Friday, December 24, 2010

Living Arrangements

Wednesday December 22nd, 2010 - Fox Lake, IL

   My last day in America before two solid weeks at sea. I hope I can handle it, but it’s too late to back out now. I made a commitment and I’ll do it. It will be the longest continuous time run I’ve spent on a ship. That coupled with Christmas could send me over the edge.

   I don’t think it will, though. I’m in a very good mental space this year and everything is feeling upbeat. Some years are better than others, but this one won’t be a problem. Maybe it’s due to me being so busy. Whatever it is, it isn’t the torture fest it’s been in the past so I’m not going to complain. I’ve got two weeks of sunshine to bake away any depression.

   I finally nailed down a place to live, so that’s a relief. It’s exactly what I said I wouldn’t do, but the little voice in my head said to accept the offer so I did. Every time I’ve had the smarts to listen to that voice, it’s been the right choice. It’s when I start trying to outthink it where the trouble occurs. I don’t want to tempt the fates, so I didn‘t fight my instinct.

   I’ve got an almost identical situation to what I had before. It’s another basement, but it’s the sister-in-law of the person I just moved from. I’ve known her even longer than I knew the previous one and her house is only about ten minutes away from where I lived before.

   Rent is the same, and the deal is the same - no lease and I can leave when I want. That’s the part that attracted me most. I don’t want to sign any leases if I don’t have to, I’ve had a lot of trouble with them over the years. My timing is so horrible, usually when I get one signed something comes up and I have to get out of it a month later. It’s been a big hassle.

   This will be a stop gap situation until I can see where life is headed in the new year. I’m still drifting a bit, and that’s embarrassing this far into the game but it’s still true. If I were to get an apartment I’d have to furnish it, and then if I moved I’d either have to leave it or take it with me, and neither one of those options thrill me. This situation avoids all that.

   It’s a very nice place with cable TV, internet, a bed and a bathroom. That’s about all I’ll need for the next few months, as I’m sure I’ll be on the road much of that time anyway. It will allow me to sort out the things I didn’t get to before I moved last time, and I’ll pare it all down by way more than half before I head out again. In the interim, this is a good deal.

   I really do like living in Lake County, IL. It’s halfway between Milwaukee and Chicago and it has a small town feel I never thought I’d like, but it’s growing on me. I’ve got a lot of friends between cities and it cuts travel time in half to both places. Plus, I’ve made new friends since I moved to Lake County and I could see myself living there for many years.

   My flight to Houston leaves at 5am from O’Hare and Marc Schultz and his wife Audrey were kind enough to offer their services to drive me to the airport and let me park my car in their driveway for two weeks. That saves me a ton of cash, and it’s much appreciated. I usually get dropped off by Jim McHugh, but he’s filling in for me at a gig in Dubuque, IA that I backed out from. I didn’t want to risk missing my flight. That would be a disaster.

Posted via email from Dobie Maxwell's "Dented Can" Diary

No comments: