O Brave New World...

I will move out of Oakland to San Leandro. My apartment in North Oakland, where I have lived for almost twenty years -- I moved here in October 1998, with two dufflebags, a backpack, and a cat carrier with Rilke -- is full of boxes. Over the past two weeks (well, on the weekends, and then full bore once Spring Break began, this past Saturday) I have been packing and organizing. My younger niece Rosie, now in 8th grade, came over three times and helped me a lot. My older niece Ruby, now a junior, came to sleep over one night and basically mourn my apartment, which is three blocks from her high school, Oakland Tech. She has keys, and has sometimes come over after school, or if she felt sick during the school day. It has been a good apartment, and a good neighborhood for me.

But: no off-street parking and regular tickets; horrible cement steps; nine units and only one washer and dryer in the basement; no cross-drafts at all and every time I cooked in the miniscule kitchen with literally no counter space, the smoke alarm would go off... The building was constructed in 1918, and has wooden floors and high ceilings and bay windows. The neighborhood is commercial and busy and also somewhat dangerous these days -- lots of homeless people yelling randomly, and a shooting on the corner at Halloween... which I heard in the middle of the night, not knowing that the crowd surging out of a party had dispersed and that at least one person had literally run OVER my parked car, leaving footprints on the hood, the roof, and the trunk, as well as dents on the roof. Even though I've gotten the car washed since then, you can still see some of the footprints.

I have a lot of emotions right now. I will miss Oakland terribly, and San Leandro is a boring-assed working class suburb. At least it's not rich, there's that. I have a condo in a complex built in typical ugly fashion in 1981. It's okay, not stomach-churningly ugly. The interior is clean. It has wall-to-wall carpeting which I fucking HATE, but am not allowed to replace. It has a washer and dryer in the unit which is the most luxurious thing I've ever imagined. There's a huge balcony. My apartment in Oakland feels claustrophobic with more than three people in it, but this new place might not -- maybe I'll even have a house-warming and invite some folks from my school.

It is a two bedroom condo, and my mother is moving in with me, as long as that is practicable (see last entry). She's not moving in immediately; maybe in a month or so. I'm anxious about that, but willing to try. She's going to have to get rid of a lot of stuff. I have, too -- I downsized a TON, donating stuff via 1-800-Got-Junk? (and they're coming again tomorrow morning for a second round). It was really fun getting rid of stuff. My journal contains little drawings of the furniture I am taking, and the furniture I gave away, and the furniture my mom will bring. I also gave away boxes and boxes (and there are three more huge ones along with the last of the downsized furniture) of books and clothes and miscellaneous items.

Since I have a fucking huge mortgage and had to spend almost half my savings on closing costs and shit like that, I am also spending some money on IKEA furniture and a little work --

* pulled down the ugly old brown cabinets that were so high I could only reach the first two inches of the bottom shelf (and my mother could not reach at all)... I could have just moved them, but the handyman guy I hired is getting rid of them and putting up white glass-doored IKEA cabinets, lower.

* took the sliding glass door off the bath so my mom can get in and out

* took off brown louvered folding doors that covered up the old white frigidaire washer and dryer

BOUGHT: * another Billy bookcase since the apartment had a built in, and I got rid of a bookshelf... hope that four total are enough; * a round metal table and four cafe style metal chairs for the balcony; * a new desk top to replace this one with its fucked up surface from me putting down pots and cups of tea with nothing under them; * a two drawer metal filing cabinet to put my printer on and some of my endless papers in; * the IKEA kitchen cabinets; and * a blue metal storage chest on ten skinny legs that will cover the back of my futon and serve as a place to display stuff; two shelves that just stick out from the wall, also for display; * a Matisse print for my bathroom; * new silverware; * a new toaster; * a set of curtains and a curtain rod for my room

Man, writing that all out, it sounds like an orgy of consumption. It's not usual for me. Normally I spend money on ebooks and groceries and eating out. The last of these is probably not going to happen much now that I will be paying twice as much monthly for housing.

Packing was kind of weirdly satisfying. Thank fuck this is Spring Break. My sister, brother-in-law, and nieces are up in the Pacific Northwest visiting friends and bookstores and the Ashland Shakespeare place and colleges, but they'll be back tomorrow evening and Ruby and Rosie are going to help unpack. I hope Tim will help put art up -- including my huge framed poster of Amitabh Bachchan fighting with a hammer and sickle as weapons, from the 1970s movie Coolie. I am excited about seeing how things will look. I will post pictures.