reflections on moving

i thought i'd transfer this over from my "private blog" since it happened since the start of the vacation...

moving upward and onward!
It's official. I am moving. Not necessarily by choice but because I no longer have the funds available to live in my one bedroom apartment on Southport aka Sopo. As many know, I pay very little for my one-bedroom...originally $700 when I first moved in but has only increased by $100 in the past almost three years. I live in a great neighborhood where parking is generally easy...parking within a block or 2 at the most unless it's passed 10:00 or there's a darn Cubs game. (we are the only 2 block radius within 2 miles of Wrigley that isn't zoned...I will never understand it!!!) Bars and restaurants are a block away as I am just a block south of Belmont. Wrigley Field (aka one of God's best creations) is .99 miles away. I am just a few blocks from the brown line and only .60 miles from the red, brown and purple line. My gym is walking distance, there's a Walgreens and Jewel which is right down the street, my favorite Andrew is 3 1/2 blocks. Church is an el ride away, Jason is 3 miles...bout 15 min. I currently have 4 friends who are a quick walk away and about 10 more who are within walking/biking/quick cab or drive away. There is a Chase in both directions only 1.5 blocks. Giordano's Pizza is a few blocks and Schoolyard (mmm, pretzels) is 2 blocks The bike path/Lake Michigan is only 1.5 miles from my apartment...so about 15 min run from here. I could go on and on and on about all the reasons I LOVE my location and apartment. But in keeping with my positive attitude and remembering that God is always in control and has a plan for me, I have realized that there are so many reasons to be thankful for the big move:

* though parking here isn't too bad, in Wheaton I will have a spot about 5 yards from my building waiting for me every time I get home. Regardless the time and if I have just come home with a load of canned goods from the grocery store or a 30 lb bag of cat litter from Target...the spot will ALWAYS be there. (and the crazy lady in the alley will NEVER be there!!!)
* my oven will work when I turn it on. The oven on Sopo works about 20% of the time...generally not when I need it most.
* no barking dogs. 2 of my 3 neighbors have dogs...and they have started to bark at the most inconvenient times
* My heat will work every time I turn it on, not just most of the time like here on Sopo
* no more rats? my neighbor has been complaining about rats living under the first floor...kinda gross. Doesn't affect me too much being on the 2nd floor, but regardless, I am focusing on the positive of moving out and I think this qualifies!
* Wheaton apartment will be about 3 times the size...2 bedrooms and a HUGE living room, a kitchen, and TWO bathrooms!
* I'm going to have a balcony!! Yay, room to house more plants and flowers to try not to kill!
* the cats are going to LOVE all the space to chase each other around...and their claws will love the carpet (as opposed to the wood floors on Sopo) I really hope my moms not reading this! (shes the new landlord and there is a NO-Cats policy which I will clearly be breaking!)
* I'm going to have a DISHWASHER!!!
* Grandma and Grandpa will be just a short car-ride away!! I plan to watch MANY Cubs games with them and hope to invite them over for dinner or bring them dinner as much as possible. :)
* no more bugs in the cabinets! On Sopo I have to store everything but canned goods in the refrigerator (real practical!)* no more worries about high CO levels, which just about killed me a couple months ago
* I will actually have a drawer AND storage under my sink in the bathroom! Actually, I'll have 2 bathrooms of storage now AND a linen closet! YES, a LINEN closet!!
* The bedroom door will actually shut (and actually this past week the lower hinges actually came out of the wall so the door is just hanging on by a thread!)
* I will have a buzzer and an intercom for when I have visitors (you're all going to come visit me and the boys, right?!)
* I won't have to hold down the lever for 5 seconds every time I flush the toilet!
*Laundry in my BUILDING! No more laundramats! (or Jason's when he was kind enough to let me use his facilities!)

In making this list and in packing up all my stuff, I have noticed all the ways we Chicagoans learn to create storage and utilize every square inch of our space. I have all these bins, movable drawers and hanging shelves I am not really sure what I'll do with in Wheaton. I am currently storing my printer under my "couch" and my spice rack and microwave are both on top of my refrigerator. I am very sad to move out of this apartment, regardless of the reason why...I've created so many memories here and am closing another chapter of my life but am very excited to begin new memories and find creative ways to use up all the space and cabinets, closets, drawers at my new place!Goodbye Sopo, thanks for the memories and Hello Wheaton, cheers to making new ones!