Is she Balki or am I?
Isn’t having a surprise foreigner come to live with you the premise for a bad sitcom?... But I think I might be the foreigner in this situation.
F and I have talked about how my going back to Seattle will be like a TV shows set in high schools in which the characters all go to college together (so many people from my Portland life + my family + people from my childhood live there now/still). Little did I expect that my life would take on a plotline from primetime TV quite so soon.
A few days back, I received an e-mail telling me my landlord would be coming to town. She has lived in Phoenix for the past four years. We’ve never met. She knocked on my door seven hours later and has been staying with me ever since. She’s nice enough (well, except for her waking me up last night to recap her day), but it’s not the most fun I have ever had. There was no warning. And while my lease does say I should have 24 hours notice of any landlord plan to visit the apartment (and nothing about joining me to live here), I am trying not to be a jerkface about it. I’ve been lucky to live here. I am sure it must be weird for her to see my Pirates of the Caribbean poster and postcards up all over her wall.
Living with strangers is not something that I am fond of, not something that I was planning to do again so soon. I like being able to be loud and messy in my own space – not that I am particularly loud or messy. Having the possibility is what matters. I don’t like having people tell me to clean (which happened this morning – cleaning is my plan for tomorrow morning). I didn’t realize how dependent I have become on having my own refuge of sorts from the world, where I can sit and embroider while listening to Dan Savage’s podcasts without fear of offending delicate ears.
Still, it’s not all bad. Having her around means that she will take care of the few minor home repairs that I have been too lazy/lacking appropriate vocabulary to deal with.
Let the hilarity ensue.
F and I have talked about how my going back to Seattle will be like a TV shows set in high schools in which the characters all go to college together (so many people from my Portland life + my family + people from my childhood live there now/still). Little did I expect that my life would take on a plotline from primetime TV quite so soon.
A few days back, I received an e-mail telling me my landlord would be coming to town. She has lived in Phoenix for the past four years. We’ve never met. She knocked on my door seven hours later and has been staying with me ever since. She’s nice enough (well, except for her waking me up last night to recap her day), but it’s not the most fun I have ever had. There was no warning. And while my lease does say I should have 24 hours notice of any landlord plan to visit the apartment (and nothing about joining me to live here), I am trying not to be a jerkface about it. I’ve been lucky to live here. I am sure it must be weird for her to see my Pirates of the Caribbean poster and postcards up all over her wall.
Living with strangers is not something that I am fond of, not something that I was planning to do again so soon. I like being able to be loud and messy in my own space – not that I am particularly loud or messy. Having the possibility is what matters. I don’t like having people tell me to clean (which happened this morning – cleaning is my plan for tomorrow morning). I didn’t realize how dependent I have become on having my own refuge of sorts from the world, where I can sit and embroider while listening to Dan Savage’s podcasts without fear of offending delicate ears.
Still, it’s not all bad. Having her around means that she will take care of the few minor home repairs that I have been too lazy/lacking appropriate vocabulary to deal with.
Let the hilarity ensue.
posted by rachel @ 2:56 PM
2 Comments:
At 6:20 AM,
Anonymous said…
hi! saw your blog. my husband will be working in Belgrade, and I am to go there next year. I hope to study language too.
What school are you enrolled in Serbia? I am currently looking for a school, to learn serbian language, french and some international languages. thanks!
At 4:14 PM,
rachel said…
I studies at The Institute for Foreign Languages and was fairly impressed with their classes. (They offer many different languages as well.) Good luck!
Post a Comment
<< Home