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Hanging with me as I write

Occasionally I'm going to chime in and update the apartment hunt situation.

Here's the update: there's no update.

The market is every bit as bad as I feared.

Most of my searches have led me to ads that let you "apply" for a place at their apartment community (as in, "wait list").

Yes, I've tried Craigslist.

Yes, I've checked Stamford. And Norwalk. And Fairfield. And Port Chester. And so on.

Yes, I nose around Facebook, etc.

Yes, I'm connected to a real estate agent. I also have friends recommending places.

Nothing so far.

I've looked as far north at Brewster and Danbury. I've looked out towards Fairfield. I'm definitely trying to control the commute as much as I can.

It's incredibly concerning.

Or, honestly, scary.

It's going to be OK. I know that. But, how?

Sean enjoys living with me and that's great so a two-bedroom is a must.

We'd prefer a washer and dryer but if we have to embrace the life of a laundromat again, we'll make do.

Parking is something that I hope won't be painful.

Basically, we'd like to have what we already have, which is to say a place that has some age on it but has charm and a balcony and storage. But, in truth, it's small.

We can adjust as needed.

One thing that isn't negotiable is The Cat.

There's no way I can legally make this happen but that dude is as close to a therapy animal as one can get.

Oh, trust me, there are days he nearly puts me into therapy but those moments are few.

He was given to us to help me heal after Mom died. If you recall, our cat Chico died a little over a month before Mom did and obviously it was all a lot to deal with. The house was very quiet, especially when Sean didn't stay with me. However, we soon had Rascal with us.

For the most part, he's a constant companion to us. Pets are like that. They can read you.

Rascal Squeaky Beast is no genius but he gets the rhythm of the two humans he lives with.

He's a constant companion. He used to stay on the bed as I slept. Of course, now when I go to bed, he leaves until he's ready to eat but let's not split hairs here.

The point is, he's a member of our family. It's frustrating and disheartening to see so many places that won't take pets.

But, fortunately, some do. We just need to find that sweet spot.

We're going to find something.

For all three of us.