Steve has kicked me out
by Zia ~ January 18th, 2008. Filed under: House.of my home office.
I’ve had such fun saying that with a pregnant pause and watching the perplexity on people’s faces because I sound so happy about it.
He’s been making this push for a couple of months, and I’ve been resisting. About a month ago, we were sitting in the hot tub, and he brought it up again. I, as usual, resisted. But he was getting more and more frustrated. First, our house is small and he feels cramped, because he really doesn’t have a place of his own. Which is completely fair. Second, his Mr. Demo-ness has been thwarted, because more than anything, he wants to start tearing into the walls in the bedrooms–and he can’t when one is a bedroom and one is my office.
The thing is, 90 percent about what I like about working for myself is being here–being able to work, then futz around the house, work some more, run errands, go to the gym, whatever. He kept on saying that I need to get over that … and drive somewhere. That was a complete non-negotiable for me. If I had to drive somewhere, I’d still end up working from home–only much less comfortably.
What to do?
I was driving home one day and passed the shack right around the corner that’s been for rent for ages. A light bulb went off.
Long story short, the owner has rented it to me. He’s thrilled to get someone with good credit who won’t deface the walls. I’m thrilled that my commute now consists of walking down the alley. It’s a great solution all the way around. And while the house is nothing on the outside, it’s perfectly functional on the inside. Nothing special, but I’m feeling pretty spoiled that I’ve managed to get a 770 square foot house for about the cost of renting a decent office somewhere (if not less). It’s a great solution on a variety of fronts. First, it’s an office space. Second, it has two bedrooms. I can sublet one if I want, and anyone who comes to stay with us can stay down there. Third, it has a kitchen that I can devote to soaping.
I’m in the process of moving this week; should be completely set up next. Will post pix soon.
January 18th, 2008 at 11:10 am
It’s so very Viginia Woolf
I love the dedicated soap kitchen — that is so cool. I want a separate kitchen for my projects! (Not that there are any affordable rentals in my area, but a girl can dream.)
And hey, now you’ll have a place to camp when the demo dust gets too thick.
January 18th, 2008 at 11:32 am
Ah, yes … a shack of one’s own.
The whole thing is actually going to work out well because it’s also a place for the parents to stay when they’re in town … heh. heh