Still not mine.
Enjoy the apartment hunt.
The addresses are real.
HOME WORK - FINDING THE HOME
"Daa-aad, hurry up, Michael's waiting"
"What's the hurry?"
"Don't you remember you promised to take us apartment hunting today?"
"What?"
"We need a place to live. You know, for the project."
"Oh, ok, the project. And I promised to be your chauffeur to this? How come I don't recall this?"
"Well, you said you'll help. And today you can help by driving us to see these houses."
"How many do you have lined up?"
"We narrowed it down to three. 33-39 Salamanca Ave, 33 Phoenetia Ave and 101 SW 36th Ave."
"Just three? Are these three by any chance even in the vicinity of each other or are we going on a road trip? They are in the Miami area, right?"
"Yes, they are in Miami. We wanted to stay on South Beach but do you know how much it expensive is to live here?"
"Actually, I do know."
"Yeah, you probably do. I know it's far more expensive than where we live in Edgewater."
"You live here now too Julie, you know that, right?"
"At least for the spring I do."
"You are always welcome to stay with me. Remember that, ALWAYS!"
"Yeah, yeah. Can we go now!"
"Ok, lets go."
"Hello Michael, are you as excited about this as Julie is?"
"Yes sir, I think we have a really good shot at acing this assignment. I think it's cool that we get the opportunity to practice for the future. Mickie is just so cool, you know."
"Yes, I've gathered that she is."
"Daddy, you think she's cool too." Hell yeah, I do. And smart, and sexy, and beautiful, and funny and...
"Well yes I do. Now, where are we going?"
"Head out to The Gables, Douglas to be precise. We're going to start at 33-39 Salamanca Avenue. It's a 500 sq ft studio apartment with 1 bath. It's on the second floor. It has tile flooring, a / c, balcony to the court yard, in-front parking and the rent is 1300$ / month with no utilities. It also has private maintenance."
"It's quite aways from the beach, isn't it?"
"Yes sir, but we thought that we'd start with something on the cheaper side, 'cause we need to by so much stuff, like furniture and a tv and all the things you need in a home. If we chose a more expensive flat we couldn't have nice things. And I'd like for Julie to have nice things." WHAAAT?! He wants Julie to have 'nice things' I think I need to keep an eye out for this kid.
"So Michael, what profession did you choose for this assignment?"
"I chose Physical Therapist, it's actually something I might want to do. I play soccer for the South Beach Soccer Club and we have these awesome games on Fridays. You should come and check it out sometime. There's teams from all around Miami and lots of foreigners as well. Especially Europeans that don't play american football."
"I might just do that. Ok, we're here. Is it an open house or are we just looking on the outside?"
"We have an appointment with the realtor in ten. She has an open house later but she said she'd be glad to show it to us in advance."
"That's really nice of her. Is it someone you know?"
"She's my aunt, Mary-Lou Molnar."
"Well, lets head inside. Second floor you said?"
"Yes, look there she is. Hi aunty Mou. This is my partner Julie Martine and her father Carlos Mañoso."
"Hello Mrs. Molnar, nice to meet you and thank you for doing this."
"It is no trouble at all Mr. Mañoso. Good to meet you too. It's so nice to see young people take charge of their lives, don't you think? I wish Home Economics was like this in my day."
"You and me both. I've met their teacher and I have to say she is very progressive."
"Lets head inside, shall we. I've got seven registered couples coming to the viewing. I'll give you 20 minutes to check the place out. If you have any questions I'll be on the balcony."
"Thank you. All right kids, have at it."
I stayed in the foyer as Julie and Michael stepped inside. The studio was light and airy, recently painted and the kitchenette had all new appliances, white glossy cabinets and gray counter tops. There was no room for a table but it had a breakfast bar. The bathroom was a little on the small side but for a first apartment it would do just fine. No bath just a shower, single sink vanity and a thin wall secluding the toilet. The room itself had windows on two sides in addition of the sliding balcony doors. White vertical blinds in all the windows. The floor was an octagonal shaped gray stone, stylish. Only down side, no storage space.
"So what do you think? Could this be your apartment?"
"It is really nice, but with no separate room maybe we would just feel like we were on top of each other all the time." You will certainly NOT be on top of each other any time soon if i have something to say!
"Thank you Mrs. Molnar so much for this, we have two more places to see. It was really nice meeting you."
"It was really nice meeting you too Julie. I hope you find what you're looking for. It is a renters market the moment."
"Yes, thank you Mr. Molnar."
"If you're ever looking for a place to rent Mr. Mañoso, don't hesitate to call.
"I'm sure I will. Ok, what's the next address?"
"It's 33 Phoenetia Avenue, it's just a few blocks away. The apartment is a one bedroom one bath, 615 sq feet. There's only six apartments in the house. Two up stairs and four down stairs. We're on the second floor. The rent is 1295$ including utilities. The pictures seemed much nicer that the previous and certainly nicer than the following one."
"All right, right aruond the corner it is."
"Ooh this is really adorable. I want to live here for real."
"Maybe in a few years, ok."
"It's an open house so let go check this out."
The apartment was nice, dark hard wood floors, light painted walls with crown moldings and dark Louvred cabinet doors. The kitchen was white with butcher block counter tops and white Louvred cabinet doors. Stainless steel appliances and a breakfast bar. There was also a walk in dry goods pantry. The bathroom had a free standing tub but no separate shower. Single sink vanity and a water saving toilet. The bedroom had a walk in closet and a second entry to the bathroom. The balcony was quite small, just enough space for two chairs and a small table. It was hard to get to see anything really well since it was an open house and it was jam packed.
"Well, what do you think Michael, this one or the first one? I think it's safe to say we ditch the third option."
"I liked the other one because it was smaller, it's easier to clean and I like to shower and not take baths."
"You're such a guy. The tub is awesome and here we have a bedroom. And there was no storage in the other apartment."
"I guess you're right, let's take this one." It's like they're actually looking for a place to stay...
"Ok, now that you're made your decision how about we head over to La Casita, one of my favorite Cuban restaurants."
"But dad, we need to go furniture shopping. We need so many things for our new home."
"You can go furniture shopping on-line when we get home. Or maybe save something to do for another day. Now, who's up for some delicious Cuban cuisine?"
"Me me me!"
"Yeah, I could eat, I'll just call my mom so she won't worry. Thank you sir."