Q&A Part 2

I had the absolute pleasure of visiting the Casket Arts Building today. It’s one of the renovated factories in NE Minneapolis that now houses artists’ studios. I wasn’t there to check out any available spaces today, although I would love to someday have a studio-office here. The shot above is of the common area on the second floor. I’m so head-over-heels in love with the light (here’s the same space from a slightly different angle) that I would gladly take photos of the building all day long. For free.
Anyway, today I’ve got a bevy of answers for the more house-related (and general lifestyle) questions I got. There was quite a lot to talk about, so click the extended entry for the questions and answers.

What was it like moving back to the Twin Cities after living in London? What about the winters?
I love it here in Minneapolis. And I know that I wouldn’t appreciate being here even a fraction as much if I hadn’t done my stint in London. I feel like it’s easy to find things to do in the Twin Cities; there’s a lot going on, but not so much that it’s overwhelming. In a big city, there are so many layers of choices that it’s hard to sift through and find the ones worth choosing. And I feel like the people here are friendly and welcoming, too.
Winters are what they are. I was only away for two, although I do feel like my reaction to them changed a lot pre- and post-London (possibly just because of my age and the phases of life). You learn how to deal with winter, though. My second winter back was the roughest, because I wasn’t staying physically active and felt very trapped (the first winter doesn’t really count, because I was busy moving into my house and getting everything set up). But I’ve figured out what I need to do to keep myself happy during the winters now. And to be honest, I’d rather have the freezing temps and sunshine than the constant grey of a London winter!
What’s it like being a home owner? The question-asker said that in her country and neighborhood, they have huge walls between houses and gates, and she wonders, ‘How do you take care about your safety and privacy when your house can be seen or accessed by everyone passing by?’
I know this is a fairly American mind-set, but to me, owning my house gives me a sense of being grounded. From the time I went to college until I bought my house, I don’t think I ever stayed put in the same dorm room/house/apartment for longer than twelve months. I was tired of packing and carrying boxes of books around. I was ready to commit to staying in the same place for a length of time. (I just wish property values weren’t so low now.)
As far as safety and privacy… well, I feel fairly private in my house. Because an alley runs along one side of my home, I only have to ‘worry’ about one neighbor being able to see in, and the curtains and blinds are pretty much always drawn on that (the north) side, anyway. There’s a huge lilac hedge between my house and the alley, so it’s pretty screened off in the summer. I have curtains or blinds on every window; even if there were nobody around to see, it gives me the creeps to have an ‘open’ window after the sun has gone down.
Security is another thing. I guess you just have to do what you can to make your house secure and then try not to think about it too much. When I lived in London, Rob’s car was broken into one night, and that was in a car park with high walls and a gate — so I don’t think there’s any sure-fire way to guarantee your security, short of having round-the-clock armed guards.
Having a yard feels like a buffer, in a way; if people were walking on a sidewalk right outside my window, I’d definitely feel more at risk. And just knowing my neighbors and being familiar with the normal goings-on (versus suspicious activity) is important.
What’s the best thing you’ve done for your house?
This was asked in a ‘where do I start’ sort of way, and I’m going to have to say painting. Paint makes a HUGE difference not only to the way your house looks, but also to how you feel about it. It makes it yours. It makes it cleaner. And if you’re planning on painting at some point, putting it off is going to mean you’re never really settled, whether that means not hanging pictures or delaying moving a big piece of furniture in the room. A paint color isn’t for life, so go through the process of carefully choosing the right shade, but don’t let it become so daunting that you wind up eternally living with drab walls.
How do you like living alone? When I lived by myself I discovered that I was not very good at it and became quite hermit-like; you seem to have it just right.
I love living alone. I would never want a roommate other than somebody I’m in a relationship with. It’s true that living alone requires a person to make an effort to get out and be social — sometimes I don’t feel like I have it ‘just right’, but things seem pretty good at the moment. I get out two nights during the week for my community ed classes, and I see friends at the weekend. When it comes down to it, I would rather spend the night in than be out late (which is funny, given how late I’m awake), so my lifestyle suits me.
How do you organize your free time and work time?
I’m not sure ‘organize’ is the right word for what I do. I’m task oriented rather than ‘putting in the hours’, so I don’t have a real sense of making myself sit down for XX hours a week or anything. I know what needs to get done, and as long as that’s happening, I’m happy.
Of course, I have periods of productivity and days when I just can’t seem to get to the task at hand. I’m a pretty efficient worker, though, and when I’m in the groove, I keep going until I get the job done. I had decided to finish proofreading a particular book by the end of last Friday, for example, and I didn’t finish until after 1:00am, but I finished (though it wasn’t technically Friday anymore).
One of the reasons I’d love to have a studio-office outside my home, though, is so I would be able to more clearly set aside time that’s dedicated to work. I in no way mind proofreading in the wee hours, if that’s what I feel like doing, so that wouldn’t change, but I feel like the added structure of spending time in an office could help as I try to take on more freelance work.
What are your long term goals?
Work goals: I want to find more freelance projects outside the books I work on for Snowbooks, and I’d like to get that studio-office. I enjoy what I do, so unless my situation changed so that I didn’t have to work at ALL, I’d like to stay in this field.
Personal goals: Besides the whole marry-somebody-and-have-a-kid thing, one of my personal goals is to eventually move out into the ‘country’. There’s a peacefulness that comes with having no neighbors you can see or hear, and I’d love to have a huge garden and a cow and a horse, etc, etc.