Breakdown

I wrote this entry several months ago. I wanted to document my current living situation. Things change so rapidly and drastically and I wanted to remember exactly what this moment was like. I finally got around to posting it now because a major change will be coming soon.

I live in Oakland, behind a main house in a garage converted into three individual apartments. The one bedroom apartment I occupy is $825 a month, utilities included. I split the cost with my roommate and he lives in the bedroom while I'm in the living room. Outside of rent I spend an additional $20 a month on internet, $77 on car insurance, $30 on gas and $45 on my cellphone. That brings my living expenses to $589.50 excluding groceries. I work, on average, 23.5 hours per week and I make about $1,134.24 a month, after taxes. That leaves about $544.74 a month to purchase food, save or spend on other things like, for this past month, transcripts and fees for graduate school applications.

My apartment is recovering from a severe ant infestation. I couldn't leave a bowl of cereal unattended for longer than a 30 seconds without an ant crawling into it. I spent weeks setting poison, sealing routes of entry and cleaning dozens of ant bodies in a plot to kill the queen. However with the thousands of ants gone I've noticed more spiders in the apartment and I can't decide what it worse. I don't know of anyway to kill spiders other than smashing it. Ants are easy, you just set the poison and it does all the dirty work. I guess I don't like the confrontation.

The extra money I make each month usually goes to film screenings, the monthly trips to Los Angeles or savings. I splurged a little this month on movie posters, but they were all worth it. I've grown older, enjoy collecting and situating myself in a permanent living arrangement. For the past couple years I haven't remained in an apartment for longer than 12 months and I didn't feel right decorating. I know that I'll be moving to Los Angeles soon, but these posters are part of my furnishings, just like my bed and desk. I don't suspect I'll be purchasing more, I'm very content with the ones I already have and, conveniently, I'm running out of wall space.