need to take some chicken out of the freezer to thaw. Then I’ll do some more thinking … make pros and cons lists for each apartment I’ve seen. Do some more number crunching on my budget. I want to make a decision soon before I lose out on a nice place and have to settle for something less ‘cuz I took too long.

Mood: hungry

Hello and Welcome to Apartment Hunters. I’m [insert cool sounding host name]. Meet Becky … an girl looking to get out of the hole-in-the-wall apartment she currently lives in and into a nicer one.

Which apartment will she choose …

• One at the lower end of her budget that’s a little small, is a garden level, and is a property of a management company with a not so good reputation (I hear they don’t like to give all of your deposit back to you when you leave … but maybe they’ve gotten better).
• Or one at the top end of her budget that’s bigger and really nice. Either a 1st floor with a walkout or a 3rd floor with a balcony. Bigger storage rooms on the 3rd floor. Nice layout. Half wall between the kitchen and the living room. And is only about 2 or so blocks from her current apartment (not very far to move
• Or another one that she hasn’t found yet.

Stay tuned to find out which one she chooses.
Read the rest of this entry »

I FINALLY gave notice for leaving my apartment last week. I have to be out of my current apartment by noon on September 30. That might suck. Especially if I can’t get into my new apartment until October 1st. I’ll have to get a UHaul and stay in a motel for a nite … unless I can sucker one of my friends into letting me spend a nite with them …

I was hoping I wouldn’t have to get a UHaul. I didn’t when I moved into this place, but I did for the apartment before this one. I HATE driving those things. They’re too big for me to be comfortable with. But if I have no choice, I’ll have to.

I’m going thru Sunday’s classifieds and writing down numbers I’m going to call to find out info on apartments and hopefully set up an appointment to look at them and find one. I think I’m gonna call, or at least try to call, them tomorrow during my lunch hour. Otherwise I will tomorrow nite and Saturday. I’d like to set up some appointments for this weekend if possible. The sooner I find an apartment, the better. But I’m not gonna settle for a less-than-nice apartment just ‘cuz it’s got cheap rent. I can afford a place a little more expensive than the one I’m in now.

As I’m going thru the classifieds, I’m looking up the phone numbers in the reverse lookup on AnyWho.com. It’s very handy. So far, I’ve been able to find out what apartment complex most of the numbers are for. And if not the complex, at least I know the address and can get a general feel for where it’s at. That helps in deciding if it’s one I want to get info on and possibly look at.

I’m afraid that most of the apartments that I find are going to be from one certain property management company (whom I’m not going to mention). I’ve heard horror stories about them. And I asked Robin about them too since she’s working in property management. She said to stay away from them. The bad thing is that they have quite a few buildings around town. But … I’m not going to rule them out. I’ll just save them ’til last.

Well, I’d better get back to my search. I’ve got 5 written down so far, and I’ve still got over a page and a half of classifieds to go thru. I just hope there are a bunch of 1 bedroom apartments in what’s left. Or maybe a 2 bedroom one if it’s in the rent range I’m looking at. I could turn the extra room into my office. THAT would be nice. And Lisa would actually have a room to stay in when she comes to visit instead of crashing on my couch. Although, I won’t have a bed for the room. Maybe I could put my futon back together.

I’ve decided that it’s time for me to stop talking and start taking action. For the past several months now, I’ve been wanting to move. I’m really getting sick of my apartment. It’s in an older building … it’s half under ground … and I just want something different.

I’ve been at my job now for about a year and a month. Not bad considering my web design/programming started out as a hobby. Now it’s a job. No … not just a job … a new career. I had a review this week, and I’ve got a raise on my paycheck. Kelly wasn’t lying when she said they were progressive about raises. I’m now making, after 1 year, more than I made at my last job, and I was there for about 4 and a half years. Definitely a good career move …

So … since I now know what my raise is, I’m going to seriously start looking for a new apartment. I have to give 45 days notice at this one. I’ll probably do that around the 15th of August. I guess I could do it now and just give 60 days. I doubt I’d be able to find an apartment where I could move in in the middle of a month. So … looks like I’m shooting for October 1st or so. I would have liked to get into a new apartment before the end of the summer, but I’ve been dragging my heels too long. But as long as I get in a new one before winter hits. Hopefully it won’t be snowing on Oct. 1st … but this is North Dakota. Who knows … LOL.

I’ve been figuring budget this afternoon. I’m working off of an 80 hour paycheck. We do get in 88 hour pay periods a lot of the time, but not always. That’s why I’m figuring with 80 hours. I don’t want to end up short changing myself with some paychecks.

I should be able to afford something a little nicer than where I’m at now. When I first moved in here, it was because the rent was so cheap. But I want something nicer. I want a nice kitchen … and maybe a little more closed off from the living room. My current apartment has no divider between the kitchen and the living room. While it is nice to be able to watch tv when I’m cooking or cleaning the kitchen, I’d still like to have some sort of divider. I’d also like to find something that has a washer and dryer in the apartment, but I think finding a place like that might be out of my budget. But who knows. Maybe I could get lucky.

So … this afternoon, I’m gonna go through the classifieds from last Sunday’s paper (I’ll get a paper tomorrow for the new ones). I can check out the listings online too. I’ve done a little looking around already, but nothing too serious (I’ve gotten lazy … ). But now it’s time to start acting. I just can’t take this apartment much longer. I’ve been in here since Dec. 1st 2001. It’s DEFINITELY time for a change.

Wish me luck on finding something nice and affordable. And after I find one … anyone wanna help me move?

Mood: okay