fox | the radio buttons are quite deliberate.

So a year ago, when I took this job, I thought -- and people said -- Oh, so it might be a good idea to move to Maryland now, eh? And I said Well, but, I have a twelve-month lease, and let's not go charging into anything; I'll revisit the issue when I've been in the job a year.

Yeah.

Okay, so, the situation is this. I live alone, which I like a lot, in a small apartment that I like a lot (and in which the lease is now month-to-month), in a solidly-built, well-managed building that I like a lot, in a neighborhood that I like a lot (for all the time I spend there). My job, one of my two other main time-sinks (the other is chorus, which is at the National Cathedral, which is inconvenient to any place I am willing to live, since I'm not moving into the District, and would be inconvenient even if I did, unless I moved to the Cathedral area, which would solve that but further complicate everything else), and most of the friends I see with any kind of regularity are over 20 miles away. So I'm thinking about switching sides.

Here is a pro/con VA/MD table as I see it.

staying in NoVA

moving to MoCo

+ I already like where I live.
- With the exception of the grocery store at the bottom of the hill, it is relatively far from everything I need except, like, National Airport.
+ It's an easy drive to most things I need.
- I can't really afford anything bigger, say a two-bedroom place so maybe people could come visit me.
+ Blue county in a red state; we are the reason Jim Webb is a senator, and come November, see also Mark Warner/senator, possibly [Barack Obama|Hillary Clinton]/president.
+ The taxes down here are better than up there.
+ It won't be long before I have to replace my car, so I'd rather not incur massive unnecessary expenses before then.

- I hate moving.
- I mean hate it.
+ I'd drive something like half as much. At the moment I drive at least 45 miles a day. If I lived closer, on days with no curling and no chorus (so, Thursdays [g]) I could conceivably metro to work.
+ And not driving home 45 minutes after curling would be awesome.
- I'm not convinced I can afford a place I'm willing to live in up this way -- I'm pretty much limiting my search to

wordplay,

ellen_fremedon &

sanj's ZIP code -- except places that I'm evidently priced out of because I make too much to qualify for Affordable Housing.
- Ideally, I'd like to buy something, and wouldn't move again until I moved into a place I owned (ideally with someone, but that's a separate issue, isn't it), but this isn't the time for that -- plus, see above re: car.

You see my predicament.

So with all that in mind, please vote.

[Poll #1129544]

I did, idly, do a search for three-bedroom places, on the theory that there's (I guess) a non-zero chance Ellen and Sanj and I could live together without one or two of us killing two or one of the others (or herself) ... but the cats are counterindicated, I'm afraid, and there is no floor plan in existence where Ellen and Sanj would be willing to restrict the cats to the combined area of their two rooms, leaving my room and the common areas cat-free, even if it were possible to do so, which, given Ellen's cat, it is not.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

But what do I know?!? Make Ellen & Sanj decide, says I. (god, I hate moving.)

Ellen has already come firmly down against attempting to restrict the cat to a bedroom and part of a hallway. It would be cruel, if it weren't completely impossible.

Two bedrooms and part of a hallway. Not that it changes the answer, but come on, it makes it only half as cruel as you're suggesting. (Still equally impossible, of course.)

Dude, like they'd share each other's bedroom... have you *met* Scary and Zoe?

The place I live now is the longest I've lived at a single address since leaving my parents' house in August of 1995. January is the 16th full month I've been in this apartment. The previous record was 15 months, and after that I haven't been anywhere even a full year. When I say I hate moving, I am speaking from full knowledge of and familiarity with my subject. :-]

my reason you should stay in VA are purely political.

There are a few LGBT folks that I know that'd live in VA 'cause of lots of reasons (some of which you stated) but the political environment isn't conducive for them feeling safe living there. And, more importantly, them raising their children there.

But since you're straight and your the only folks that can change from within, the power of your vote in that blue district in the red state makes a *huge* difference (see Jim Webb, Warner and hopefully Obama).

Tell you what, though, the things that would make a person feel unsafe raising a kid in VA aren't really in effect in Arlington, as far as I know (not being a member of a persecuted minority -- except for being a woman, that is [eta: and jewish enough for the haters] -- and not having kids I'm trying to raise). There are, yes, state laws that suck, which there also are in MD, incidentally, and in terms of living environment, an awful lot of the time it looks to me like NoVA and MD are practically the same (with a slight increase, in Maryland, of a pedestrian's likelihood of being hit by a car).

I think you're right; you could probably live very comfortably with both of us -- except for the cats, who are non-negotiable. So much (catwise) would depend on layout... plus, dude, we just moved, and we have a lease until September.

I can't actually decide what you should do based on the pros and cons set forth, above. But I think having you closer by would be so *unutterably freaking awesome* that I voted Y out of pure self-interest.

Also, consider 20912, granola capital of the Beltway, and 20904, which has a lot of cheap-and-nice apartments. I remember really liking this one when I toured it, though it may be too far out of your way: http://www.whiteoakapts.com/mwo/

I kind of want to be as near downtown SS as I am to the Stuff I've got near me now. Which, I mean, yes, is going to raise the base price. No, I'm not picky at all, why? (Look, I've got a place I like; I can afford to be picky, right?)

Go for the Blairs, then. ;)

heh... I live in the Blairs. :)

Do you like it? Quick rundown on your building, please. :-)

Yeah, I do. The one downside is that the heat/ac is not central air -- it's through the radiators, so it can dry out the apartment in the winters, but I've found that turning it down a bit during the day and then turning it back up to optimal temps at night does the trick (and occasionally using a humidifier). On the upside, we have temperature control in the living room and in each bedroom. :) I have a 2-bedroom...let me know if you want to come over and check it out. I'm in the Towers -- they're the 5-story midrise buildings. I have friends in two of the 3 high-rises.

Each high-rise has a gym, and tower residents can use any of them.

Yay 20910! I live here.

Are you dissing my zipcode, Sanj? ;)

I hope you're finding these results useful.... [g]

At this point I'd say stick with a month-to-month lease if they will let you and shop around, but unless you can find a workable roommate solution, it's better to save up your shekels toward a new car and a down payment.

Because I can't tell if some of the things you listed are considered for you a positive or a negative, I think it would help to have two columns rearranged to reflect Moving: Pro and Con. I believe, if I am reading things correctly, you will have far more things in the "Con" column. However, you still have to weigh those things for their relative importance. To me, there have to be a lot of "Pros" to outweigh two "hate moving"s.

Oh, that's a tough one. I think the lesser driving time is a real incentive, but moving does suck.
Still...come to Maryland, we have cookies!

the radio buttons are quite deliberate.

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