Moving on Down
A few months ago my topic for this column dealt with the pain of finding out I had to move. It was stressful to think of picking up and leaving a place I had grown to love, but being a first time renter I had made peace with the fact that the length of my stay in my beloved home was at the discretion of the owner not me. The landlords gave me notice in November that they were putting the place up for sale in the summer, giving me plenty of time to find something comparable.
Comparable was the key word and a word I found to be most daunting. Here I was in a beautiful spacious unit right across the street from Balboa Park. It was an open floor plan with a view forever. How would I ever replace this wonderful setting? With all that lead time I told myself not to panic, just get to work on the search. This meant checking everyday on Craig’s List, plus walking and driving all over the neighborhood looking for “For Rent” signs. I also told everyone I know to keep me in mind if they hear of something that would be suitable. I had grown to love the whole Bankers Hill, Hillcrest, Mission Hills’ neighborhood and could not imagine myself living anywhere else. I can’t leave this city life with all the nearby shops and restaurants, the “walkability” factor, the convenience and most of all the local characters who contribute to the diversity of this urban life.
Soon I found myself looking at many different possibilities. Some were much smaller than I wanted, some were way over my budget and some were just plain ugly. It was like The Three Bears story, but none were just right. It was also like Kubler- Ross’s stages of death and I was running the gamut of those stages. Bargaining was my favorite. If it’s a great location I’ll trade in the size requirement. If it’s got everything but the location, maybe I’ll consider another neighborhood. Nooo… I don’t want to leave and go to the suburbs, and Mission Valley has no charm. Maybe a tiny place will do.
When I first moved in I bought furniture to fit the layout. Now I was walking around from room to room wondering what I could take and what I would have to part with. I made trades with myself. I’ll take the one piece and sell the other one. I’ll give up the dining room set and stop having family over. If I have to, I‘ll part with most of my clothes.
I began to psyche myself for a move out of neighborhood. I would accept what I had to accept. Then an amazing thing happened. Maybe it was good karma. Maybe it was serendipity. My hope was that a unit would come up in my building, but I didn’t count on that happening… until it did. A realtor who lived in my building told me a unit was coming up for rent in March. I was over the top, this is too good to be true. We looked at the place and it was even better than the one I was in. It was all upgraded, had unusual semi circle windows and even faced the park. Yes, it was two stories down, but the view was interesting, taking me even closer to the park and the people who populate it very day.
A move within a building is not stressful. With friends helping me to make many elevator trips using our building’s shopping carts, it was a breeze. Even though I’ve moved down, to me I’ve moved up, and life in the hood goes on.
Category: Life Style, Local News
