The apartment search goes on.....and on and on.....

Friends,

It's been a week or so since I updated the blog. Life has been full of little episodes. for example, Sprint billing me for another month's phone charge of $80, back in Portland. When I put the account on hold and should have only been billed $12. Or URS saying they wouldn't extend my stay at the hotel and having 4 days to find some other living arrangements, unless I want to pay the $160 (AU dollars) a night. Little things that suck at first, then a few hours later they're solved. But some episodes don't solve so easily. Try paying a US credit card with Australian money. Now that's a true pain in the ass! (It can't be done on line) This obstacle has taken many many phone calls to Bank of America, Chase Platinum and ANZ (my bank here) with the best solution, so far, being to mail a check to Phyllis and having her deposit it in my checking account in Portland. Paying a 3% international exchange fee and losing 20% since the Australian dollar is now only at 80 cents to the American dollar. Which reminds me I need to give Phyllis HUGE HUGE THANKS! with out her helping me from Portland all of these trials would have been astronomically huge pain in the ass! So THANK YOU Phyllis! You are a life saver and I owe you big time for all your help!

Otherwise life has been good. I spend my days doing the same things you do. Going to work, running errands, hitting the gym, taking long walks around huge parks in the city and playing my sax with the Melbourne Rainbow Band (which I'm really enjoying. We have a band camping coming up and a recital on November 1st) OK maybe a few of them you don't get to do. But that's what make each of our lives unique.

Now back to the topic that titles this blog...... Apartment Hunting!

Micheal (my hopefully, new room mate at some point) and I have spent the last several Saturdays and one evening a week going to viewings, inspections as they're called here, of apartments. It's kind of like Russian roulette. Some times you hope the gun doesn't have a bullet, some times you just pray it does so it'll all be over! There are typically 10 to 20 and once for a not so stunning apartment there must have been 40 people waiting for the rental agent to arrive for an apartment that's only open for 15 minutes. A 2 bedroom, 1 bath, where the kitchen and living room are in the same room goes for about $1400 to $1600 a month. Now there are cheaper ones, but it's a building that's 50 to 70 years old and the fixtures are too, or so tiny it's more like a dog house, or on a street so busy you can't hear yourself think, or in an area that has no public transit.

In defense of Melbourne's rental scene. Michael and I have been fairly selective. We don't want an apartment on the 3rd floor. They don't have lifts (elevators) and I'm not hoofing my crap up several flights of stairs every time I come home. Most places don't have air conditioning either and since it's already 70 degrees during the day. We are still technically in winter. I don't want to think of living on the 3rd floor or higher. We want a place with a balcony so we can go outside for fresh air. We want a place with a dishwasher and a washing machine. (dryers are uncommon, because let's face it Australia is a big desert), a place that has some class (because let's face it we're not 21 and we are gay!). 3 weeks ago we found a place put in an application on Monday morning. Tuesday we were told we had the place. Wednesday we were told someone else had the place and on Saturday we looked at the same apartment again. Only for it to be given to someone else. The next week we applied for a place that was over $1600 a month, were told we had it on Tuesday. I liked it more than Michael, but we decided we both had to want it. Besides it was too far from public transit and too expensive so we turned it down. Now in hind sight that place is looking good. Which brings us to this last weekend. We found the perfect apartment. The right location, a classy place, a great balcony overlooking a decent street, for $1550 a month. So on Monday we put in our application. Tuesday we were told another person was willing to pay $1575 a month. We said we'd pay $1580 a month. Only for us to be told we weren't selected.

That's the point at which URS said, oh no buddy, we're not paying the bill after your 1 month is up. Which started this weeks frantic search for some place to live. What I have come up with is a place for $220 a week. Where I can stay until October 6th, maybe the 7th, without signing a lease. Not a bad place. it's on the 20th floor of a 21 story high rise about 4 blocks from were I am now and at the west end of the casino. (I live and work at the east end of the casino) Now here's the catch. It's a 3 bedroom place with a Indian couple and a Canadian couple, that's maybe 800 square feet total. I get to share a bathroom with the Canadians and a used futon to sleep on. While it's not my ideal arrangement it is better than the back packer hostels, the office or paying the bill at my current location. So I'm going to make lemonade out of my lemons and play my sax in forte. Forte is either Italian or French, sorry Meg (my Portland instructor) I don't remember, for really loud! Michael and I are heading out again tomorrow to look at more places and hopefully find the one. I don't want to do this temporary thing again so we might have to settle a little more than we'd hoped.

At my new temporary place I'm not sure if I'll have an Internet connection and for now I'd rather not be updating my blog at the office. I'm fairly busy at work and by the time 5pm comes along, I'm ready to go. My friends back at URS Portland know me well and my true nature is starting to come out (that's a joke, I'm coming out! I want the world to know! You've got to let it show!) a little more. I'm starting to lose my political correctness. It might have come when my boss told me I was doing a great job and I was exceeding his expectations. So I think that allowed me to let guard down a little bit more. I hope to keep updating this once a week and will do my best. For now take care my friends, know that I am well and want you all to come visit!

Brian