how I decided not to live with a crazy girl

Yesterday, I realized that I never delivered on my promise from my first post ever. You’re probably wondering, what the heck is she talking about? Frankly, I’d like to forget my first post too (actually, the whole month of April is probably not my best blogging material). However, I made the promise to tell you the story of how it is that Jesse and I came to live together. So, here it is.

I lived, quite happily, in a rowhouse on the NE side of the Hill, just a few blocks from Union Station. It took me forever to find that house. In fact, when I first moved here, I stayed in a hotel while I found a place and I ended up staying at that hotel for a month because it took me THAT long to find something I felt comfortable with that was Metro accessible (I’m not even counting the months I spent looking for a place to live while in Cali). I truly loved this house and proudly made it my home. I subleased (or is it sublet?) the master bedroom with my own bath month-to-month. It was the perfect arrangement. I even had the pleasure of living with some really special people (Shell and Drew) and some not so special people (like the dumb girl who worked on the Hill who slept with every guy she met). Ahhh…the joys of living in a group house.

After living there for a couple of years, the subletter told us that in a couple of months he would not be renewing the lease and the owner would sell. I panicked. Who knows how long it would take for me to find another suitable home, especially since it took me so long last time? So, I started my search.

I had two requirements. I didn’t want to sign a lease and I didn’t want to commit to a particular amount of time. I hoped that one day, Jesse would ask me to live with him and I wanted to be available to accept that offer, whenever it would come. With those two criteria in mind, I looked. I got lucky. I found something right away. It was a room in a 2BR apartment in Arlington. It was 5 minutes from Jesse’s new condo. When I contacted the girl, she was fine with my requirements and invited me to take a look. That weekend, Jesse and I checked the place out. I would be replacing her current roommate. I needed to make the deposit check out to the leaving roommate and could move in at the start of the following month.

It was perfect…until future potential roomie, Not So Smart Girl, decided to tell the management company that she was getting a new roommate ONE WEEK BEFORE I WAS TO MOVE IN. The management company said that I needed to submit an application and that my name would have to be on the lease. I had two lease options—a year lease and a 6 month lease that would add another $200/month to the rent. I was pissed. After being told my prerequisites were fine, I was being asked to do exactly what I didn’t want to do. If I didn’t, I would be homeless by the first of the month.

So, I applied. I was contacted by the management company and was told that I needed to provide them with a deposit. Hmmm..that’s funny because I thought I had already paid a deposit. Management didn’t care that I had already paid a deposit to the outgoing roommate. I needed to give them a deposit before I moved in. And the deposit would stay with NSS Girl if I moved out before her (which was very likely).

I told NSS Girl about this and I expected to get my previous non-valid deposit back. For whatever reason, she didn’t feel that reimbursing me would be a reasonable solution. Apparently, she thought it was completely fair for me to pay two deposits because the first one was with her and the second one was with the management company. Ok then. I’ve never heard of that. I consulted the management company and the manager herself told me that she thought that NSS Girl (or her roommate) should reimburse me because that deposit had nothing to do with them and my deposit to management was the only thing needed for me to move in. The manager also went on to tell me that NSS Girl has proven to be less than an ideal tenant and has been frustrating their office also. At least I wasn’t the only victim.

So, the day before move-in day, I told NSS Girl that I wanted to be given back my deposit so I could give the management company the money. She then asked, “Well, if I give you the money, when would you pay me back?” My jaw dropped. This chick was still not getting it. I no longer had the patience for her, nor did I even want to live with someone this dense. Jesse, sensing my frustration, offered me a place to stay until I could find something else. This wasn’t quite the romantic proposal that I had in mind, but it would have to do. I didn’t want to be homeless. I called NSS Girl and told her that I didn’t think this would work out and that I wanted my deposit back. I got a check the following week.

Everything happens for a reason, they say. I’m still living with Jesse and it’s been great. I have not been looking for a place to live. And I’m happier now than I’ve ever been. So take THAT, NSS Girl!