Please help, still need a place to stay

Hello friends, will you help me with something?
I live in Tacoma and commute to Redmond almost every day for school. To reduce the commute, I've been looking for a place to stay in Redmond during the week. But it's really hard to find a place with a budget of less than $350/mo.

This is where you come in. 

I have a 28' trailer at my disposal (Thanks Dad!) with amenities like: king size bed, propane head, cook stove and oven, refrigerator, bathroom with septic system. I am looking for somewhere safe in or near to Redmond to park it for around $200 a month (with an electrical hookup/extension-cord preferred). 

Do you know someone with property that could use a little extra cash? Please pass this along.

You know what would be even better than a parking spot? Somewhere indoors to sleep 4 nights a week! I don't need a lot of space. Just a bed (I can provide that). I won't be bringing a bunch of furniture or pets... I don't need to worry about permanence, don't need to sign a lease, and probably only need the place for a few months. I won't even be there most of the week. Just evenings Mon-Thurs. I can afford $250/mo on my current budget. And once I'm in Redmond more often I can work more hours which means I could pay more.

Starting Jan 6, I'm going to be commuting 5 days a week, often through the worst time of day for traffic. If it takes me 1 1/2 hours to commute one way, that's 3 hours commute per trip (plus $10 gas). At that rate, I'm wasting 15 hours sitting in my car each week. That's more than the homework load for 2 classes!
I've been doing this commute (3-4 days a week) for 2 years now. I'm hoping to work something out so I don't waste so much time and money.

Please do what you can to help. Heck, even a couch to sleep on once a week would be an improvement.
Thank you for your time, and please share this post.

You can contact me through my profile at facebook.com/MaeflowerJ
or by email at maeflower (at) gmail (dot) com

Next Steps

I will continue to work on finding a place to park my trailer or to find a room I can rent in Redmond. I will need it more than ever once classes start next semester.

If asking friends for help does not produce results, I will consider posting on Craigslist. I’ve saved this as a last resort because I am hesitant in dealing with strangers.

I will also continue to organize the remaining boxes. Now it shouldn’t be so daunting with a smaller stack, plus I know what’s in them and that it’s all worth keeping. The hard part is over.

Keeping the house clean is going to be an ongoing struggle, especially because it’s not just me living here. I’ve asked Thad for help in keeping it tidy. We’ve instituted a few rules to help, like doing the dishes each day and taking turns doing them. 

A Look Back

What I learned from the project and how my personal alignment factored in:

The project itself was born out of my alignment. Self care was telling me that I was not happy at home. And being an introvert, home is where I am usually the happiest. This was a problem.

I decided that instead of doing yet another art project, what I really needed was to clean my house and work on making my life easier by having somewhere in Redmond to stay during the week.

By taking care of my home, I was taking care of myself. And the process of going through all of my old things and getting rid of it was very cathartic and I needed that.  By letting go of objects, I was also letting go of experiences and their hold on me.

After changing my alignment to beauty, I started beautifying parts of the house. Those are now my favorite parts. I love how my desk looks now and I don’t feel so chained to it anymore when I’m working long hours.

I’ve also started focusing more on beauty in my artwork, not just on getting it done.

The #1 thing I’ve learned is that it feels good to give things away to people who want them. Sending a box off to GoodWill is one thing, but holding a “Free garage sale” is much more rewarding. I like to see people happy to have my old things.

Some of the things I gave away

2 DVD players

2 fish bowls

Swag from PAX (Penny Arcade Expo) and GDC (Game Developer's Conference)

Lots of jewelry

100 gel pens

2 bluetooth headsets

A digital camera

A set of rechargeable batteries

A voice recorder

A portable CD player

A Sony Playstation 2

A Sony PSP Case

A box full of books including Photoshop textbooks, comics, novels, and more

A box of toys

A box of arts/crafts materials

Lots of candles and candle holders

A Graphics Tablet

…and much more!

Process

—Here's what I wrote in the final turn-in about my process. Some of this may be helpful to anyone in a similar situation. 

I started with the kitchen, getting it as close to a finish as could be done in a day. The effect of having a clean portion of the house quickly spread and before I knew it I was cleaning both of the livingrooms. I removed everything from the floor and packed all of the extra things on my desktop into a box (it actually took 3 boxes). Once I had a clean workspace, it made doing my other work easier. But it was only temporary.

— Gradually, I grabbed things I needed out of the boxes and brought them back onto my desk. After I had a good idea of what I was actually using, it was easy to go through the boxes and get rid of some of the excess, and find a new place for the other stuff to go. I quickly narrowed it down to one box of things that need to be organized.

—To help keep the floor clear of dog toys, I took a wooden crate and filled it with toys. Then any time we find one that’s not being used, we know where it belongs. It wasn’t difficult for the dogs to figure out where we kept the toys.

—The new shoe rack also helps in maintaining a clean floor.

—Once I removed some of the extra storage boxes, we could get to our coat rack, so that helped to keep our coats off the couch. It only takes a minute to clean the livingroom now, since everything has a proper place that’s easily accessible.

—Most of the semester, I had been focusing on the house and what is visible, with the pile of boxes safely out of sight and out of mind.

—Occasionally, when I had a presentation, I would go to storage, and pick out a box full of items to give away. As a result, it was a lot of the more obvious stuff that was easy to get rid of. 

—But now with the house clean, I turned my attention to storage.

—I went box by box and started by throwing away whatever wasn’t worth keeping or giving away. I threw away a full garbage bag.

—Then I went through each box in turn and emptied it onto the floor. I decided the fate of each item, whether I kept it or it went away.

—When all the boxes were sorted, I had a stack of boxes of things to keep (to be organized and put away later) and 6 boxes of stuff to give away.

—I then sorted through the give-away and selected the best things to bring to the final presentation. Of the 6 boxes, I had 4 boxes worth that was good enough. The other two went straight to GoodWill.

—Out of all of that, there was ONE item that I felt was too valuable to give away. I asked $20 for my slim Playstation 2 I don’t use anymore. In the end though, I gave it to someone who really wanted it, and had helped me a lot throughout the semester. I feel good about sending it off, versus feeling bad about seeing it sitting in a box forever. 

—It was hard to start giving things away, but if you start with the easy stuff the other stuff will get easier. 

It’s especially easier when you see that the person it’s going to is happy about it. Giving away things in class helped with this. 

Class Over - Project Continues

I've made a lot of progress.
The house is still clean, which is amazing.
I've gone through the pile of boxes and gotten rid of anything worth giving away, and threw away what wasn't. I ended up with a pile of empty boxes, and about 6 boxes of stuff to give away. Whew!

All empty!

I still have a small pile of boxes full of stuff to organize and put away, but it's a much more manageable stack (here's what it looked like before) and I already know what's in them and that it's worth keeping. 

The leftover boxes

The hard part is over. Now I just need to decide what gets unpacked and put away in the house, and what gets saved away as keepsakes.
Some of my keepsakes are things I don't necessarily need but they hold some sentimental value. So, I'll be giving some of it to my niece. I have a whole box of stuff to give to her for Christmas. Lots of stuffed animals, a jewelry box, a lamp from my Grandma, and a few other things I think she'd appreciate. 

New Personal Alignment?

My personal alignment for the last 11 weeks has been Self Care, which at the time was what I needed.
However, Rachel recently said in class that she changed her alignment because her old one was no longer motivating her to do her project. I felt the same about mine so I did some thinking and decided I needed a change as well.
I feel like I have absorbed a lot of the self-care practices I have been using. There are things that when I chose this alignment I hoped I could achieve, but it doesn't align with my most important goal, which is to pass my classes and finish school. Self care kept telling me to go to bed early, prioritize myself over my work... which hasn't worked out too well. I have a hard time working on anything because I'd rather be taking time for myself.

I thought, what would motivate me to do my projects? What is the thing that gets me excited about my work? What makes me feel good?

Beauty.

Making beautiful art, and beautifying my home... that is the goal.

I experimented with it this week, and tried to find little ways to make my space more beautiful. Part of that was the pictures I put on my desk. I also used to have a fern on my desk that was looking pretty shabby. So I replaced it with a simple lucky bamboo, planted in a ceramic pot that I made myself. I also rearranged my giraffe collection in my bedroom and hung up my antique style map that makes me feel like home.

 
I guess the goal is not only to have a clean house or a beautiful house, but make it MY house. Since I moved in with Thad I haven't really felt like it's our place, more like he was sharing his place with me. It's nothing he's done, it's just me feeling insecure and unimportant. So doing these little things like putting up maps and lighting candles and putting out pictures of my family make it feel a little more like my space too, because I deserve to have some sanctuary that makes me feel safe and at home.

Beauty doesn't have to just be visual things either. You can smell, taste, hear, and even feel things that are beautiful. For example, I made a home cooked meal today, which made the house smell beautiful and tasted even more so. And we lit candles as we sat down to dinner, with beautiful music playing in the background.
The recently vacuumed floor feels much better on my feet, and we just replaced the sheets on the bed with nice soft cotton ones, which feel nice.

As I surround myself with beautiful things and experiences, I will begin to notice things that are less beautiful and work to make them better. Instead of ignoring the dog toys lying all over the floor, I grabbed a crate and put them all in it so the dogs can grab out toys when they want and we have a place to put them when they're not in use.

So as I work to declutter and clean my home, I have two criteria for whether something stays or goes.
1. Does it actually serve a purpose or have I used it in the last month?
2. Is it beautiful?

Sometimes things don't have to serve any other purpose but to beautify a space. Bonus points if it's functional AND beautiful (like handmade ceramic pots!)

So far I like this new alignment. We'll see how it goes.

Sorry for the long post, but I was kind of working all of this out as I wrote. A lot of this was vague ideas to me until I got it into words.

A new place to stay! (Maybe?)

Part of my project is trying to find a place in Redmond to sleep during the week to cut down my commute. It would save me around $250 a month in gas, plus between 9 and 12 hours a week driving (that's like 2 classes worth of homework time!). So far nothing has worked out that is in my price range, until now.

I visited my family for my birthday recently. While I was with them, I told them about some of the projects I'm working on for school, including  my house project. I told them about how I almost had a place in Redmond but it didn't work out. My dad then offered to let me use his 28 foot trailer since he only needs it 2 weeks out of the year.
It's a really nice trailer with propane heating, a full kitchen and bathroom (including a shower, though it needs a little work).

That makes things much easier. I don't have to rely on someone else now, and it should be easier to find a cheap place to park it than to find a cheap place to stay. I'm currently researching options for mobile home parks and private properties. I've talked to a few people who are helping me look for a spot. My only requirement is an electric hookup (which can be as simple as an extension cord), and WiFi would be nice but I can manage without. I can afford up to $250/month.

Progress on My House

This is my bedroom dresser

 The living room

 My desk

Closeup of the pictures on the desk

Just inside the door. 

My shelf

In a Rut

I have this class called Projects that is a time sink. I am putting in so many hours a week on my project, and then weekly animations on top of that, that my other classes are suffering. I'm at risk of failing a 3D texturing class because I have't been able to devote the time needed to make my assignments look good. So the past few weeks I've been devoting more time to the classes that I've been neglecting. But I can't just pull more time from nowhere... And I'm not going to pull even more time from sleep. I need it for my health, and I already sacrifice too much of it.
So as a result, I have not been focusing very much on working on my house. In fact, it seems to be getting worse. Well, at least the living room is. The kitchen is staying relatively clean.
I did manage to clean off my desk and put it all in a box... but it didn't stay clean for long. So now I have stuff piled on my desk AND I have 2 boxes full of stuff I have to organize. That was a fail.

I need to make some time to devote fully to my house. But I'm worried that even after I get it clean it will revert back to the way it is. I know the idea of this whole project is to not just clean and organize, but GET RID OF a lot of the clutter so it will be less likely to get messy in the future. But I still can't help feeling like I should have chosen a project that has a more permanent and definite result.

I know that this was what I needed to do right now. But I don't feel like it's what I want... if that makes sense.

I also need to explore more ways to practice self care when I can't do things like get more sleep. I have physically been feeling really cruddy for the last few weeks due to a health issue, and it's possible that this will last up to a few months.
I have no doubt that self care is what I need, but I'm not sure how much I can do with it at this point.

More Free Stuff

So, I'm fairly good at starting a blog, but traditionally very bad at keeping it up.
The last Free Stuff Friday was just before Halloween. This time I didn't have a box ready to go. Instead of just grabbing what I already knew I was going to give away, I decided to try something new.
In the past, I would choose a box, and sort the things in it into separate boxes for "keep" "give away" and "trash". This time, I took an empty box, and picked through all the boxes to find things to give away with the goal of filling the box. I actually more than filled it. There was much better stuff in this batch. Things that were harder to get rid of.
Some of it included: a Trigun Necklace that was a gift from a friend so many years ago, that I never wear. Also, about 200 gel pens plus lots of black paper to draw on. A belt from Hot Topic with lots of chains and rings hanging off of it. An Eddie Bauer jacket (a contribution from Thad). A polaroid camera.
It was cool to show things to the class and see people shoot their hands up to claim it before anyone else.

I hope that these can get better and better each time.

I have one more presentation before the final ship. I'm thinking I'll bring in one more box for that presentation. Then for the final, bring the remainder of it. If I do this right, it will be a large number of boxes.

Free Stuff Friday

Last Friday was the first of many "Free Stuff Fridays". Rachel liked my idea so much she wants to join in and bring free stuff too. I'm all for that.
I was a little bit apprehensive about dropping off a box full of my old stuff to be sent away to an unknown future. I had hoped that some of my classmates would find things and enjoy them as much as I once did, but not very much was taken. So away went the box to my teammate Karyn to be donated. I am glad I am not the one who has to make that final step. It's easier if I can hand the box off to someone I know and trust and let them do what's best. I believe she donated it to Goodwill or Value Village.
This box was the first, and had the most obvious "crap-I-don't-need" type stuff in it. As the weeks go on, I should be bringing things that are better, and harder (for me) to get rid of.

Pictures: Progress

I promise we don't drink that much beer. Those Session bottles have been collecting for a while. 

Still needs some serious organizing, but at least the stuff is off the floor. 

Now we just have to remember to hang them. 

Pictures: Before

The boxes: about 35 in total. Currently residing in the empty duplex, but I'll have to move them soon before we get a renter. I have nowhere to put this many boxes. 

My work space. I'm amazed at how I can get anything done in this mess. Also I have a habit of keeping product boxes long after I bought them... just in case (of what I don't know). 

Kitchen: dishes are unorganized and the rest is just a mess. This is embarrassing. I don't even know why there's a school desk in here. 

The pantry on the left needs some help. Lots of random stuff gets thrown in there. 

Those cabinets and counters are the only ones we have. Not much room for storage. Hence the 3 sets of shelves and using the microwave as a counter top. 

2 sets of shelves in the living room. Both mine. (Thad has his own 2 shelves for his stuff). 

What is the Project?

In a nutshell:
Clean my living room/workspace
Clean my kitchen
Get rid of unnecessary stuff!
Sort through and get rid of the tower of boxes

Why I love it:

I am an introvert

My home reflects my feelings
A clean house would make me happy
I can focus better in a clean workspace

I feel guilty about my house every time I come home.

Guilt sucks.
I want to be happy to come home.

The Beginning

My team: 

Karyn

Rachel

Thad

Look at all those lovely smiles! 

Karyn is great for general support, and she agreed to take a way my boxes of junk, and she "drives" my presentations. She also knows pretty much everyone, so is an awesome resource for finding help. And she's awesome.

Rachel is also working on a house project so we meet weekly to discuss strategies, show off progress, and drink delicious coffee. Plus I hope her enthusiasm will rub off on me. 

Thad is my partner in everything (or life partner if you will). Since it is our house that I will be transforming for this project, he is of course on my team. But mostly, he is the first person I ask for help on most things.

My alignment: Self Care

An alignment is something that you are aligning your actions towards to help get through what's blocking you from what you want. It can be something like Passion, Fun, Love, Peace, Self-Awareness, Courage, Wisdom, Accept Myself, and many more. After a weekend at a McCarthy Software Development Bootcamp I chose Self Care as my alignment. It is the thing that I need to practice most right now.
You know you have the right alignment when it touches equally on joy and terror. 

“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”
― Audre Lorde

For me this means…

• Not neglecting my needs for the sake of others (as I so much do)
• Getting more sleep (which means staying ahead on homework)
• Generally doing healthier things like walking more, eating smaller and healthier meals/snacks, less soda and more tea
• Allowing time to soak (think, absorb) when in the car, or bath, or wherever. Audiobooks and podcasts are great, but listening to my own mind is important too. 
• Be comfortable. Get better shoes, clothes, not starving or overstuffing myself. Changing into my sweats as soon as I get home (haha)
• Spend quality time with close friends and loved ones

There are various degrees to which you can practice your alignment:

1. I forgot what it was
2. I remember it but I don't use it
3. I use it sparingly, but to minimal effect
4. I use it often 
5. I use reflexively and without thinking
6. I use it in my sleep 
7. Integrated, it is a part of me (next step: find a new alignment)

So far I think I am at step 4, which is pretty good progress for 6 weeks.


Bonus team members: these guys help keep me sane(r)