Home Sweet... Railroad Style Apartment..?

I awoke Thursday morning in a great mood. I had an awesome night sleep & it was my last day of work before the 4-day Labor day holiday. I grabbed a towel or two and headed down the hallway to the bathroom to take a shower. I open the door to the living room and am shocked to discover two people laying across my couches. Fine fine, I don't care. My roommate Courtney had some friends sleep over. They probably went out late and decided just to crash out our place. I have had people sleep over, so I have no problem if my roommates do the same. As I quietly tip-toed through, attempting to not wake anyone up, I stopped dead in my tracks.

They were tangled up IN MY SHEETS. I repeat - strangers on our couches. In. MY. Clean laundered sheets. As in they had to physically go through our linen closet, pull out all my crap (they were flannel sheets and on the bottom of the pile) and bring them over to the couch.

I was AMAZED. Courtney & I are NOT friends. If my other roommate Meg did that, I wouldn't have even noticed. She can take whatever because if the situation arose, she would have probably washed them. And then told me. And then folded them back nice. Not Courtney. Oh no no, her and her friends were apparently too good for that and hastily shoved them back the next morning.

It got me thinking about roommates. One of the problems with a great city like New York is that because we all want to be here, rent is astronomical. If you don't have the desire to be in NYC, the idea of sharing a closet with 17 other people or living in a railroad style apartment is unheard of.

About 16 months ago (give or take) that was me. I got my first job in the city and wanted the NYC experience Obviously I could NEVER afford anything in Manhattan, so went for the next best thing - Hoboken. And let me tell you, it is a great wonderful place to live. Beautiful and safe. But it too is getting more and more expensive. I mean where else in the world can a landlord feel justified in upping the rent in a room the size of a bathroom. But I guess it's worth it if you have a 30 minute ride (if that) into the city.

When I moved into Hoboken, the only thing I cared about was getting there. I didn't care who I lived with or how small the room was. All I wanted was something mostly furnished (because I have nothing) and on the cheaper side (again because I have nothing). I found an adorable place to live with 2 chicks (thank you craigs list). It was awkward at first because they were friends, but later we got to know eachother and were cool. The only issue was the fact that the apartment is railroad style, meaning my roommate Megan had to walk through my bedroom to get the rest of the apartment.

Around December, Joanne (the other roommate) dropped the bomb that she was moving out and immediately Meg & I got an ad up for a new roommate. Thank the good lord I got to move out of the walk-through and into Joanne's HUGE room for a mere $25 extra. Seriously. It is a gem.

In a fit of desperation, we gave the room up to this dude Ben. How do I explain Ben? He is basically a filthy-goat- stew- eating no-personality-weirdo-pot head, who happens to be a microscope salesman. We were amazed how he could possible be a salesman because he sucks soo bad. His room consisted of his huge microscope, a half-deflated air mattress, and some random boxes. Luckily for us, he only lasted a month or two. I'd just like to say thanks to Ben ordering a whole bunch of movies on paid per view before he left.

Then we got Courtney, who I guess is fine, in the aspect that she's never around and if she is, stays to herself and doesn't make much noise. What gets me is that if you are both home, she will NEVER initiate conversation unless you ask her 20 questions. Only time I have talked her was when she was upset about something or I was drunk and apparently chatty.

She is moving out Oct. 1st, so it makes Meg & I wonder whether a) we just have bad luck with the little room or b) perhaps we are bad roommates who are hard to live with.

But that's silly, what am I saying? Between the two of us, we are never around, super clean, and laid back. So maybe it is the room. All I know is it BETTER be filled by Oct 1. So if you know anyone looking for a cheapy room in Hoboken with yours truly as a roommate, let me know!