home sweet home...

i'm officially living by myself for the first time ever. i have mixed feelings about this. first, since most of y'all know how annoying it is to move, i've made record time in getting unpacked and things placed where i want them to go. some might call this "setting up house." ben being here really helped with this, of course. he moved all my heavy stuff, helped me clean, helped me put shelves up, helped me stay on task, etc. he's awesome and i love him more than i can possibly desribe on this blog. but still, when you live with others it takes FOREVER to get things situated because everybody has an opinion about where things should go, how they should function, who gets what shelf in the bathroom, in addition to who gets what bedroom and has to take out the trash first.

however, i've had approximately a total of 30 different roommates over the past 8 years. while this may seem like a lot, it's pretty much on par with everyone else i know. and come to think of it, i've pretty much been roommates or housemates with everyone i know. weird... anyway, this has conditioned me to actually enjoy sharing space with others. there are of course all the usual little annoyances i've never gotten over. "they never clean..." "their junk is all over the living room..." "i'm the only one who buys toilet paper..." "if they can just wipe down the counters after they cook..." "who took my sweater?..." or better yet, "hey, isn't that my sweater you're wearing?..." and the list goes on until eternity. but these things are so small in comparison to sharing space and life with others. i love sharing life. and front porches ("kiko, you are stoops..."). and food. and wine. so living alone really isn't something i'm looking for in this world. i know that we are meant to be in communion with others. people weren't meant to be alone. we're told that from the very beginning of the world.

that all being said, here is a picture of the living room in my new house, my fortress of solitude. if i was to live anywhere by myself, this definitely is the place to do it. (unfortunately, although his image is captured in the background of this picture, ben does not come with the house.)