Archive for the ‘home’ Category

Miami v. ?? [Miami Mondays]

Monday, March 26, 2012

Davis v. Miami

One of the most common questions I get about Miami from my non-Miami friends is “Is Miami expensive?”

Yes and no.

It’s a huge metropolitan area, so it really depends on where you are.

Since leaving my parents’ nest at 18, I have lived in Irvine, New York and Davis before making it to Miami.  So how does Miami compare?

Miami v. Irvine

Apartment complexes in Miami’s suburbs are cheaper than in Irvine’s were in 2002. There are college dives near UM that are also pretty comparable to Irvine’s eats. Proximity to the beach is comparable, but Miami wins in the city department (because it’s actually a city city).

Miami v. NYC

You get way more bang for your buck in Miami real estate compared to NYC, and the condos and buildings are generally newer here. Miami weather is awesome, but New York’s amazing subway system, walkable grid and abundance of cheap good eats beats Miami’s any day.

Miami v. Davis

Davis is by far the cheapest place I’ve ever lived, in terms of housing, food and gas. It is also the most inconveniently located, except in its proximity to outlet malls. Two (pretty good) outlet malls within 45 minutes is pretty cool, but the 2 hour drive to the closest cold windy beach? Not so much.

 

Miamians—how does Miami compare to your past experiences? Non-Miamians—are you ready to move to Miami yet?

Posted in home, Miami, wanderlust | No Comments »

Want v. Need: Kitchen space

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

I love my apartment. I really do. And I REALLY loved our last apartment before we moved here. All 750 sf of it (never was quite sure, but our current one is smaller). That’s why I can’t watch HGTV anymore.

If I hear another couple with no kids say, “this kitchen is just way too small for us,” to anything with a built-in microwave, island, pantry or full-size stove-top, I just might throw something through the TV. And really, there’s no space in our apartment for us to have a TV that doesn’t work.

Because this is my kitchen:

That closet on the left is not a pantry, btw, it’s a dishwasher (thank goodness) and our a/c unit. So we have one narrow upper cabinet (all our dishes and drinkware), the cabinet below it (all our dry goods/pantry), and the two lower cabinets under the sink and counter (trash and supplies under the sink, pots/pans/bakeware under the counter). We do have a microwave, toaster oven, and Foreman grill, but they’re stored in the living room (we kept it there in our last apartment, too).

It’s small, but guess what?

I can make anything in this kitchen. Dinner for five? Done. Cupcakes for a celebration? Done. Homemade gnocchi? Done. Chili for K’s entire department? Done.

Would I take a larger kitchen if I had the chance? Sure. But I know that I can live with a small one. I’ve made K promise to pinch me if I ever utter the words, “this is just too small” when we start house-searching (whenever that might be).

We often confuse what we need with what we want. It’s smaller than you want it to be, sure, but than you need? Not likely. I can honestly say I was way more miserable in the larger apartments we’ve lived in compared to the smaller ones (but that could have been the pests and terrible landlords, too).

Perceived need (want): Gas range, island, counter space, pantry, range hood, garbage disposal, double sinks.

Actual need: A working stove, oven and refrigerator. And something to balance a cutting board on to use as a countertop.

[btw—what is with the obsession with stainless steel and granite? I just don't get it.]

Posted in culture, home | 9 Comments »

The fruits of labor

Monday, January 23, 2012

One of my creations (color pencil, acrylic paint, nail polish)

Now that I’m not blogging regularly, I find that I have a lot of time to get hands-on—making things, fixing things, acting on those items on my “someday” list. I’ve had a ball sewing, crocheting, painting, framing, cooking, taping, tacking, writing and coding.

There’s something sweetly rewarding about making things yourself, and it’s quite a good learning process. Some things I’ve learned in the past six months:

New skills. I’ve learned so much about my sewing machine in the past six months. It’s such a great little tool. And it feels awesome that when something goes wrong, I can fix it (with the help of the manual and Google). I’ve also learned basically how toilets work and gotten really familiar with my studfinder and level.

Frugality. Sometimes I make things because I can’t find anything else like it, or as a temporary fix until I find the right product to purchase. Most of the time, once I’ve made a temporary solution, I find that solution really negates the need to go out and get something new. Case in point: I couldn’t decide on a laptop sleeve and I really needed one for my trip to CA in October. So I made one from supplies I already had. It’s not the prettiest thing in the world, but it works. I’ll use it until it falls apart, and I’ll probably just make a new one to replace it.

Contentedness. Having been in the rat race my whole adult life so far, it’s interesting to set aside the internal pressure and be happy with something because I made it. Sure, my paintings may never be seen by anyone other than me and K, but I’m not going for perfection or success here. The process is as exciting as the product.

Creativity. This might seem redundant, but creativity breeds more creativity. When I blog, I get ideas for things to make, and when I’m hanging things on the wall I get ideas for what to write. It’s a happy little circle.

Do you like to get hands-on? What types of creating do you like to do?

Posted in create, home | 4 Comments »

Re: The American Dream

Monday, December 12, 2011

We recently finished a study through Francis Chan’s Crazy Love in our church small group. I highly recommend it.

Among all the great takeaways, I like this line from the last chapter the best:

The point is that there is another path, an alternative to the individualism, selfishness, and materialism of the American Dream (even the so-called Christian version).

I’ve been struggling lately with where my life has taken me and how it is or is not moving toward the expected next step. I have to say, God has led me to a place I never expected to be—living in Florida, working for myself and having lots of free time that I’m trying to use in the best way possible. There is a freedom in this that has rekindled my spirit.

It’s a struggle because this stage of my life does not necessarily lead me further toward what most people in my position would think of as the next step. Growing up, I was told that there was a right order in which to do things, and I have thus far followed them to a T: college, graduate school, marriage, good job for me, good job for K. Next in line would be buying a home and then popping out some kids.

Realistically, though, I don’t know what’s next. And that’s okay. I don’t know if my current career path will be profitable or sustainable, but I do know that I want to make the most of it now and that I have options it doesn’t pan out the way I had hoped. I don’t know where we’ll be living in five years, but I know I’ll be happy here in Miami or elsewhere (most elsewhere, at least). I don’t know if I will ever own a house, but I do know there will always be a roof over our heads. I don’t know if we’ll have enough saved to pay for our childrens’ college education like our parents did for us, but I do know that they will get discounted or free tuition wherever K is teaching. I used to (ok, still do) worry about these things, but try my hardest to instead place my worries in God’s hands. He’s never led me astray, and His path is in my best interest. Crazy Love was a great reminder that sometimes God doesn’t lead us down the well-worn path.

On a similar note, Forbes recently linked to this great video from the Center for a New American Dream, “The High Price of Materialism.” Seemed like a perfect fit for my recent train of thought.

Posted in culture, faith, home | 3 Comments »

Home

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Home. A simple word, yet sometimes very difficult to understand. Having lived in 10 apartments in 3 states in the past decade and still not feeling ready to settle down, I think about the idea of home often but have yet to grasp exactly what it means to me. There are just too many places, physical and emotional, that feel like home or could be home.

Home. Where I was born and lived my young life. Moved out of state when I was 5 and have been there twice in the 23 years since. But I went to school there, had friends, had hobbies. I remember it barely, but always fondly. And I still root for my hometown team.

Home. Where my parents have lived since I was 5. Where I went to kindergarten, elementary school, junior high, and high school with many of the same kids (and went on to college with some of them, too). The neighborhood has changed, the house has been completely refinished and the backyard pool has been traded for grass and landscaping, but it’s still very much the same as I remember. I still have friends here, places to visit and things to see. I even keep doubles of all my toiletries here so I don’t have to pack mini-versions of everything when I fly.

Home. Where my family is from, where I spent many a childhood summers roaming the hot alleys of Taipei (supervised of course). Where I saw my cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles. Where there are albums and albums of pictures from my parents’ and grandparents’ childhoods.

Home. Wherever I’m living at the moment. NYC was home for a brief period. Davis was home for four years. Miami is now home. It hit me when I returned from visiting with my sister-in-law last month and K was driving me home through the bustle and bright lights of downtown Miami toward our building. It was so familiar, yet so foreign.

I see a lot of people for whom home is one place: one city, one region, one state, one house. Sometimes I get a little jealous that everything that is home to them can be together. Don’t get me wrong, I love exploring new places, finding my own way and having a good excuse to visit California on a regular basis. And I’m not sure that I’m ready to pick one place and settle down yet. I just wonder sometimes what it would feel like to know you’re completely at home.

Posted in growing up, home, wanderlust | 2 Comments »