Tom and I ran some errands this weekend – payday equals a new t-shirt and groceries! – and we took a couple of hours to look at some open houses in the area.

We’re not really looking. We can’t afford it.

But it’s interesting to see what’s on the market right now since everything has gone to shit with the Senor Cardgage Mortgages. And it seems like everyone is going into foreclosure and doing a short sell. Bad times.

Also, they all installed hideous granite countertops and yucky kitchen cabinets. I think in most cases I would rip it out and put in Ikea. SRSLY.

Tom and I saw one place way out of our league (too much house by a third, it had two full master suites with spa bathrooms) but it was the first place that Tom and I ever agreed on as being desirable to live in. ZOMG. We have common ground.

But it got me thinking… I don’t really know what I want in a home that I would own. I’ve been renting for so long. And I’ve never really lived on my own surrounded by things of my choosing. It’s been compromises for as long as I’ve been living in places. HOW WILL I KNOW WHAT I LIKE?! WHO AM I? WHY AM I HERE? WHAT ARE MY FEELINGS ABOUT DOUBLE PANE WINDOWS?

And suddenly, all of those magazines that I see at the bookstore with titles like “ABODE,” “SHABBY STACK,” and “TREEHOUSE STYLE” are starting to make sense.

This photo is the feature photo in this magazine in a story about the Paramount Theater in Seattle.

I was contacted by a representative of the Washington State Historical Society, who was searching flickr for images they could use for free. How could I turn them down? They gave me a free copy of the magazine!

I have a photo credit and everything.

So, while I may have failed at a few things, I’ve somehow managed to succeed at something that I didn’t really attempt.