#1 The house began in 2002

When life as I knew it ended for me in 2002, I moved into a condominium. At the time it was, I believe, the only condominium available in Milwaukee and I bought it. A year later hundreds of different and lovelier condominiums came on the market but by then I was living here and more upheaval really wasn't what I had in mind for myself and my mental health. I was crushed enough without another half year of life lived out of boxes, furniture placement decisions, and the re-hanging pictures.

I really had little choice in buying the condo, I felt, and I determined not to regret it. And mostly I didn't. I regretted the ending of my relationship, and the loss of the house I loved, and the garden I adored but no regrets about the move to a condo in the city from a house in the suburbs. No regrets a year later when the the value of my condo fell because a ga-billion others were available. No regrets when one of my fellow condo owners sold his for $100,000 less than he'd paid for it and the value of the condos fell even further. No regrets when there turned out to be foundation problems and we had an $8,000 assessment.

I have a great view. It's close to work and there's plenty of room despite it being a fraction of the size of the house I lived in. Theres no shoveling, no grass mowing. I have a balcony that works pretty well for growing stuff, herbs and flowers, if not tomatoes. It's really not enough room to actually garden or, say, lounge around drinking cocktails. But it's great for grilling and for standing in my bare feet in the winter when it's cold and my feet are flaming hot as they generally are.

I deal with the tiny kitchen pretty well and I put up with the sometimes thoughtless fellow condominium owners (although not Rebecca Bradley, the newly elected supreme court judge who lives in my building and is a complete witch so much). What I cannot deal with is the dining "room." Even when I looked at it the first time I thought it was small but I presumed I would deal with it. I'd dealt with worse.

But it turns out I can't. Four people can eat at my table, if not exactly comfortably and for that reason, I decided to move.