It looks like I have a place to live come January 1st, thanks to Mike’s
dad. Rent is far cheaper — and the place is in Sunnyvale, so I’m not exiled to
social Siberia in Fremont or Newark. God forbid anyone would have to cross a bridge
to visit me.

And thus the Campaign to Recover As Much of the Deposit As Possible commences.
I decided to splurge and buy a new vacuum cleaner. A Hoover Windtunnel. Man,
it is so much more powerful than Sam’s crappy old vacuum cleaner that it’s not
even funny. The neatest thing is the dust particle detector, which linked
to a red and green light. When the light turns green, the carpet’s clean!
Who knew vacuuming could be so entertaining?

Anyway, the rental market continues to get better and better.
I’ve never seen anything like it. Example 1: Nancy’s moving
in with Mike, into a two-bedroom in Mike’s current complex. The two-bedroom is only
$100/month more than Mike’s old one-bedroom. Example 2: Pat’s made a few calls —
every apartment manager wants him and Courtney to move in today.
Who knew it could be like this?

I admit, some part of me is a bit disappointed that Mike’s dad is cutting me a good
deal with no fuss. Because I’d really like to go up to an anonymous apartment manager
and actually… you know, haggle. “Well, if you change your mind, you’ve got
my number,” I’d say, grinning as I stride out of the office. Oooh, that would have
been sweet.