Pardon Me, Excuse Me, Pardon Me....

Yes, this has become the theme in our new place. But, you know what? Close quarters has not been all that bad. Sitting here, right now, in the new office - backdoor open revealing sunshine and a cool breeze, is pretty damn comfortable.

It's taken a lot of effort to get here, which hopefully explains my absence over the past weeks. And, this is bound to be a colossal post since it is inclusive of many things. I thought for a moment to break it down and write multiple posts. But, you guys can handle it, right? So, here goes.

Let me start with the best invention ever - as far as a high rise is concerned. The specialized grocery cart - specialized because they belong to the Galaxy tenants. These really were a godsend when it came to hauling our junk -- errr, I mean important stuff-- from the 19th floor to the basement. Two or even three at a time filled up nicely. During my last and final visit, one of these babies had about 15 pairs of random shoes, designated for a garage sale tossed in them along with a box full of various glassware and a vacuum. Seriously, whoever made this possible at the the Galaxy, you deserve a shout out. I mean, there had to be someone one day who said, "Hey, we really should get some carts and put our names on them..." And, so it was done! Thank you random person. You're a genius.

So....eventually, the carts made it over during the weeks

to turn this:

into this! And, slowly but surely....it is turning into something more manageable and completely cozy. We're finally over all the hard labor parts. Which, by the way, there's WAY too much crouching going on during the moving process. I realize that I am supposed to lift with my knees, but, this is really difficult when you have jacked up knees. Needless to say my lower back was really feeling it, but it's nothing a massage can't mend. And, our new and exciting budget doesn't get rolling until June 1. So...I see some serious rubbing in my future.

So, in my effort to maximize space, I thought this would be a great opportunity to get a new hamper. I had this unusual idea to get super organized and headed to Wal-Mart and get one of those laundry baskets that has separate compartments for whites, darks, etc.  I discovered that Wal Mart is actually awesome when you go on a weekday at 9:30 am. Otherwise, prepare for a frustration-fest. So, I did find what I was looking for along with some handy dandy shoe racks. When I got back, I had limited time before the movers arrived with our furniture to put together the following:

Looks ominous, right? I really wish I could show you a finished picture. But, I can't. I would say that I was disappointed in myself, but I had a sneaking suspicion that I really suck at this kind of stuff. I did manage to get it to look like it was totally going to work, only to find out that the wheels would be parallel to the floor and that two of the poles which made up the base were really supposed to go up on top because they have these special holes in them. I'm pretty sure the stupid-ass instructions said nothing about said holes. Whatever. So, the movers pull up and I decide I will just try and pick everything up and work on it later. This is when I accidentally stepped on one of the base poles and cracked it. I saved it for a week thinking we could duck tape it - but, it's now in its final resting place - the trash.

One glorious thing about our new pad is the porch. I foresee this to be an area where we will be spending a lot of time - drinking cocktails, talking about our day and watching the world go by. The man of the house has found it to be the perfect place to smoke a nice cigar and listen to the Dodger games...

And even when her dad's not around......Riley has taken to it, too

So, yes. The place is a lot smaller then we are used to. But, it's turning out to be perfect for us.

Things I am NOT going to miss

Like I have previously referenced, living in the Galaxy is basically like being on vacation. EXCEPT for...

-At least one of the cabinets in the kitchen routinely falls off or gets disconnected on a weekly basis
-One can hear all of the noise from the street. And, it's a busy street.
-Across the street there is a mansion, but we call it the crack house. Our view allows us to look down on what is a very crazily designed and kept backyard. In this backyard is a dog THAT THEY NEVER LET INSIDE! I will not miss the dog, who barks ALL OF THE TIME
-I would say about every other month, an ambulance arrives at the galaxy due to 80% of the residents being very elderly.
-the times when the elevator isn't working and I have to walk up 19 flights of stairs
-That I can't just run outside when there's an earthquake that lasts longer than 3 seconds.
-The fact that everyone identifies the building we live in as "Oh, the one that caught on fire, where that guy jumped to his death?!"
-Charter Cable - every resident HAS to have it because of the homeowners' association. It's the suckiest ever and totally expensive!
-having a landline, which we need to buzz people in. We get numerous calls daily from telemarketers, survey takers, automated robots and collection calls for other people.
-not being able to grill at will.
-Adding an extra 5 minutes to my drive time by having to take the elevator to an underground garage to leave the building.
-my electric stove. Nothing is really wrong with it, perse, but I prefer gas
-lugging the laundry back and forth from the basement.
-that it can be incredibly windy living across the street from the ocean, and I'm talkin the kind of windy that you want to actually use the hood on your hoodie.
-No air conditioning. We won't have this where we're headed - BUT , we will have ceiling fans in each room. And, the windows don't make up the entire wall - which is great for a view, but not so great when it's hotter than hell outside.It can get to be like a sweatbox.
-No trick or treaters or ability to even display a pumpkin
and

- lots of other things I can't think of right now but I am sure exist.