Found a Place to Live and Took a Tour of my new Employment Place

Part One: Finding a Place to Live

This past week I took Wednesday night through Saturday to make a road trip up to Maine to see the sites and potentially look for rentals. I was not optimistic that I'd get to see any places since no one had gotten back to me with confirmation that I could look at their place or even if it was still available. I thought if nothing else I check out the gardens and the towns to get a lay of the land.

However, on Thursday morning I got two good pieces of information. One of the homeowners got back to me and let me know that I could see her place, which was an apt. above the garage. Then I got an email with the contact information for another family that had a summer cottage on a private drive behind their house on Southport Island nearby the town I will work in.  I called them and they said I could come by and look at that space.

I went and saw the cottage first. It was a bit pricy at the top of my budget range and none of the utilities or net were included. Although, directv was included. It was also limited to April-Oct. rental as in mid-October the water gets shut off for the season to prevent the pipes from freezing over. I was hoping to stay a bit longer than that, but eventually would convince myself that factor was ok, because tourist season would be over by then and lots of places in town would be closed for the year. However, it did have a decent amount of space and a nice waterfront view of the bay. There were also big picture windows that let in a lot of light. The decor was ok, but I knew I could work my magic on the space with my own finishing touches. The place is 90% furnished, which is good, because that would mean less furniture for me to have to move up there. I could have my cats there and my dog could come visit, too.  I told the couple that I would get back to them later on in the weekend with my decision.

I then went to see the cozy above garage studio. It was more in my price range and all utilities and wifi were included. It also would allow me to have my cats and my dog could visit as well. It was also completely furnished. It did not have an oven, just a microwave, stove top and toaster oven. The space was a little small and although it was in a detatched garage, it was not nearly as private. It did have a closet which the other space does not have, but I did have a hard time trying to decide where I might put a litter box and guests for that matter as the futon doubled as a sofa and a bed.

I thought I knew what I wanted at first, always thinking of saving money, but then I had to be real with myself. I was going on a 6 month or so adventure, I should enjoy it to its fullest. I wanted more room for myself, the pets and guests. I wanted space for a container garden. I wanted the view from those picture windows and chances to bird while drinking morning coffee. I wanted an oven so I could continue to cook, as lately my interest in such has been growing. I also knew that I'd probably be spending less months at more money and it would probably even out as far rents, or even if I spent more on rent/utilities, it wouldn't be much more and it would be worth the extra expense. So, I decided to go all in for the cottage.

So, I called the family back on Friday evening to let them know I wanted to rent the cottage. They are friends with my new supervisor and she lives nearby too. As a matter of fact her kids and the family I am renting from, their kids might spend their summer playing in my backyard. I love kids, especially seeing kids playing outdoors!

The cottage has three rooms, bedroom, bathroom and kitchen/dining/living room. It's hard to imagine, but I will post a few pictures, with more to come later. Some of the spaces are small, but still bigger than the above garage place I looked at earlier. The views are great and there's a yard. I am also going to swap the sofa for my futon so that I have extra sleeping space for guests. I will post more pictures of the place once I get it updated. I love decorating. Most of my decor is modern, however I also like cottage decor. So, I am going to try to freshen it up with a cozy beach cottage theme. I have some shells, handmade pottery, rustic picture frames with nature photography and other stuff that I might spread around the space.


Part Two: A Tour of the New Work Place.

I met up with new coworker, Erika, in the morning and she gave a tour of the gardens. I would go into a long detail about my tour, but I will refer to the website and such to keep it brief.

Here's a link to the map of the gardens: Whole Gardens
Central Gardens

I will say I love that their is a theme within the children's gardens where local Maine children's authors are featured throughout the garden in statues, garden beds and play areas. There is a bear to commemorate the bear in "Blueberries for Sal". Just to say "Blueberries for Sal" is one of my favorite children's book. It is certainly inspired my love for outdoor exploration and the hope of a Maine adventure some day. I have been to Maine three times for vacations, now begins my long adventure- "My Blueberries for Sal" adventure.

Here are some of the other awesome spaces I visited:
The visitor center and education center
Kitchen Gardens Cafe
Gardens Gift Shop

Here are some of the cool garden events and news you should know about:
We're the No. 1 Gardens in the US - According to Trip Advisor
Children and Family Programs
Adult Programs

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Photos

PICTURES OF THE HOUSE (PRELIM)

PICTURES OF GARDENS (PRELIM)