21 Moves & 38 Roomies and counting!

Originally written 6/26/05, Updated 1/09/07.

Since graduating from high school in 1993, let's count how many times I've moved and how many roommates I've had. . .

Dorm Apt, #5 in Rexburg, ID - 10 months with 5 roommates; Mikal of TX, Sherri of IL, Natalie of MD, Minet of OR and Tiffany M. of CA. Since then, I'm told, we held the top recorded number of 'Golden Plunger' awards. This means we girls kept a very, very clean apt. dorm and as a result, were given the honor to don our front window sill, month after month, with a very small, gold metallic paint sprayed toilet plunger. I had fun at Ricks College because that's what I do -I have fun DESPITE the situation- but if you read my journal from that time of my life or asked those who knew me at the time for a testimonial, one would have thought I was dying of severe depression... Funny thing is now, f I had to pick a 'best year' for my time spent as an undergrad? It'd probably be my frosh year. It was the first time in my life in which my problems really became my own.
Went back 'home' to Iowa for two and a half months to help my parents with their new brittany spaniel puppy, Genevieve. She's gettin' old now - and she still eats her poop!
Harmony House Apt #203 in Rexburg, ID - 10 months with 8 different roommates; Rachel of GA, Heather of Calgary, Megan of somewheres in Canada, Patty -also Canadian, Jodi of Edmonton - also Canadian, Heather of San Diego (and her twin, Elisa too, as she was around so often!), Marilee of UT, and Suzanne of UT. Also had fun that year, but my first sophomore semester, I felt terribly tortured, depressed, and most of the time, painfully inferior to my pretty roomies. My roommates were all kinda katty (except Suzanne) and gorgeous social butterflies (including Suzanne), and guys were over all the time, chasing one or more of my roomies at all times. The estrogen levels were super high ~ we all became in synch with one another and it became soooo 'ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK' for about a solid week each month and the guys learned when to stay away... and me, being more of a cryer than a bitchy-bith, I I would hide in my room from my scary roommates. This also was the group which enjoyed obsessive-compulsive Tetris play for hours and hours. My second semester of my soph year was much better, although I did almost get kicked out of Ricks (mind you, it doesn't take much - it's not an exciting story really).
Aunt's house in Bountiful, UT - 1+ month with 2 aunts, an uncle and 2 teenage cousins. Can you say WHO HAS MY JEANS NOW? The laundry was insane. That was when I became a true believer of Amish Friendship CAKE.
Chateau Apres in Park City, UT - 2 months with my best girlfriend, Suzanne and 130+ midwestern geology field camp students from universities in IL, MI, MN, IA, and MO = A TOTAL BLAST = possibly the best time of my life as a twenty-something.
An attic in Provo, UT - 1 month with great uncle Reid and aunt Marjorie and Cinnamon, the 23 year old cat. I lost 10 lbs that month! eating various kinds of squash I'd never known existed -and that says a lot, since I am an avid enjoyer of squashy things. There were also many chlorophyl drinks, tons of tofu, brown rice and broiled fish. There were no dairy products to speak of (except the Ben & Jerry's pint of 'Coffee Heath Bar Crunch'' I had secretly stashed in the freezer behind the frozen bulk container of wheat germ). It was truly an .educational experience.
Raintree Apartments aka 'the local Meat Market off Freedom Blvd and Bulldog' in Provo, UT - 11 months with 6 different roommates; Jeanette of Delta, Kelly of Delta, Michelle of Delta (at the time, SNL had the "Delta Delta Delta" sorority skits goin' strong, so just imagine...) Melissa Jo of NY, Tiffany S. of CA and Melissa Lyn of UT. That was my beat-myself-up-emotionally year. I HATED BYU - still do in many ways. Of course, I had fun -cuz that's what I do DESPITE the situation- but I could have happily done without, thanks.
Centennial Apartments in Provo, UT - 1 year with 8 different roommates; Jenny of TX, Julie of TX, Kristy of ID, Summer of LA (that's Louisiana, not Los Angeles), Susie of ???, Lesa of OR, Celeste of WA and Stacy of CA...craziness and more craziness. Did I mention I hate BYU?
600 No. in Provo, UT - 1 year with husband and the best little calico kitty ever, Sweet Pea (NOT my name choice, but so freakin' cute!)... The strangest place I ever lived in - it was absolute comical. That's a whole 'nother post for the future.
100 No. in Provo, UT - 9 more months with husband and the lil' Sweet Pea kitty-cat. I honestly think that had it not been for Sweet Pea, I would have left sooner.
Orem, UT - 1 month while separated from husband, living with 1 roommate, Heidi and her oh-so ahdorabul son, Harrison (no, I'm not counting him in the roomie tally).
420 No. in Provo, UT - 2 months while separated from husband, with 5 roommates; Katie, Erlyn, Amy, Christine and Raychell - two of them were in the midst of wedding plans. I volunteered my well-established credit so we could all enjoy a free long distance plan. Instead, one well-wishing, yet clueless roomie authorized a service switch without telling me, and I wound up with a $1,500 phone bill, all from a collection of hundredes of frenzied last-minute calls regarding wedding plans in one month's time. I moved out of the house and 4 months later, the bill was eventually paid by the parents of the brides. I have no recollection as to from where any of these girls came from - I was too fixated on my own problems at the time and was often anti-social, often seen as the very defunct, soon-to-be-divorced one in the house, and also "old." My own room-roommate was 17 and I was 24 - she was especially freaked out by me and my pending divorce. It was a bad match. One time, I made them a batch of dark, rich brownies, for speedy consumpution by all, including my roomies' fiances and boyfriends... the brownies had phelene blue in them = Everyone was peeing greenish-blue throughout the week.
Adcox in Henderson, NV - 8 months with an uncle, intended only for a post-divorce recoup.
Mohawk in Henderson, NV - 5 months house-sitting for my uber busy real estate aunt and uncle, who were living in Reno, NV for the summer - It just me, the swimming pool, the snapdragons, and the little green yard cameleons.
Hacienda in Las Vegas, NV - 1 month pet/house-sitting for a boyfriend's sister with 1 very needy, allergy ridden doggie, Blaze and 2 sweet kitties - the birdie-like chirping Bailey and the oh-so-fat, rolly-poly Harley.
Triple Crown in Henderson, NV - moved in with Helen, age 83 when we met - Octber 2000 - my best digs ever! $350/mon for the master bedroom w/ adjoined master bath and double sliding door access to a backyard with roses in bloom, and full access to the rest of the house including the garage. I was free to come and go - she didn't need me for any kind of care. My rent merely supplemented her preference for Wheel of Fortune nickel-slots and frequent gambling runs to the "Magic Star" with her sister, Martha, one year older than Helen. My uncle calls them the GGs - gambling grannies.
African Eagle in Henderson, NV - still with Helen ~ Downsizing from over 2K sq. ft., we moved into a brand new house together until she turned around and sold it in October 2003, in order to move in with her sister, Martha.
And where I'm at RIGHT NOW. . . I've been here 1 year and 9 months (WOO-HOO! - the longest I've stayed at any one address in the past 12 years) and only 2 roomies so far (compared to the 6 or 8 at one time, in the past): the first was a horrible roommate, Amanda, with her 2 pit bulls over for 4 months' time, and now the wonderful Seorin for 1 year and 4 months... and my Otis and Owen for two years come November this year.

Problem is this: Seorin just told me a couple weeks ago that she'll be moving to Texas in August! Soooo the search for ANOTHER roommate begins. My lease will be up in October and I hope to stay only month to month until December, to then move out and stay with either my aunt or my uncle, to save money for ANOTHER move come Spring 2006 - and where to will I be goin' to then? CALIFORNIA. By Spring 2006, I will have moved 20 times and will have had at least 37 roommates.

So, yeah. that's THIRTY-SIX roomies, NOT counting any relatives, nor does that include one ex-husband.

UPDATE: It's now the year 2007. My 37th roomie was Kanako, from Japan - a total sweetheart and fellow lover of Otis & Owen, as was Seorin. I'm still in Vegas, engaged now, but unable to score a job in L.A., despite 7 months of trying. I moved out of my oh-so-sorely-missed apt. in mid-May of '06 to move in with my aunt in June '06, and then moved out the last week of Nov '06. I now rent a room from my honey-man's best man-friend... I'm on my 21st move and 38th roommate, again, not counting any relatives or one ex-hub.