Jeff and I used to live in a much smaller house. It was a 3-bedroom rental, and it was built in the 1960s so the rooms were small. Between our two offices and our bedroom, it was a full house. We didn’t let that stop us from having parties – every weekend the house was crawling with friends. At the end of the night they would curl up wherever they could – sleeping 3 or 4 people on our wraparound couch, more people on the floor under my desk or in Jeff’s office.
So when we made the decision to purchase our first home, we had all of you couch-sleepers and under-the-desk dwellers and party-till-the-sun-comes-up buddies in mind. We found a much larger house – 5 bedrooms, which allowed for TWO WHOLE GUEST ROOMS. Now we could really throw down.
Except, in order to get this much house, we sacrificed on location – moving to the outskirts of town. What used to be an $8 cab ride to Uptown is now $50. And we quickly realized … people didn’t want to drive that far. On top of that, our first days in our new home were spent doing “house” stuff – buying furniture, poring over paint swatches, doing yard work. And of course we were planning our wedding – which can tend to be a little time-consuming (yep, we bought a house before we got married. Jeff proposed on the very foundation I am hanging out on as we speak.)
So, the parties waned. Instead of at least once a week, they were more like – once a month. And then once every few months. And then once a year on New Year’s Eve. We have since decided our ideal home might actually be on the other side of town, and when the housing market improves, we probably will sell (that, and there’s some family property on the lake calling our name … lake parties, anyone?).
My point being, we have this great house for entertaining and … few to entertain. Sure, friends still come by – we have a few that have their names on a guest room. We have the occasional get-together that includes lots of beer drinking and dart-throwing. But I for one miss the old social life – the one we all had before everyone (including myself) got so busy all the time.
So when our friend Carissa left her job and got a seasonal job until she decides on something permanent, we were quick to offer our guest room while she’s in transition. Doesn’t make much sense for her to get an apartment in South Charlotte if her permanent job might end up being in North Charlotte, right? So she is moving in, just until she gets something permanent, which will likely be after the holidays. I can’t speak for Jeff, but I for one feel like she’s doing this for me as much as we’re doing this for her.
Carissa is amazing fun – we have the same sense of humor, and every time I’m with her I feel like I laugh more than I have in weeks. I can’t wait until I get to see her every day! We’ve already talked of Grey’s Anatomy nights and sushi nights and cosmopolitan nights and …
Every time I mention that she is moving in, I get the same response from people: “Oh, that’s nice of you …” I want to say “No, Carissa, it’s nice of you to come grace us with your presence for a couple of months!”
I feel like I’m in college again, surrounded by my girlfriends and roommates and … must go check rum stock and see what the boys in Ballantyne Village are up to. …