Another Frickin' Rite of Passage

No, I'm not talking about moving in with my boyfriend 1100 miles from our hometowns. I'm talking about the two gray hairs I found this morning. Just as I was returning to my natural hair color. Damn it!

*sigh*

Song Parody, "The New Apartment"

To the tune of "The Old Apartment" by Barenaked Ladies:

Welcome to the new apartment
This is where we’re gonna live
L-shaped duplex, gravel driveway, situated on a slope
This is where we’re gonna live

Why don’t they fix the walk?
Why won’t the back door lock?
Why don’t we turn the heat up? We’re freezing our asses off!

This is where we’re gonna live!

Need a stopper for the sink drain
Where are the missing door chains?
Looks like they used to be there, but now they are gone, I want ‘em back

Check it out, the new apartment
Newly-installed wall-to-wall
In a tasteful complimentary shade of taupe. Or is it beige?
This is where we’re gonna live

Why is the freezer warm?
Why won’t the heat come on?
It’s not a good sign when the first pee you take clogs the john!
This is where we’re gonna live?

Welcome to the new apartment
Seventeen steps down the slope
Freshly painted, freshly spackled, but they did not sand or prime
This is where we’re gonna live

Linen closet’s missing two shelves
Manager left us by ourselves
Said he’d be back in a few, but it’s been more than an hour!

I know these are things that can be fixed
Tomorrow we'll email the landlord
Big backyard, in a quiet neighborhood
We’ll be happy here

This is where we’re gonna live!

Welcome to the new apartment
Hospital’s just down the road
We’re a mile from Lebanon Pike and Old Hickory Boulevard
Let’s get a snack

Let’s get a snack
(There’s a Sonic down the road)

Let’s get a snack
(Give the heat a chance to work)

Let’s get a snack
(Get a burger and some fries)

Let’s get a snack!

The Apartment

Hey y'all! Since I'm moving south in a couple of weeks I might as well start using the word y'all...

Rich & I took a road trip to Tennessee this past week to check out our new apartment and move in about half of our furniture and belongings. The apartment is located in Hermitage, just east of Nashville. It's a small town named for President Andrew Jackson's estate, so there's some history and culture mixed in with the cow pastures and big-box retailers. The trip took about 20 hours each way, including stops for fast food, fuel and the occasional nap. And I'm happy to report that our relationship is still intact.

The apartment itself is half of a duplex in a quiet residential neighborhood. It's a single-level with two off-street parking spaces and a deck overlooking huge backyard. There are a row of shrubs in front of the house that appear to be freshly planted. It's a two bedroom, because we can afford a two bedroom in the Nashville area, as opposed to Boston where we probably couldn't afford to share a frickin cardboard box. There were a few minor maintenance issues, which I will detail later, but they're all going to be addressed by the time we move in permanently after Christmas. Or so we hope...

We'll be about a mile from the intersection of Old Hickory Boulevard and Lebanon Pike, the two main drags through Hermitage. There are a couple of shopping centers nearby, a hospital/medical center, and we're within reasonable driving distance of Percy Priest Lake, Old Hickory Lake, the Stones River and the Cumberland River. The shopper and the water sign in me will be quite content.

Even with the "minor maintenance issues" we're very excited about the move. It's two major life changes in one - moving in together after 3-plus years of dating AND moving over 1100 miles from our hometowns. But if our relationship survived the trip to the apartment and back, I'm sure it'll outlive the lease. ;-)