Home

Twenty minutes later I park my car in the apartment building’s surface lot. The property also has secure underground parking, but those spaces cost extra, are few, and are in demand. Management says I’m third on the waiting list, so... anytime now.

The apartments here aren’t the posh, executive condos that I dream of, but the building has its charms. Take the indoor swimming pool, for example. With its attached hot tub and year-round availability, it sounds like a strong selling point. In person though, it feels like an old laundromat, sickening florescent lighting, floating paint chips, and a faint odor that is decidedly not sterile. The building’s gym situation is slightly better, the size of a typical living room, it is crammed with two treadmills, two exercise bikes, and my personal favorite, a Chuck Norris approved Total Gym. There is a television mounted on the wall that is not wired for anything beyond local channels. I haven’t bothered to put any of theses included amenities to use.

The true selling point of this building is its location. It is a few blocks from downtown, just far enough to not be a nightmare getting in and out, but close enough that most places feel walkable. Having a lot of trendy dining and drinking options nearby and being able to walk home afterward has been quite convenient for many dating situations.

My unit is near the end of a long hallway on the fourth floor. After being in Lewis’ place, I feel a smug satisfaction as I enter. My living room is furnished boldly: a deep, sea green couch with matching ottoman, peach and lime throw pillows, a sprawling rug that matches those colors perfectly, a sculptural brass lamp and a huge painting that compliments the rest. They were all acquired as a set from a hotel furnishings reseller. I liked the display and bought the whole thing. The pastel colors are a little too Miami Vice, and not particularly scaled to the modestly sized room, nor matching the furniture in any other room, but damn if it doesn’t feel good every evening to open the door and see a clear set of design choices, even if they weren’t mine. Someday... I’ll have a bigger place. I’ll be able to space those pieces out properly, maybe in front of a pair of open french doors leading to a grand balcony.