77bpm's Profile

My ex and I lived together in our house for almost a year before we were ready to sell and move out. I kept our bedroom, he moved into the office. The first thing I did was move stuff around the bedroom and rearrange it so it never felt empty or like it had ever been "ours". Then I basically lived in there and rarely used any of the common spaces of the house (except the kitchen and bathroom) until we sold the house and I moved into my own place. I think what saved me from being completely miserable was having one space in the house where I could retreat and where it was all mine.

I live in the sprawling suburbs of LA...and therefore can't imagine anyone being "car-free"...but I love the walkableness of my neighborhood without feeling like I have to worry excessively about my safety when I'm out there walking.

I especially love how you have hung your posters. I have so many concert posters that have languished in storage and I'm finally getting them out and putting them up. I can't afford to frame them, and the clip idea has worked for me. You have a beautiful home!

If you really clean and put some oil or varnish on those cabinets, that would improve the look of your kitchen too. They look a little dry.

I have kind of pinkish-yellow-white mottled tile counter tops in my rental that I can't do anything about, but once I cleaned up the cabinets, I notice them and not the tile.

I just rented an apartment in a four-plex and have been there about a month. The neighbors across the hall from me are friendly and nice and the neighbors below them are distant but at least quiet.

HOWEVER, the ones directly below me sit on their patio (right below my bedroom window) and smoke cigarettes and drink beer well into the night most nights. There seems to be at least five or six adults at the apartment at any given time and since I like to keep my windows open almost all the time, I get to hear their conversations, smell their cigarette smoke, and listen to them open their Bud Light cans every night. I can't keep my bedroom window open at night or they keep me awake and the smoke REALLY bothers me.

I don't want to complain to the landlord (especially since he told me they have been long-term renters and he's known them a long time) and I don't know how to approach the tenants. Do I just keep my mouth shut and grin and bear it? Any advice would be appreciated.

I have used Taxact for the last several years, starting when I was single and owned nothing, up through being married, owning a home, and having a child. I have always been very happy with the online software, the speedy direct deposit of my returns, and the price (under $20 to electronically file both federal and state returns!). I always file as soon as I receive my tax documents, and have my returns within two weeks.

@fulinlin: well said. i was about to make the same comment.

Thank you for the info about the fabric!

I read "At Home"...it was really interesting to find out the origins of rooms and how they have developed to become the rooms that we're familiar with now, and to see how they are evolving even today, with the rise of technology.

On the day I signed my lease, which stipulated that I couldn't paint anything, I immediately pulled out the two medicine cabinets in the bathroom that were rusted and dingy inside. I took them to my mom's house and spray painted the insides a bright, clean white. The landlord came by to fix one last thing while I was re-installing them. He didn't notice a thing, but that one little thing made a huge difference to me. I think it's okay if you're improving something.