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lyl_devilSo, seeing as I'm 'working from home' today, I've decided to spam my flist with updates on my life outside of fic-dom (or fic-doom if you prefer).
I'm moving - hopefully. I really need to get out of my Hole of an Apartment (TM), before I spiral into a life of being a pasty, junk-food eating hermit.
Hole of an Apartment (TM) is a basement apartment. With baseboard heating. And I have to pay my own hydro.
That, alone, is enough for me to get out before winter hits again. Last year was a fairly mild winter, and my hydro bill was still higher than that of most medium-sized *houses*. I'm tired of waking up cold, of having a *warm* shower that declines to *cool* just as I'm rinsing the conditioner out of my hair, and of hiding under 14 blankets the rest of the time, as I try to conserve power by not having the place warmer than 19-20 C. (And yes, that *still* uses up more power than most houses!)
On top of that, there's the 'basement' part of the equation. I'm tired of having to turn on every light in the place in the middle of the day, because there's not enough light and I'm getting eye strain. I get direct sunlight for about 15 minutes every day - if there's sun.
If all that weren't enough, there's the bug aspect, too. This is a basement, ergo, there will be bugs. There shouldn't be, but there are. I can deal with spiders and flies - and currently, the fruit flies that wouldn't not die - but the centipedes? No. Just, NO!
Centipedes love damp concrete, and with all the small cracks between the concrete outer wall and the inner finishings, they find their way in. And they're not like the normal centipede/millipede you find in the garden, they look like this: I get creeped out just looking at pictures of them!!!
The first time I found one, was in the lower cabinet in the kitchen, where I keep the plastic lunch dishes and other pots/pans I don't use every day. It wasn't pleasant, but I killed it and dealt with the creepy-crawlies the rest of the day. The second time I found one, it was the first thing I saw in the morning. On the kitchen counter. UGH!!!
Since then, I've found them racing across the carpet in various places, underneath mats, and on the bathroom counter (that was fun). But what sealed the deal, and made sure I never EVER got over them, was the one I found under my pillow. (I don't wanna talk about it!!!)
I want out. Now. Especially after this morning.
You see, I thought I was doing pretty well with the whole extermination thing I've had going on. Apparently not. I found one this morning, in the hall next to the kitchen. It was smaller and much paler, and at first I thought it was carpet fuzz. Not so.
I've aparently promoted Natural Selection among the damn things! (ie. the smaller, more transparent ones survive longer). Stupid Darwin!
Also, there's that whole 'human contact' thing. This is the first time I've lived by myself (no roommates, yay!), but I've discovered I miss actual human interaction outside of work. (I have no friends in the city - DO NOT JUDGE!!) Since there are only six units in my building, I can go days without seeing another tenant. Not that I don't love this area of town, the convient buses and awesome landlord, because I do. But the cons definitely out-weigh the pros in this matter.
Hence, I'm moving. As soon as I can. I have an application in at a building downtown, which if I get in, I'll be able to move Nov 1. It's smaller (a bachelor instead of a 1 bedroom), but it's downtown, closer to work, next to the Canal, and hydro's included. It's also on the 6th floor, so I'll finally have light. LIGHT!!! Actual sunlight to illuminate a room....I'm getting misty just thinking about it.
However, that's still 3 months away, so until then I have to deal in the dark, damp basement (did I mention how freaking humid it is down here?), and Raid the apartment about once a week.
I'm moving - hopefully. I really need to get out of my Hole of an Apartment (TM), before I spiral into a life of being a pasty, junk-food eating hermit.
Hole of an Apartment (TM) is a basement apartment. With baseboard heating. And I have to pay my own hydro.
That, alone, is enough for me to get out before winter hits again. Last year was a fairly mild winter, and my hydro bill was still higher than that of most medium-sized *houses*. I'm tired of waking up cold, of having a *warm* shower that declines to *cool* just as I'm rinsing the conditioner out of my hair, and of hiding under 14 blankets the rest of the time, as I try to conserve power by not having the place warmer than 19-20 C. (And yes, that *still* uses up more power than most houses!)
On top of that, there's the 'basement' part of the equation. I'm tired of having to turn on every light in the place in the middle of the day, because there's not enough light and I'm getting eye strain. I get direct sunlight for about 15 minutes every day - if there's sun.
If all that weren't enough, there's the bug aspect, too. This is a basement, ergo, there will be bugs. There shouldn't be, but there are. I can deal with spiders and flies - and currently, the fruit flies that wouldn't not die - but the centipedes? No. Just, NO!
Centipedes love damp concrete, and with all the small cracks between the concrete outer wall and the inner finishings, they find their way in. And they're not like the normal centipede/millipede you find in the garden, they look like this: I get creeped out just looking at pictures of them!!!
The first time I found one, was in the lower cabinet in the kitchen, where I keep the plastic lunch dishes and other pots/pans I don't use every day. It wasn't pleasant, but I killed it and dealt with the creepy-crawlies the rest of the day. The second time I found one, it was the first thing I saw in the morning. On the kitchen counter. UGH!!!
Since then, I've found them racing across the carpet in various places, underneath mats, and on the bathroom counter (that was fun). But what sealed the deal, and made sure I never EVER got over them, was the one I found under my pillow. (I don't wanna talk about it!!!)
I want out. Now. Especially after this morning.
You see, I thought I was doing pretty well with the whole extermination thing I've had going on. Apparently not. I found one this morning, in the hall next to the kitchen. It was smaller and much paler, and at first I thought it was carpet fuzz. Not so.
I've aparently promoted Natural Selection among the damn things! (ie. the smaller, more transparent ones survive longer). Stupid Darwin!
Also, there's that whole 'human contact' thing. This is the first time I've lived by myself (no roommates, yay!), but I've discovered I miss actual human interaction outside of work. (I have no friends in the city - DO NOT JUDGE!!) Since there are only six units in my building, I can go days without seeing another tenant. Not that I don't love this area of town, the convient buses and awesome landlord, because I do. But the cons definitely out-weigh the pros in this matter.
Hence, I'm moving. As soon as I can. I have an application in at a building downtown, which if I get in, I'll be able to move Nov 1. It's smaller (a bachelor instead of a 1 bedroom), but it's downtown, closer to work, next to the Canal, and hydro's included. It's also on the 6th floor, so I'll finally have light. LIGHT!!! Actual sunlight to illuminate a room....I'm getting misty just thinking about it.
However, that's still 3 months away, so until then I have to deal in the dark, damp basement (did I mention how freaking humid it is down here?), and Raid the apartment about once a week.
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(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-09 12:53 am (UTC)I hope the remaining 3 months go by quickly for you.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-09 01:33 am (UTC)And yeah, the centipedes are creepy!! I didn't even know they existed!!! I can live with a lot, but those are not one of them - I grew up in Northern Ontario, which is equivalent to the country anywhere else, and we had mice all over the place. Hearing the snap of a mouse trap was just background noise.
Spiders. Earwigs. Ants. Various beetle-things. Moths. Those I can deal with. But centipedes? UGH!!!!
(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-09 05:13 pm (UTC)Midnight visits to the fridge were inadvisable if you didn't want squished monopod all over your slippers.
Still, 3 months will be gone before you know it. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-09 05:32 pm (UTC)But slugs....ugh! Bugs, as a rule, should remain *outside*!! Not resting innocently in the middle of my unmade bed (spider) or under my pillow (centipede).
(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-09 10:36 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-08-10 12:27 am (UTC)