My parents will loan me the money to buy another beater car. Which is more debt, but very arguably very necessary debt at this point, since we're all agreed that three hours a day on transit is not a practical solution to my transportation needs.
I'm going to move into my Grandma's basement. It is by no means my ideal situation, but it's doable for a while. Especially if I paint the room I'm moving into (it's currently covered in very dark wood paneling, and isn't super well lit, so a coat of white or off white paint will work wonders) - and Grandma said I could paint. The room is large, and at the back of the basement, and will give me space to still set up my couch/loveseat so I can have friends over, as well as having an open area in front where I can put my table and chairs (since I often have friends come for dinner).
It will be interesting to see how it goes, since my grandma and I are about as opposite in personality as humanly possible. She is maybe the most chatty person alive, loves being with people, talks on the phone for hours, is very nosy, and likes to know everything about everyone she ever meets. She can also give you all the details on the life of someone she ran into at the grocery store the other day who you may have met, once, or whose sibling you went to school with some thirty years prior. I on the other hand, am an introvert who LOVES silence and privacy - lots of silence and privacy. This personality conflict was the biggest reason I was hesitating to move in in the first place, and it will definitely be the largest challenge of living there.
To be honest, I'm still a bit discouraged and angry at how things have played out. Mostly just frustrated at the loss of a car, but also a little frustrated to have to give up this apartment. Of the three places I've lived since moving out of my parent's home, this has definitely been my favorite, the most convenient for my work commute, and for my life in general. I've really loved living here, and it's hard to give that up.
I'd already been mostly planning to live with Grandma. It was the idea that wouldn't go away as I mulled and prayed over what on earth I was going to do when L's visa expired and she had to leave the country. Especially as each of the options for replacement roommates that had seemed so certain fell away. So, in that sense, I'm confident that this is a "right" step. I guess I'm struggling with the "my will vs. God's leading" conundrum. Because this "right step" is most certainly NOT the one I would have chosen.
Living with Grandma makes economic sense as well. I will save probably somewhere between 100 and 150 dollars a month in expenses - money that can go towards debt to pay it off sooner and set me free. Or money that can pay the likely increase in my car insurance payment thanks to another accident on my record. I guess it's hard for me, though, because I am far more of a dreamer than a person who wants to live with the reality of numbers, and living at Grandma's is definitely going to be a challenging sacrifice for the sake of my finances.
To be fair, I'm not afraid to admit that these circumstances are somewhat of my own making. It was my choices that led to the debt that means I can't afford my own place. And it is my choice in how I handle this next season, waiting and paying down debt, and moving forward. I know that these things are mine alone to own. But I'm struggling a little with that too. Because it would be nice to blame the debt on the circumstances that led to my spending. On some of the disasters of life in the last couple of years that meant I relied on my credit card for groceries in order that I could make a rent payment from my chequing account, or that left me devastated and looking to buy happiness wherever I could. But I made those choices - the attempted purchases of happiness especially.
To quote the irritating old saying, "I made the bed, and now I've got to lie in it." (Which is really a horrible saying, and quite ruins the beauty I enjoy each week of making my bed with freshly washed sheets and then crawling into it at the end of the night!)
So. In the next month, here's what's happening in my life.
- I need to pack all of the belongings in the current apartment, relocate them to Grandma's basement, and unpack them there.
- I need to get a Grandma approved paint color, some primer, and paint the incredibly dark 1970s wood paneling to a lighter and more liveable shade of white or beige. (So thankful that all of my furniture is a nice bright white color as that will help immensely as well!)
- I need to shop (with my dad's help) for a replacement for George at some sort of affordable price.
- I also need to tackle the challenge of getting back behind the wheel of a car again.
- I will be involved in wedding planning with my brother and L.
- I'll be working full time, and planning a major conference for work, to take place in early April, just after Easter.
- I'll be hoping and praying my body gets back to normal post accident.
That's the scoop. I'm still tired and frustrated. I'm working on readjusting my expectations to what my new reality is going to be. I'm a bit overwhelmed at the seeming enormity of the tasks in front of me, especially at a time when I know that I'm not physically well (I was still having health problems before the accident, and I've now compounded them.) I'm working at finding that peace again. At accepting what the next section of my life is going to look like.
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