I've been thinking about moving to a new house for awhile now, but never really doing anything about it. First it was work (the transfer) then it was general lack of time. I'd look at the ads for houses and roommates but nothing really looked good enough to make me call. Either the rent was too much or they wouldn't allow cats (I want my Sylvie back) or it would be on the outskirts of town where transportation would take longer and be iffy. I ran into my frined Mandy at work on Wednesday and asked her if she was still thinking about moving. She's really responsible, nice and quiet, and enthusastic about bikes. She said yes and we exchanged phone numbers. Thursday I was just sitting around reading library comics when Joel got home. He's the other non relative housemate. He mentioned that he accidentally walked into a house meeting where the subject was fixed move out dates. We talked aabout the possibility of it being very soon for a moment, then I grabbed a weekly that I'd marked up. Called Mandy, asked her if she was interested in one specific ad, then called the number in the ad and left a message. The owner called me back a few minutes later and we arranged to look at the house on Friday. So yesterday I met Mandy at the house. It has a nicely sized back yard with compost heap and shed, fenced. There's not much of a front porch but there's chickens next door and the neighbors seem friendly. (The other next door neighbors seem to be a variation on an indie-rock family and stopped to say hello.) The house itself has four bedrooms (two upstairs, one main floor and one in the basement). There's tons of communal space and windows everywhere. A dishwasher in the kitchen and washer and dryer in the basement (I don't remember the last time I've seen a dishwasher in a house here in town). There's space for my piano next to the fireplace with a mantel painted with stars. The basement is huge well lit and she said we can set up a bicycle workshop down there. The landlady was really friendly but I was a bit disheartened by the couple that randomly showed up to look and her mentions of other applications handed out. Mandy and I discussed it for awhile after we left. It's a great house, affordable and it would only take a little persuasion to get some fellow zoobombers to move in with us. I went back today with my application and Joel, who seemed to be interested. She did the tour again and I turned in my application and it turns out it's the first one in! I hope we get it because I for one really need more community in my living space.

Hold on. Did you check if there were ROOSTERS next door?

Roosters would be bad.

I didn't go talk to the chickens. They were across the yard from me. They weren't making much noise either of the times I went over there.

I bet one of those times wasn't 5 am. Waking up to roosters is a pleasant novelty at first. Until the first time it coincides with a hangover.

I don't think roosters are allowed in city limits in Portland. Although, there might be an ILLEGAL rooster. Congrats, lapis! What neighborhood is it in, and when do you find out for sure?

the best way to secure a rental if there is competition and instill confidence in a landlord in a prospective leasee is offer a post-dated check deposite with your application. hope you get it.

I gave her a check to do the credit check... She wouldn't do anything final until we meet her husband. I'm still working on talking to people. Right now it's down to two of us looking and we need at least three to be able to afford the place. I spoke with some friends briefly but they were non-committal. It's in NE, in the "Alberta Arts" district. Which is cool, because that means the clowns are never very far away.

Yay! My buddy Mikey just called and he wants to see it! Forward march!

I think we've got it. I haven't taked to Mandy in the last couple of days but Mikey and Sam came to look at it today and I met the landlord's husband (the handyman) and the was really cool and even fixing things while we were there. Sam and Mikey really like the place and we discussed going through with rattles and incence and leaving shoes at the door. The next door neighbors (the indie rockers) were working in their backyard in the rain and the chickens on the other side were out and about (no roosters). We'll find a door for the shed and some furniture at the bins and decorate it with our own art and try to eat together. I'm gonna dust off my crock pot and cook up some honolulu skillet beans and the tv will have a cozy.

Congratulations, Lapis! (I almost wrote crongutulations...I have no idea what that means, but it made me laugh my ass off.) What the hell -- crongutulations, too!

good for you lapis. "honolulu skillet beans" what's that?

Beans with onions and pineapple and ketchup and brown sugar. Thay're good. They're from the seconrd cookbook I ever got: Moosewood cooks at home. I think that's the title anyway. Sorabjifest 2004: my house?

That's like one of the few moosewood's I don't have. what kind of beans?

Any kind. As long as it's canned. I usually use three cans: kidney, pinto and black. It also has orange peel in it. Would you like me to pose the recipe?

sure.

I should be able to unearth the book fairly quickly.

It was on top of the pile. With the shopping list from the last time I made Honolulu Skillet Beans marking the recipe. Honolulu Skillet Beans. 1 large onion, finely chopped (1+1/2 c) 2 tsp vegetable oil 4 c (or 2 16 oz cans) small firm beans 2 tbs hoisin sauce 2 tsp prepared mustard 2 tbs ketchup or tomato paste 1 tbs soy sauce 1 tsp dark sesame oil 1 tsp ground cumin grated peel of 1 orange 3/4 c fresh or canned pineapple Saute the onion in the vegetable oil until soft. While the onions cook, drain the beans in a colander and rinse them under running water. Stir together hoisin sauce, mustard, ketchup, soy sauce, sesame oil, cumin, orange peel and pineapple. Add the beans and sauce to the onions and stir to coat. Bring to a simmer and serve hot.

yummy

I love alberta. it's the only place I visit every single time I go to portland. I got my wedding dress at tumbleweed. I've had three birthday dinners at bernie's. I love the tastings at everyday wine. my hairdresser lives of alberta. so do my friends S&H and R&J. I always stay in the nearby mississippi neighborhood. nice choice.

It's not much of a move for me, maybe a mile and a half at most. The real deciding factors were the rent (cheap!), the landlords (good people!) and the fact that I was able to get a group of friends together in a reasonable amount of time. Alberta's nice, but I'll miss my 3/4 mile walk from Mississippi and having the library just down the street. On the other hand, I'll live within a mile of three different houses with good friends in them. I'll be a little closer to work too, but not much.

do you ever eat at equinox? that restaurant is so good and cheap and has such a nice wine selection that it's hard to believe it exists.

Equinox? No. Where is it? My current favorites are Small World Cafe, the Purple Parlor, Vita and Pho Jasmine.

purple parlor is weird. they take half the yolks out of the eggs for their scrambles. a friend of mine once asked if they could put the yolks back in his eggs, and they said no, they had thrown them all out. equinox is at shaver and mississippi--kitty corner from fresh pot. http://www.portlandmercury.com/2003-11-06/supper.html

Oh yeah, they're newish, aren't they? I've never had eggs at the Purple Parlor... I usually eat noodles or something. The egg yolks aren't really thrown out anymore. A friend of mine (one of the clowns) works there and uses them for the wheat-free vegetarian dog treats she makes.

Wheat-free but with eggs. ok...

Does her dog have that can't-process-gluten disease?

Yeah. So does her kid.

Update: Two applications in and counting. Mikey and Sam were away for the weekend with only one application between the two of them. I did some running around after work to turn in Mandy's and run another application to their place. ...and received a message from the landlords. She wants to be able to run all applications by tonight. THat means calling the boys when they're potentially awake (10:30 or so) and making sure they have them done, signed along with checks for the credit check. Then I'll have to bike down there again before they leave for work to pick them up and get them turned in. It can be done. Tomorrow we'll have our answer and we can begin planning the garden and acking for the move. Oh, I hope we get it. I need this.

Oh crappity dickens. I'd forgotten to sign my application so I biked over to the landlord's house to sign, we were talkingand she mentioned that she was so glad to have someone moving in on April first. April first?!?!? Yeah. It just never came up. I worked on solutions in my head on my ride back north, then all through the Risk. Called five different people for information ad advice and freaked out. I can't afford to move in then without at least two other people (but two of the three gve their thirty days on Monday). I've also put so much energy into trying to get this house in the first place, being on the phone and telling so many friends about it, trying to find the perfect housemates and keep them motivated. I don't know if I can do as much for a different place. I don't know if I can deal with working with the time crunch of another thirty days if this place doesn't work out. All I know is moving is essential to my core beliefs of lifestyle and community and could be just as benificial to me as it would be to others dealing with their less than ideal housemates. It's difficult to live in a house where everyone has their prefabricated relationships and you end up shoved aside. The wrenching basement. The garden. The kitchen where I can cook anything I want and use any dish that's handy. I don't want it to slip away, I can't let it slip away. I won't let it slip away.

Borrow some money. Have a "rent" party. You'll figure something out, I know you will.

I think I can get a temporary loan from my parents and I've got some money saved in the bank. Moving in fees or one of us, individually, isn't that bad. First, last and a $200 deposit each is very reasonable (rent will be just shy of $265 each). There are four of us though. I'm thinking about getting a loan from my parents to cover what Mandy and I can't do (though I have't asked yet and that's asking a lot) and Sam's calling them later this morning to see if we can pay the full deposit right now and move in about mid month. Apparently Zoobomb fundraisers don't go that well but maybe a benefit show for the wrenching basement could be done. What's a rent party?

what the fuck is a wrenching basement?

A basement to wrench in. Wrench = fix bikes and rig up crazy constructions. The basement is big enough to have a pile of bikes, places for books, a couple of desks and tools.

but can i wrench my skateboard in your wrenching basement? or is it reserved exclusively for bikes?

PBTH!!!!!!

Lapis I imagine you to be like the girl I've met a couple of times through friends. She lives with one of the wrench's for a local bike shop all the boys go to, she has a mohawk and wears the most interesting clothes. She's so cute, I want to put her in my pocket.

I don't have a mohawk.... in fact I dress very conservatively (at leastcompared to your average bike punk)..... Thanks? So......... guess what? I'm moving! In a week! My room is the dirtiest it's ever been! I'm getting my kitty back and everything will be beautiful.

sweet.

No I didn't mean you had a mohawk, I think you would be alike personalitywise. I'm not explaining myself properly today, and I kept typing a t in properly. wheeeeeeeeee

A'ight. Gertcha. I once had a boyfriend hurt his back because with my personality he thought I was lighter. Today I begin my shift at 5 am, then it's mp3s and napping before going to tack-tics and bringing up that we have a place to put all the tinybikes. Tomorrow is the pre-house meeting when we'll discuss such things as "utilities", "deposit" and plan the garden. I think I'm gonna start packing today as well.

http://www.streetswing.com/histmain/d5rent1.htm rent party. have one anyhow. i'm supposed to be writing a paper right now.

a paper on what?

i've developed an affinity and attraction to cute girls in vintage clothing with retro 50s hairdoos on old schools bikes with a basket and one gear only and metal fenders. that and mean looking girls with cigarettes in muscle cars and old men on mountain bikes smoking pipes. you'd be really surprised at how many of all threet ive seen lately.

Old men smoking pipes on mountain bikes? I've never seen one. I've seen boys on road bikes smoking cigarettes and an old man on a motor scooter smoking a cigarette but it's been ages since I've even seen a pipe. Except when I was doing freight this morning and found a copy of 'Young Sherlock Homes' with multiple pictures of ten-year-olds with pipes. The rent party sounds neat. I'm guessing that a wrenching party is more likely.

around little five points there is a guy who rides one of those old-fashioned style bikes with the HUGE front wheel and the little back wheel. I can't remember if he wears a suit and a funny hat or if I just remember it that way because that makes it better.

i actually snapped a picture of someone just like that on hollywood blvd a couple of months ago kaz. only he was walking the bike. i should have asked if he could ride it for me. by the way, im wondering if a L5P regular can still be found around there. An old man. Hippie. Almost always wearing a tye dye shirt and one of those knitted hippie berets. often just sittin around talkin to the other street hippie and general L5P riff raff. We befriended him. Can't remember his name. Know who Im talkin about?

I haven't seen him, but I really don't get up there much. Now that the weather is nice, I will so I'll look out for him.

We have a bunch of those pipe-smoking, bike-riding old guys too. I'll probably be one some day.

My mom delivered a pile of boxes yesterday evening and I've packed three. We all met at the Fresh Pot (super good super strong coffee) this morning and planned out utilities and the garden. I mostly just want to dig around and grow some veggies but Sam and Mandy are growing all sorts of things from datura to broccoli. Mikey and I are setting up a music room in the front of the house and there's going to be DIY projects galore. Blue cheese and sourdough, homebrewing. We might have a haunted house in October and an overflowing costume trunk in the basement. The landlord came by towards the end of our meeting with two fingerknitting children in tow. We signed the papers and paid our deposit and last months rent and she'll be giving us the keys on Wednesday. I can't wait.

We might be able to get an old Hammond as well. I don't know where we'd put it, but it would be pretty cool. I've been uploading all my music to the computer, it's easier to do this now and get rid of the bad cds before getting any more. Other than a couple of Everclear and old Santana albums there isn't much to get rid of. Oh shit. I was going to get the water straightened out today. Now I'll have to wait 'til Wednesday.

Woot woot! Been moving for the past week without more than a day off at a time and early early mornings. Which means I've barely been moving at all but I have a bed now but no internet. Sylvie the demonic cat has returned to the metro. Yar.

I got coffee from fresh pot on sunday. I ate at equinox for happy hour/dinner on friday, breakfast saturday, and happy hour/dinner saturday. it was a gorgeous weekend in portland.

I found a wonderful japanese resturant by my house,am trying to take Heather there to see hot waiter.I love shrimp and vegetable tempura,miso hungry.

There's so much good stuff in the area! I just found out there's a community garden just 1/2 a mile north.... might be good to check it out. C, you should send me an email and let me know when you'll be down here next, you can meet Sylvie!