Your home is your castle [LJ Idol season 9, week 3]
#1 - Water view
I stood on the apartment balcony, taking in the view. The water of the cove sparkled in the sunlight. Birds flew lazily overhead. A walking path curved below me, with large swaths of grass separating it from the water on one side and the apartment buildings on the other. I tipped my face into the sun, closing my eyes. The breeze was cool but not cold, despite the fact that Christmas had just passed. You had to love winter in Houston.
The apartment behind me was perfect for someone like me. I'd just graduated college a few weeks before, and I'd always lived either with my parents or in a dorm. This was going to be my first place totally on my own. It was a great size for me, with just the one bedroom and bathroom. There was plenty of kitchen, and the living room was a good size. And then there was that view... The whole place just felt right.
I took another deep breath of fresh air before reluctantly going back inside. There was paperwork to sign. I would have plenty of time to enjoy the view once I moved in.
#2 - Craft room
I turned in a slow circle in the middle of the room, trying to picture my furniture in it. "The bookcases can go on that wall," I announced aloud, albeit to myself. "The desk should fit over there. The cable outlet is here, so I guess that's where the TV is going. And the sewing table can go on the wall across from it. That should work." I didn't have a sewing table yet, but it helped to plan ahead, especially when it came to organizing furniture. I didn't want to have to try moving those bookcases on my own later.
I left the future sewing room, flipping off the light as I went. The apartment was empty for the moment, but the movers would be there in the morning to haul things from my old building to the new one. I felt a brief pang at the thought of my old apartment. It had been good to me for the last three years. It was time to move up, though. This place had an additional bedroom and bathroom, and the kitchen was nice and big. The old one had been great, but this felt good, too. I knew it would feel like home in no time.
#3 - Townhouse
I turned the key with a hand that was surprisingly steady and pushed open the front door. I'd been to the townhouse a few times before, of course, but this time when I stepped across the threshold, I was stepping into my first house. I'd signed my name a thousand times that morning and handed over a check, and now... now the place was entirely mine.
It felt... odd. I loved the place and had since I'd laid eyes on it back in November. I knew, both logically and emotionally, that it was the right place for me. I definitely didn't want to stay in the apartment anymore! It was just such a big change that I was having trouble processing it. I really wasn't sure what I felt.
I wandered around the entire house, through all three bedrooms, the big master bathroom, the living room, the kitchen. I went out to the backyard. I marveled that I had a backyard, with a big oak tree providing shade (and a lot of fallen leaves). I went into the garage and marveled at having that, too.
Back in the kitchen, I stood and tried to sort out what to do next. The place was mine, but it didn't quite feel like it yet. It didn't help that the previous owner had left some things, like curtains hanging in the living room. Those needed to go, I decided. So did the dirt on top of the refrigerator where he'd clearly tipped over a potted plant. And wow, those cabinet doors are dusty and gross, let me just get that bottle of 409...
Mom called. "So are you dancing around the house in joy?"
I hesitated. I should have been dancing, shouldn't I? I admitted, "Actually, I'm cleaning."
Mom started laughing. "Oh, that's perfect! You're nesting!"
"Oh!" I laughed too, relieved. "I guess I am."
"That's a good thing," she told me firmly. "You have to make it yours."
I leaned against the counter and surveyed the living room, the kitchen, the entryway. It was all empty right now, but soon enough I'd be moving my things in, packing it full of furniture and boxes and a pair of cats that seemed to fill up more space than their small bodies could account for. I let out a breath and smiled. "Mine," I said, to myself as much as to Mom. "I like the sound of that."
I stood on the apartment balcony, taking in the view. The water of the cove sparkled in the sunlight. Birds flew lazily overhead. A walking path curved below me, with large swaths of grass separating it from the water on one side and the apartment buildings on the other. I tipped my face into the sun, closing my eyes. The breeze was cool but not cold, despite the fact that Christmas had just passed. You had to love winter in Houston.
The apartment behind me was perfect for someone like me. I'd just graduated college a few weeks before, and I'd always lived either with my parents or in a dorm. This was going to be my first place totally on my own. It was a great size for me, with just the one bedroom and bathroom. There was plenty of kitchen, and the living room was a good size. And then there was that view... The whole place just felt right.
I took another deep breath of fresh air before reluctantly going back inside. There was paperwork to sign. I would have plenty of time to enjoy the view once I moved in.
#2 - Craft room
I turned in a slow circle in the middle of the room, trying to picture my furniture in it. "The bookcases can go on that wall," I announced aloud, albeit to myself. "The desk should fit over there. The cable outlet is here, so I guess that's where the TV is going. And the sewing table can go on the wall across from it. That should work." I didn't have a sewing table yet, but it helped to plan ahead, especially when it came to organizing furniture. I didn't want to have to try moving those bookcases on my own later.
I left the future sewing room, flipping off the light as I went. The apartment was empty for the moment, but the movers would be there in the morning to haul things from my old building to the new one. I felt a brief pang at the thought of my old apartment. It had been good to me for the last three years. It was time to move up, though. This place had an additional bedroom and bathroom, and the kitchen was nice and big. The old one had been great, but this felt good, too. I knew it would feel like home in no time.
#3 - Townhouse
I turned the key with a hand that was surprisingly steady and pushed open the front door. I'd been to the townhouse a few times before, of course, but this time when I stepped across the threshold, I was stepping into my first house. I'd signed my name a thousand times that morning and handed over a check, and now... now the place was entirely mine.
It felt... odd. I loved the place and had since I'd laid eyes on it back in November. I knew, both logically and emotionally, that it was the right place for me. I definitely didn't want to stay in the apartment anymore! It was just such a big change that I was having trouble processing it. I really wasn't sure what I felt.
I wandered around the entire house, through all three bedrooms, the big master bathroom, the living room, the kitchen. I went out to the backyard. I marveled that I had a backyard, with a big oak tree providing shade (and a lot of fallen leaves). I went into the garage and marveled at having that, too.
Back in the kitchen, I stood and tried to sort out what to do next. The place was mine, but it didn't quite feel like it yet. It didn't help that the previous owner had left some things, like curtains hanging in the living room. Those needed to go, I decided. So did the dirt on top of the refrigerator where he'd clearly tipped over a potted plant. And wow, those cabinet doors are dusty and gross, let me just get that bottle of 409...
Mom called. "So are you dancing around the house in joy?"
I hesitated. I should have been dancing, shouldn't I? I admitted, "Actually, I'm cleaning."
Mom started laughing. "Oh, that's perfect! You're nesting!"
"Oh!" I laughed too, relieved. "I guess I am."
"That's a good thing," she told me firmly. "You have to make it yours."
I leaned against the counter and surveyed the living room, the kitchen, the entryway. It was all empty right now, but soon enough I'd be moving my things in, packing it full of furniture and boxes and a pair of cats that seemed to fill up more space than their small bodies could account for. I let out a breath and smiled. "Mine," I said, to myself as much as to Mom. "I like the sound of that."