Freshen Up

A near miss: bink pointed out that the one-room studio I'd applied for is facing a highway that's under construction for the next two years.
I'd thought that project was done!
But noooooo, it'll be noise & dust, dawn till dark, all the warm months of the year.

So, darn.
I told the apartment people to cancel my application. I assume I'll lose the application fee, but at least this time I didn't actually sign a lease and lose my one-month deposit (as I'd done last year with an apartment over a busy street---I could have/should have known the all-night roar of traffic would bother me.)

Today I see Ben, the gym guy, for a one-on-one session--at a distance, now gyms have reopened again.
My intention is to SLOW DOWN, move with more intention, pay attention to physical things.
To other things in general, too--don't leap before I look around, look ahead.

I'd talked with HM when I applied for the apartment.
I'd thought she'd be hurt that I was thinking of moving, but she said she understood my desire to be back in my old neighborhood.
We had a good chat about making some changes to the house, now the new windows are in.
They are fabulous! The house is quieter & snugger, yet brighter.

I want to make this place more comfortable for me, including finally painting my room a cream color--white with a slight warm yellow undertone.
My desk chair is 1970s-Orange, so it'll tilt toward citrus.

Marz is moving to a new place in a week, a shared house walking distance to her new co-op job almost 5 miles from here.
Much as I'll miss her, I'll be glad to have access to the guest room again--a room I'd painted (a sort of ochre) when I first moved in.
More private space.

Work is going better.
Now I have a respirator, I'm more comfortable. I'm back to working my usual hours (24/week). And since Ass't Man has calmed down again, the overall mood is improved.

Last week we got the December sales print-out: BOOK's had their best month ever:
around 2,000 printed materials sold (including magazines at 25¢ each; Last-Chance books at 33¢; crime, romance, & kids books at 49¢ = the total income was only around $2,000  . . . but that's a lot for our poor store).
I was pleased and proud.

Now my intention is to look for second part-time job.
I'm not ruling out a new, full-time job if I see something ideal, but the idea of sitting at the computer at home alone, all day, makes my heart sink.

We shall see.

Oh, hey, a bit of cheering news for me:
just now, 8:34 a.m. Monday, the rental company emailed that they'll refund my $55 application fee. YAY!

I cancelled my subscription to MasterClass too. It was almost $200 for a year, and from the classes I've skimmed in the past ten days, really no better than the 3,600+ TEDtalks free online. 

Those refunds will pay for my Baymax comforter cover, paint, and a couple gym classes.
In about six weeks, I turn sixty.
Fingers crossed, at this moment the future looks fresh.