I've been wanting to write this post for awhile & have tried several times but I always get pissed off and frustrated and depressed when I start, haha, so I've put it off.
I've hinted at/right out complained about my apartment before but for those who don't know, I live in about 600 sq. feet and it isn't enough for me & three cats. The litterboxes take up over half of my bathroom, there is nowhere else in the apartment for them, and I'm constantly walking on the litter they kick out even though I sweep every time I clean the boxes. When I get out of the shower and step on some litter?
They don't have a lot of space to run & play either on their own or with da Bird, and unfortunately I haven't been able to afford a cat tree yet, so it's a challenge to give them adequate kitten-style play and vertical space.
So, I'm apartment hunting. My lease isn't up until January, but I have to give NINETY DAYS notice if I'm staying or not, which is just so ridiculous I can't even begin to talk about it, so within the next two months I need to find a larger place, within my budget, that allows 3 cats.
This is the most difficult and stressful task I've ever undertaken. Money is tight for me and I am making every effort to cut back on convenience eating (my #1 issue) and extraneous/impulse purchases (mostly Amazon LOL), but even so I still can't afford much more than I'm paying now since I have debt. The problem is that I live in a popular area of our city and I'm basically in one of the cheapest complexes already. The draw for me is that it's a nice, safe area, and I'm 5 minutes from work and can come home on breaks. The apartment itself is pretty crappy - built in the 70's I think. Noise insulation sucks, it's extremely difficult to cool efficiently (my unit runs almost constantly to keep it at 75 which is 5+ degrees higher than my comfort level anyway), and the appliances are at least 20 years old. The burners come unplugged if a pan is jostled, one of them shot blue fire at me once, and I don't even have a window in my oven door! So that plus the space issue PLUS the fact that they'll be raising my rent if I choose to stay here = I want the heck out! All I'm paying for is the location, which admittedly is very good.
I have found a few other places outside of this area but still relatively close, but they are either in a very shady, run-down neighborhood or else won't accept more than 2 pets. ARRRGHGHGHGHHH!!!
My leasing company is this huge corporation who owns properties all over Virginia. I actually like having a big company, the apartment is crap but they have been great about fixing things, and have convenient office hours and website, etc. The other good thing is that their apartments are considered like a "network" so I can transfer there and *****NOT HAVE TO PAY ADDITIONAL PET DEPOSITS*****. That's such a huge thing for me right now. It cost me a total of $550 to move these guys in and most of the places I've looked (that allow pets at all) it will cost just as much to move them to a new place, and I just don't have $600.
So far, my best options ("best options") (besides winning the lotto or magically getting a promotion/raise) are these:
1. Move, alone, to another complex that is owned by my leasing company. There are two viable ones, price-wise, but they are 30-40 minutes away from work!!!!
I also haven't visited them to see what kind of neighborhood they are in.
2. Stay in this complex and move into a renovated (mine is non-renovated so that's why it has the crappy appliances and fixtures) 3-bedroom with a roommate. Third bedroom for the cats and litterboxes in the closet, so I'd have to split the rent like 60/40 instead of 50/50 as a result. Next challenge: finding a compatible roommate who not only doesn't mind 3 cats roaming around in the house but also doesn't have any cats of their own as I'm at the complex's limit.
There is also option 3., get a part-time job, and I am trying to get into pet-sitting on the weekends (I'm currently doing that this weekend actually!), but I'm scared to go all out and get a second job in e.g. retail or food service. I work in a top-10 bank with excellent benefits & good pay if I can ever get off the bottom rung, I LOVE the culture and our values and I feel pretty good about our job security... I don't want to jeopardize that with an outside obligation. If my work suffers and I have to admit it's because I'm working a second job, I am scared of getting fired. Also, if I had to work late and was late or had to call out to the second job, I could lose the second job and be up a creek!
I also can't do option 4., move back home with my parents. My older brother has "temporarily" moved back home and is in my old room to start with, and then my elderly grandparents live in an annex to the house and they are in and out of our house using the washer, bringing us mail/newspaper, etc., and they leave the doors open all the time. They are also getting to be senile and my nana in particular has trouble seeing - she will walk through the living room where I am sitting in broad daylight and not see or notice me unless I call her name. They could easily trip her and she is a rather fragile 86. I also don't think my parents could survive with 3 inside cats, even for a short period of time.
I'm sort of at the end of my rope. I am a perpetual, persistent optimist, that annoying cheerful person who ALWAYS finds good in every situation. ...I am completely out of optimism with this. I've been working on this since I got the boys, more than three months ago now. Every lead I've chased down during that time has gone cold. I am so, so, so frustrated, and making myself sick with worry.
Sorry for the really long and rambly post (do I get an award for longest post on TCS?!
) but I'd really appreciate any vibes you could send my way! I need to get this figured out, not only for the obvious reasons but also for my mental health. Please send vibes that I'll find a viable option that will allow me to live in a safe, comfortable, affordable apartment with more room for my ever gro-o-o-o-o-wing kittens!
Sometimes I don't know what I did before TCS.
I've hinted at/right out complained about my apartment before but for those who don't know, I live in about 600 sq. feet and it isn't enough for me & three cats. The litterboxes take up over half of my bathroom, there is nowhere else in the apartment for them, and I'm constantly walking on the litter they kick out even though I sweep every time I clean the boxes. When I get out of the shower and step on some litter?
So, I'm apartment hunting. My lease isn't up until January, but I have to give NINETY DAYS notice if I'm staying or not, which is just so ridiculous I can't even begin to talk about it, so within the next two months I need to find a larger place, within my budget, that allows 3 cats.
This is the most difficult and stressful task I've ever undertaken. Money is tight for me and I am making every effort to cut back on convenience eating (my #1 issue) and extraneous/impulse purchases (mostly Amazon LOL), but even so I still can't afford much more than I'm paying now since I have debt. The problem is that I live in a popular area of our city and I'm basically in one of the cheapest complexes already. The draw for me is that it's a nice, safe area, and I'm 5 minutes from work and can come home on breaks. The apartment itself is pretty crappy - built in the 70's I think. Noise insulation sucks, it's extremely difficult to cool efficiently (my unit runs almost constantly to keep it at 75 which is 5+ degrees higher than my comfort level anyway), and the appliances are at least 20 years old. The burners come unplugged if a pan is jostled, one of them shot blue fire at me once, and I don't even have a window in my oven door! So that plus the space issue PLUS the fact that they'll be raising my rent if I choose to stay here = I want the heck out! All I'm paying for is the location, which admittedly is very good.
I have found a few other places outside of this area but still relatively close, but they are either in a very shady, run-down neighborhood or else won't accept more than 2 pets. ARRRGHGHGHGHHH!!!
My leasing company is this huge corporation who owns properties all over Virginia. I actually like having a big company, the apartment is crap but they have been great about fixing things, and have convenient office hours and website, etc. The other good thing is that their apartments are considered like a "network" so I can transfer there and *****NOT HAVE TO PAY ADDITIONAL PET DEPOSITS*****. That's such a huge thing for me right now. It cost me a total of $550 to move these guys in and most of the places I've looked (that allow pets at all) it will cost just as much to move them to a new place, and I just don't have $600.
So far, my best options ("best options") (besides winning the lotto or magically getting a promotion/raise) are these:
1. Move, alone, to another complex that is owned by my leasing company. There are two viable ones, price-wise, but they are 30-40 minutes away from work!!!!
2. Stay in this complex and move into a renovated (mine is non-renovated so that's why it has the crappy appliances and fixtures) 3-bedroom with a roommate. Third bedroom for the cats and litterboxes in the closet, so I'd have to split the rent like 60/40 instead of 50/50 as a result. Next challenge: finding a compatible roommate who not only doesn't mind 3 cats roaming around in the house but also doesn't have any cats of their own as I'm at the complex's limit.
There is also option 3., get a part-time job, and I am trying to get into pet-sitting on the weekends (I'm currently doing that this weekend actually!), but I'm scared to go all out and get a second job in e.g. retail or food service. I work in a top-10 bank with excellent benefits & good pay if I can ever get off the bottom rung, I LOVE the culture and our values and I feel pretty good about our job security... I don't want to jeopardize that with an outside obligation. If my work suffers and I have to admit it's because I'm working a second job, I am scared of getting fired. Also, if I had to work late and was late or had to call out to the second job, I could lose the second job and be up a creek!
I also can't do option 4., move back home with my parents. My older brother has "temporarily" moved back home and is in my old room to start with, and then my elderly grandparents live in an annex to the house and they are in and out of our house using the washer, bringing us mail/newspaper, etc., and they leave the doors open all the time. They are also getting to be senile and my nana in particular has trouble seeing - she will walk through the living room where I am sitting in broad daylight and not see or notice me unless I call her name. They could easily trip her and she is a rather fragile 86. I also don't think my parents could survive with 3 inside cats, even for a short period of time.
I'm sort of at the end of my rope. I am a perpetual, persistent optimist, that annoying cheerful person who ALWAYS finds good in every situation. ...I am completely out of optimism with this. I've been working on this since I got the boys, more than three months ago now. Every lead I've chased down during that time has gone cold. I am so, so, so frustrated, and making myself sick with worry.
Sorry for the really long and rambly post (do I get an award for longest post on TCS?!