4 posts tagged “life”
Ok, its been almost a year since I have been able to have two jobs which allow me to save for the future. I have spent 7000 dollars of my savings in the past year. Money which could have been put to better use in a less expensive city. After paying a good deal today to have my car unbooted, I finally came to the realization that the employment situation is not getting better and that my savings is slowly being drained. I think this is the point where I decide to cut my losses and just GO. Sure, I would have liked to have had more in the bank than I have now, but my chances for employment in this city are looking slim, and if I can find a job elsewhere why not just do it? This is so unexpected, scary and well...exciting. I could be out of here by the end of May. Never saw it happening this way.
Show us how you blow off steam.
"And what will happen in the morning when the world it gets
so crowded that you can't look out the window in the morning.
And what will happen in the evening in the forest with the weasel
with the teeth that bite so sharp when you're not looking in the evening.
And all the friends that you once knew are left behind they kept you safe
and so secure amongst the books and all the records of your lifetime"
After my jaunt through the northwest during the past week, I was reminded of these verses from an old Nick Drake song. My visit to Portland, OR was a realization that perhaps that San Francisco may not be the ideal place for me to live out the rest of my days, or to start a career. From first glance SF and I were star crossed lovers destined to be together forever. I folicked in her parks and streets. I people watched intensely on the #6 Parnassus, I flew kites at night on top of Twin Peaks and wandered aimlessly through Chinatown during sleepless nights. I was hopelessly in love. I have traveled a good deal throughout the states west of the Missisippi and I have never found a place that I liked so much and felt so comfortable in as San Francisco. Boulder, Colorado was nice and Denver was, well, acceptable, there were also plenty of nice small towns in Southern Colorado and of course Santa Fe, New Mexico but nothing ever compared to SF, it's gritty cosmopolitan charm and it's proximity to all the outdoor activities that I enjoy such as skiing, backpacking, hunting and climbing.
As I get older, I start thinking about the more adult responsibilities that I'll soon have to face, like buying a home and making a mortgage payment and laying a secure foundation for my future (retirement etc.) If I was ever to be able to afford an apt. here ( around 1000 square feet, if not a little less in most cases, and this is for a fixer) you will be paying around $550,000. Assuming that you paid 50,000 down, on a 30 yr, mortgage you will be paying $3000 a month . On top of this add Property Tax, Homeowners insurance, and finally earthquake insurance. Unless you and your partner are well off, this leaves little room for food, retirement, expenses and entertainment. Most people would assume that in an ideal world, if you are paying $500,000 you would be living in a nice part of town, and have a somewhat decent home. Not so in SF, we have a very large homeless problem in addition to the streets being constantly dirty and soiled with human feces. Oh, and have you ridden MUNI lately? What I have listed is a partial list of a long list of problems facing SF. Would you pay that much money for housing in a location with such a low standard of living? I'm beginning to see the absurdity of it. Also, don't get me started on taxes and the upcoming environmental uncertainties facing California.
San Francisco, sweetie, look it's me not you. I'm sure that there are plenty of other wealthier and tolerant people in the sea, but I just can't put up with it anymore. Honestly, I feel that I deserve better and I can get that treatment from another city. This isn't easy for me, but I need to think long term. I just can't keep sacrificing this much for our relationship. I'm sorry.
