I’m still navigating (badly) the hazards of Internet dating. I’ve discussed it before so you’d think I’d listen.

For a number of weeks I had been corresponding with a lady I “met” on the dating web site OKCupid.com. Our online dating profiles were very similar - both of us liberal, open minded souls. I have to admit that the exchanges were getting boringly mundane with each hoping the other had had a nice week and all that. So I decided to ratchet the “relationship” up a bit and discuss what has been on my mind lately. I was really surprised by the response that I “received”.

As a quick background I’ll explain that my life has been approaching one of those points where a big decision must be made. In this particular case it involves my living arrangements. There are three major issues that are all pushing me in different directions. At the center of it all is the fact that the lease on my apartment terminates on May 31st. It simply burns my buttons that I have dropped 13k in rent over the last eighteen months and have nothing but a dry behind to show for it. I just don’t want to rent any more. The logical option is, of course, to buy a small house, townhouse, or condo. Considering the fact that the economy is collapsing on itself - you’ll probably understand my reticence to purchase right now. I know it is supposed to be a “great time” to buy but I think that is only true if you plan to live in the house for at least 5 or more years. I may stay that long but I just don’t know because I would really like to head West to Colorado or Wyoming. Enter my youngest son who is graduating from high school in early June and will be heading off to college in the fall. Consequently I feel that I should hang around Pittsburgh for a year or so to make sure he gets off to a good start in school. There’s that and the fact that I have a job here and not out West. So I have been trying to find some middle ground between buying and renting that can work as a short term solution. Emphasis here is on short term.

Well, I attempted to share these issues with my pen pal, though I didn’t go into quite as much detail. What I did was I mentioned that my lease was running out and I was looking to change my address. I asked her if she knew
anyone who had a cheap place to rent and I mentioned that I was considering (here comes my short term solution) buying a trailer. Given all that I have explained to you (but not to her) I think that a used manufactured home on a rented lot really fills the bill for me. I guess I’ll never know exactly how she felt about my plan because she hasn’t written back.

jd

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