moving on up

note from nicole: i apologize to my friends who have heard this rant more than once lately.

i went house-hunting this week. it started out fun but quickly became frustrating and disappointing. our decision comes down to this - do we want a 6500 square foot house out in the suburbs crammed on one-tenth of an acre between houses that are virtually indistinguishable from one another or do we want (for the same price) a "refurbished" shoebox in the city with college kids renting on either side. it's a tough call. i am pretty sure i am a real estate agent's nightmare because apparently i am looking for something that most people are not looking for - a reasonable house. the idea of furnishing, decorating, heating/cooling, and removing dog hair and kids' toys from 6500 square feet of house is nauseating to me - so i guess it comes down to just being lazy even though i would love to make some argument that i am being socially responsible. and don't get me wrong, i really like nice houses with fancy countertops and appliances. and i am not a minimalist, although i do think that we have less crap than the average household, but that may be due to the fact that i am not terribly sentimental and don't tend to hang onto things like my kids' first birthday party outfits, a sample of hair from their first haircut or a vial of their first spit-up. i don't have my great-grandmother's china (or a china cabinet to display it in) or an 18th century birthing stool. i don't need any room that starts with the word "formal" and if i had my way, a kitchen wouldn't really be mandatory. i just need a few rooms (at least one with some toys and video games and a lock on the outside of the door) and of course, a full-size indoor theater complete with authentic movie-theater seating and a popcorn-maker.