Simon and I are now fully settled in to our 740 square foot apartment. And we're loving it. We lost 1,000 feet of liveable space plus a 2-car garage when we downsized, and to tell you the truth, I don't miss it. At all. Of course, I might miss that garage once winter gets here, but we'll worry about that when the time comes. Nothing to be done about it anyway, so maybe it's not worth worrying about at all.
Simon and I are pretty good at living small. Outside of the last 2 years in our house, we had been living in apartments for the past 9 years. Mostly one-bedroom apartments, with the occasional 2-bedroom apartments if our travel companies were feeling generous. During the 6 years that we did travel nursing together, we managed to fit the majority of our belongings into the back of our Jeep and what little space we had left in the trailer after we had loaded the scooter, motorcycle, wind-surfing equipment, and paddle board stuff. When we moved out to Flagstaff, we emptied out the storage unit that I'd had since 2005 and gave away, sold, or pitched almost half of what we had been hanging on to. We then loaded what was left into a 6x12 u-haul trailer and headed west.
Of course, having a house for the first time in years caused a boom in our belongings. Feeling the pull of domestication and wanting to give it a go, we went about furnishing a 3-bedroom/2-bath house, which was quite the feat given that the only piece of furniture that we moved out with us was a 100 year-old rocking chair. I actually had a lot of fun going to thrift stores and perusing craigslist looking for unique pieces of furniture that we could refinish. At one point our garage was so full of furniture in various stages of restoration that there wasn't room for a single car. We enjoyed our hours out in the garage sanding and painting, and when all was said and done, we had some pretty cool looking furniture. And even better yet, we really didn't take a financial hit in the process. I'd do it all over again should the need arise, but honestly, I don't see that happening for a very long time.
I love the idea of living small. It was an adjustment at first, but once the idea took root in my head, it was all I could think about. It's still a work in progress, as I coined myself an "organized hoarder" during the course of our most recent move. I'm so good at organizing and putting things into boxes, bins, baskets and totes that the average person would have no idea how much stuff I actually have. I'm like a real-life Tetris master. I have a lot of stuff. Let's just start and end right there. I've even gotten rid of a lot, and still I have more than the average person would ever need. But having things isn't really about need when you're living comfortably, is it? For the longest time, my mantra in life regarding possessions was that if one is good, then three (or more) is better. That way, if I get tired of the first one or something happens to it, I have two more similar ones waiting in the wings to take its place. The good thing about my hoarding is that I'm a bit like a reptile...I will only grow as big as my living space allows. The bigger the house, the more stuff I'm going to have. Conversely, the smaller the space...you get the idea. If I was forced to whittle my possessions down based on need, I could fit all of it into a single tote. When you think about it, as human beings, we really require very little to survive comfortably. Food, shelter, clothing, and transportation are our basic necessities. Everything else is just details. Some of us, myself included, just have more details than we know what to do with.
And that brings me to today. I'm sitting here in my 740 square foot apartment, what remaining possessions I have are tucked away into boxes, bins, baskets, and totes. It doesn't feel homey, necessarily, but it's functional and it's cozy. Simon and I have successfully transformed our living space from a 3-bedroom house to a 1-bedroom apartment, and we have room to spare. Granted, it took a lot of creative organizing on my part as the process of trimming down my possessions continues, but I'm amazed at how well we were able to do this. And I love it.
The things I love the most:
1. I no longer care when it's garbage or recycling day, since the giant bins are just a short walk from our apartment.
2. The plumbing in the apartment is far better than the plumbing was in our house, so I no longer have to wonder if I'll need the plunger after an extended sitting session. Seriously, this toilet is a beast...it's a little bit scary, actually.
3. I can walk to work in under 10 minutes.
4. I can walk to a a couple different coffee shops in under 10 minutes.
5. I can walk to downtown Flagstaff in about 20 minutes.
6. I can walk to a post office bin in 5 minutes.
7. I can pretty much walk everywhere I need to go (except Target) in under half an hour.
8. Our upstairs neighbors are awesome. They like beer, The Oatmeal, animals (they're both biology grad students), and being outside almost as much, if not more so, than Simon and I.
9. No more yard work, although I'm going to miss our garden...that was probably the best part about having a house with a yard.
10. We cut our monthly rent payment almost in half. Which means we can save save save for more trips, more traveling, and quite possibly, a camper van.
And there it is. My life, right now. I'm very thankful for the experiences and the knowledge that I've gained thus far in my 35 years. I'm looking forward to what's next, even if what's next is simply just being here, in this place, with my two favorite boys for however long we want to be here. Life is good.
