2002-06-15
Roommate search, posted at 12:38 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com It's Saturday, and I'm putting off my trip to the gym. I've been a little out of the workout mode lately - I've only been twice in the last week - and it takes almost nothing for me to get out of the habit. It's definitely scary. I'm now thinking that starting to go to the gym a couple of years ago saved my life, so it's scary that it's so easy to fall out of the habit.Then again, it's only been a week, and it was a very celebratory week because it was the last week of school, and I'm on the way there now. So it shouldn't be that big of a deal.
I'm just now realizing how scary the roommate process is. I've gotten about three calls for them, and only one of them has been very promising.
Here are the other two:
Me: Hello
Prospective Roommate #1: Are you looking for a roomate?
Me: Yes I am.
PPR1: Are you looking for a gay roommate?
Me: Well, that's not something that would bother me, if that's what you're asking. I'm just looking for a roommate, man.
PPR1: Well, do you live in a gay area?
Me: No, not really. It's mainly suburban and families with kids and stuff. It's not Mt. Vernon, if that's what you're asking.
PPR1: I thought you were looking for a gay roommate?
Me: I'm really just looking for any sort of roommate.
PPR1: The ad I was reading said they were looking for a gay roommate.
Me: Oh, well you must have mixed up the ads, because mine didn't say that.
PPR1: Well, are you gay?
Me: No, I'm not.
PPR1: Oh, I must have screwed up and looked at the wrong ad. I'm sorry. I guess I'm not interested.
Me: No problem. Good luck.
PPR1: Goodbye.
****
The next call -
Me: Hello.
PPR2: Are you looking for a roommate?
Me: Yes I am.
PPR2: Well, I'm looking to move. You said it's safe? My place right now isn't safe at all.
Me: I live a couple blocks from the mayor, and he's got 24-hour police protection. It's safe.
PPR2: Yeah, I had a break-in here.
Me: That sucks. So, do you want to tell me a little bit about yourself?
PPR2: Well, I'm 30 years old, I just turned 30 on May 31. I worked at McDonald's for four years, and now I work for Morgan State in the cleaning department. I'm very quiet and clean.
Me: Oh, okay. Did you see that I have a dog and a cat? Do you have any allergies?
PPR2: I don't think so, but I'm really allergic to pollen. So, how much did you say it would cost?
Me: It's $250/month.
PPR2: Okay, I think I can cover that. But I'm looking to move immediately. Will there be any other money upfront?
Me: Well, there's also a $250 deposit for the first month's rent.
PPR2: Hmmmm... I think I can do that.
Me: Okay, well why don't you let me give you a call back? It wouldn't be until July anyway.
****
So, the first guy wanted a gay roommate, and the second guy seems to hedge at the very, very cheap rent I'm offering.
I'm actually now considering charging $300/month. My landlord says it's up to me, that if I sign the lease with only my name on it, then I could ask for a little bit more since I'd be incurring risk. That would be cool.
My latest idea is to drop the ad (it still pisses me off that they put it in the wrong section and had a typo in it, and didn't offer to give me a deal), and printing up fliers and putting it at the new teacher meetings here in the city. I hate to be too picky, but I want someone I can relate with, someone to hang out with as well as live with.
The other dilemma I have is that I'm bringing home my PC from school on Monday. I'm not sure what I should do about Internet service, if at all. I've never had to pay for Internet service, and it's not a prospect I'm excited about. I've heard that DSL costs $49/month, which is way pricier than I want. But it would be nice to eliminate all these trips to library. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. Goovie, any ideas? What do you do?
***
A few more things: Talking with my mom yesterday, I realized that my summer break is going to be all of 15 hours. The last day for students was Thursday, the last day for teachers in Monday, and training for summer school is Tuesday. I am not looking forward to summer school at all. I need to do it because I need the money (badly), but I am really dreading it at this moment.
It's official. I named him Tobey. I know that wasn't a name before, and I apologize for the tease of the quizlet last week. Nothing grabbed me until I thought of Tobey yesterday. It doesn't have literary significance, persay, but one of my kids mentioned my looking like Tobey Maguire, and it just hit me (plus, I saw it on Bowwow.com. By the way, I look next to nothing like Tobey Maguire, but a few kids' insistence that I do makes me chuckle, as incorrect as they are. It does make me happy, though, that I've lost enough weight to be considered in the same ballpark as him. It also is a little nod to Toby Zigler, my favorite character from The West Wing. Berty tried to stage a last-minute rally for "Oscar," (after she nixed Oliver, which is a name that Hugasoul had pretty much talked me into. Berty's cat's name is Oliver, so she said I couldn't have it.), but it made me only think of Oscar the Grouch, and not Oscar Wilde, and this cat is not grouchy at all. He's pretty much always happy and purrs more than any cat I've ever met, except when Holden is chasing it.