I'm kind of stunned right now by the apartment/housing market. It was already made pretty apparent by the media and word of mouth that this would be an awful time for homeowners to turn any profit on their property or try to handle their mortgages. But I really didn't realize that some of those properties were SO desperate to find someone to step in and take over the mortgage that they'd be conceivably within MY reach.
So as it happens once in a while, I start thinking about what my new place would be like if I moved out. I already know it'd be small and incomplete, and I would probably have a hell of a time with things that I usually take for granted at home with my parents -- laundry, parking, not fretting over my supply of cleaning materials i.e. toilet paper and dish soap. I figure I'll have a psycho landlord who makes things difficult, especially entertaining of any kind. And I fully expect to have tremendous difficulty living within my means, so despite all of my best efforts my kitchen will be sparsely occupied and the rest of the apartment barely furnished.
But when I get past the inevitable shortcomings of one's "first apartment," I get the warm-and-fuzzies just thinking about having a space that presents all sorts of welcome challenges. I have been dying to feel in control of something again, and though with a new apartment comes relinquishing control to yet another force (that'd be Rent), I can actually demonstrate, evaluate, and improve upon my own abilities to manage and organize a home.
And(!) I can put my DIY decoration sensibilities to work! I've always wanted an excuse to build creative yet functional things. There's no room for that in my parents' house -- no room for the process and no room for the finished product. I can't even do small-scale things because either my family will mess it up or they will just say I'm making a mess.
The big hitch is moving out WITH someone. I currently do not make enough to pay any kind of rent anywhere. I can contribute TO rent, but I can't cover it to save my life. And I don't see my current job being my saving grace on that either -- it knows nothing of the crunch T_T So I would hope any of my friends would be willing to take the plunge with me. But something like that isn't something any of my friends have the spontaneous spirit to attack. There's too much "inconvenience." Don't wanna move to such-and-such area, too far from such-and-such place. Don't wanna have to transfer to a different work location or make the commute to work or whatever. Not ready to move out yet because for whatever reason $6000 isn't enough to start living. Don't want to move out until I'm done with school. Blah blah blah. What's the matter, chickens? Scared of a little change? I'm CRAVING it.
Ideally I'd move out with ♥Cameron because, well, duh, living with my boyfriend-slash-best-friend would be absolutely tops. Plus, we could get a one-bedroom and call it a day. But if I move out with someone else, like The Kidz or Erich or Ariel, I'll need to find a two-bedroom, and that will reduce the percentage of rent that I can contribute. I'm sure there are other complications to that, but basically it won't be as fun for me IMO.
So yes, I think about moving out all the time. Right now in particular, I feel very strongly in favor of it. We'll see what happens come next week, or the bottom of this week's paycheck.