The Move

Was this move good for us? 

It depends who you ask. My hubby seems to be happy. He likes his job. He's kind of a city person. I tell him I'm a country girl and he's a city boy.

Do I hate it here? No. Am I happy? I can't answer that. The sting of losses are still upon me. The view, the quiet little town that was so easy to drive around in, my doctor, the close proximity of beautiful State Parks with HILLS. Great windows for my plants. Hartford Utilities which was FAR more affordable than WE Energies. I am making a great deal of adjustments to make this new life fit into my comfort zone.

This apartment..."spacious" 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 970 sq. feet, not enough closet space, vertical blinds which make the windows nearly unusable for plants, no view, is only $45 cheaper than the 1110 sq. foot roomy apartment we left in Hartford, with a view. What do I like better about this one? The water is softened and the windows aren't drafty.

The utilities. The highest bill I had in Hartford was $144 in July of last year. Hartford Utilities combines water, sewer and electric all on one bill. Only people who use gas need WE Energies.

Here the city water and sewer was $58 and next month the WE Energies electric bill will be $105. So that is $165 for wintertime utilities. I dread summer, add two window airs to that bill. I'm sure utilities will be close to $200 per month. 

This apartment is old. It's ok, but not like what we had in Hartford. Rent is highway robbery in most places, even Hartford is getting that way. Our rent was reasonable because we were the first tenants in that building and stayed there 7 years. I wanted to live there for the rest of my life. Here, anything newer and nicer than where we are now is going to be in the $1200 to $1400 range at the lowest.

Maintenance. The maintenance at the apartment in Hartford was Awesome. Here it is mediocre to non-existent. We have resorted to doing some of it ourselves...gluing wood strips back that were loose, washing things that were dirty (and we didn't notice when we moved in), etc.

I guess the two main things in all this mess is (1) hubby's job has a fair wage and lots of overtime, meaning bigger checks, and (2) the airport is only blocks away, meaning he can fly home more easily. Note...I will be flying down to visit my daughter. Around $300 round trip to South Bend. She will pick me up!

My plants? Some have suffered. I am still working on moving them around AGAIN. Some might not make the cut. In fact, I need to get back to that project. I promise I will share pictures when I'm done.

The future? We are still waiting for spring, for things to green up. There are lots of awesome photos on the Internet of autumn colors along the river and in the parks. Fall colors are the best. Now if this apartment only had a real bathtub and a view...