// living spaces

Well. That time really flew by, didn't it? It feels like just yesterday I was piecing together my new computer for the first time, getting hands-on experience in new and foreign hardware to me. Of course, it has actually be over 4 months of time since my last update on this build, and many things have changed: not just from a computer point of view, but a life point of view as well. Let's jump right in with what has changed.

Living at home, my girlfriend and I were having a hard time finding our own space, and sharing a small room was making it harder for us to create a common space that worked for both of us. Obviously from my last few posts, you can see that my desk takes up a considerable chunk of space in the room, and with a queen sized bed and 2 dressers along with it, I had my space, but she was hard-pressed to call a corner of her room her own. We decided in mid-August to move out, and found a spacious 2 bedroom apartment to share with friends, which gave us the ability to be creative in our living space and also reorganize some of our belongings and furniture. Very Marie Kondo-esque.

Around the same time, I was beginning to get frustrated with the desk setup I had been using for the past several months. At the time of purchase, it was a great little space-saver, L-shaped desk that fit almost perfectly into the corner of my room I had available for it (see previous blog post). But after spending just a few hours working or gaming on it, my arms would grow sore and my legs would need stretching. With the length being only 18 inches, I did not have much room to spread out and would be uncomfortable and annoyed after a short amount of time. With my bed frame being almost right up against the space reserved for my chair also meant it was hard to get in and out of the space, and get situated comfortably. I felt like I was starting to develop acute claustrophobia (not really, but I was uncomfortable). I was used to very simple layouts in my living space, and preferred a lot of open space and room to make the room feel like it flowed. This was getting harder to do with my girlfriend now living with me, as the amount of 'stuff' we had (including a CAT, a litter box, a scratching tree) made our space feel tight and cramped. So, we reevaluated how we were living at the time, and decided we wanted to move into a new space that would work better for both of us. After many months of looking and waiting for the right price, we found a great two bedroom apartment in Japantown to share with another couple that we've known for a long time. It was all in all better for our commutes to work and school, had many local grocery and shopping choices as well as restaurants and night life (for post-COVID life), and a huge park right next to us. The room we were moving into is also was several feet larger than our space before, which meant we could comfortably fit a small space for lounging with a comfortable arm chair, a full sized desk for my workspace, and a queen sized bed.

Our new apartment also featured a great sized balcony, full kitchen, sizable living room, and separate bathrooms for each couple, being a twin-master apartment. We moved in on the hottest weekend of the year, which also coincided with what we could at this point call our annual wildfires in California; up three stories with no elevator. It sucked. But we pushed through it and are now all moved in and comfortable!

Our roommates, during this time period, were lucky enough to adopt a dog from a local shelter: an American bulldog of 4 months. He was the perfect compliment to our 1 year cat, Kovu (or what I call him, Corn), and we have been lucky enough to see their friendship blossom since we have moved into our warm household. This will foreshadow plenty of photography that includes not only Corn but Meeko (the bulldog) as well!

Now, in tradition of the blog, I will continue to catalog the process that I have been through in using my new computer, building with new components, with a new twist; my experience with using it in a new space! In this experience, I will also talk about how my girlfriend and I have furnished our new space, how we have decided to decorate our new space, and how my life is vernally different from when I had lived at home.

I am excited to share how I have adapted and transformed my new space, with MUCH help from my girlfriend and roommates, and how we decided how to organize our space! For now, it may look simple and plain, but here are some pictures of how we have organized our space.