S-T-R-E-S-S

So, a couple of weeks ago, two of my roommates decided they would try to throw out the third one . . . without any sort of civilized discussion. They only thought to "inform" me after they'd given her a letter telling her to be out of the house by a certain date in the middle of September.

I'd been hearing about the issue the whole time though, and they really weren't being fair at all. They said that they "didn't want to get me involved" because they knew I didn't really have much of a problem with her, but what it really amounts to is that they were picking on her behind my back the whole time and didn't want me to object.

They raised a few points about this one roommate, and I admit that she does have a few habits that are irksome, but the other two--instead of sitting her down and explaining their reasons calmly--were constantly snapping at her. And while she does admit that she isn't blameless, this is a case where the delivery overpowered the message.

In the hopes of maintaining peace in the house, I suggested a meeting between the four of us where I intended to be a moderator-type person. The meeting got rescheduled twice, and then the other two just decided that they were going to leave. And then they had the nerve to say that we had to find their replacements if we wanted to stay in the house!

Luckily, Anna knew someone who was looking for a place to live. Kaety's sister Jen S. (how ironic is that, one Jen replacing another?) and her husband Amit (plus his daughter Neha) moved into Jen C's room a couple nights ago. I had to ask Amit to write the big rent check, because it was too close to the end of the month for the smaller checks to clear if I'd deposited them into my new account and written it myself.

At one point, the situation got so stressful, I spent a whole week not checking my e-mail, just vegging out with fanfic so I wouldn't have to think of anything. But eventually, I had to crack down because Kayla doesn't really know how to go about this sort of thing (truthfully, neither do I, but I seem to be handling it a little better now), and I really don't want to move again--not that I have anywhere to go. I mean, my old room is going to be Anna's as soon as she's able to get to re-working some of it again, and her room is much too small. Not to mention, I like being able to spread out like this--cramming a bedroom, a library, and a personal home office into one single space just isn't conducive to flowing, healthy thought patterns.

Jen R's room is still empty. I had to use my whole savings (all two months' worth--$400) to cover the room's rent before Amit could write the big check. However, I also looked up a couple of roommate-finding sites online. I've contacted a few people from each site, and one of them has been quite interested. She's coming to look at the room/house tomorrow night, and if she likes the room then she'll move in on the 7th, and I'll be getting my $400 by the end of September, and then I'll be back on track to getting my late-winter vacation to Arizona. I hope she does take it. I can't take much more of this stress.

It's Official!

As of about ten minutes ago, I am now officially moved in!


Seriously. All the bins are un-packed, my books are on the shelves and catalogued, and everything has its place--even my bow, which I need Dad to re-string for me.

According to LibraryThing.com, I have 514 books total. I know I'm missing at least four though, so it's more like 518. I'm missing the Chronicles trilogy of DragonLance, and Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. And, yes, I'm certain I had them before.

I promised Patrick J. that I'd take pictures once I got my books all shelved and such, so here they are. The picture to the left is the white book case in the first-floor TV room.

The picture to the right is the book case on the right-hand side of the third-floor nook, and the final one is the case on the left-hand side.


On the top shelf of each book case are only either Harry Potter books or books written by Orson Scott Card. The Orson Scott Card books are there because he's my favorite author, and the Harry Potter books are there because they're pretty much the only series with books that are all the same size that would fit on the top shelf of the right-hand book case.

For those interested, the "cloud" of words on the right-hand side of my main blog page will take you to my "library" of books at LibraryThing.com. It's a great online book database, and it's got all these nifty quirks and perks.

It's free for up to 200 books if you catalogue your own. After that, a yearly membership is $10, and a lifetime membership is $25. I decided that a lifetime membership was definitely worth it to be able to keep track of all of my books without hassle, so I forked over the $25 last week.

My New Place

Here's my bedroom. It looks a little different, now that Kimba helped me put the drapes up today. I don't have a new picture, since I took this batch of pictures this morning.








This is the "book nook," as I like to call it, right a cross the hall from my bedroom. Not very many books in there yet, but all of the knick-knacks there are mine.








This is the 3rd floor bathroom, which I only have to share with one other person . . . yay!








Down one floor, we come to the back deck (this picture was taken from inside the kitchen door--it's frickin' cold outside!














This is our lovely, yet somewhat empty, kitchen.














On the same floor is our "living room," I guess you'd call it. In the corner closest to the kitchen are two couches, then moving to the right is Jen R's corner. Kayla has the wall opposite the kitchen, and everything from the electronic keyboard to the stairs is mine. I think Jen C. keeps all her stuff in her room (she has the master suite, complete with cathedral ceiling).














This is our TV room. There's not much in it, but Kayla bought a TV big enough to watch in that huge entertainment center. The treadmill at the back is Jen R's, and the small case of DVDs/videos is mine, as well as the white book case with the "suspended animation" clock on top.



The fireplace was really NICE to come home to yesterday after a short day at work and a drive in the snow. When I got home, Jen C. was watching Memoirs of a Geisha (my movie), and I decided to join her, so I grabbed my pillow and a blanket from upstairs, and laid down with my back to the fire. There's a rumor that the Jens are working on getting a couch for the TV room, but I haven't seen one yet.








Jen R's room is on the first floor, just before you come to the TV room. Both Kimba and I thought at first that there was only curtains, and no door, but there really is a door there. I'm still not sure if Jen R. has a bathroom in her room or not, but I think she does.








And THIS is the entry! I didn't take a picture of how the house looks from the outside, because it's so cold, but this is what it looks like from JUST inside the front door.



The doorknobs in this house are kind of weird to me. If you lock the door, you can still turn the handle to get out, but if you're trying to get in, you'd better have your key with you, because it won't budge if it's locked. I've never lived anywhere else where you could get OUT if the door was locked.



Anyway, that's my place. Hope you like! And even if you don't, that's okay, 'cause you don't have to live here. :)