hopefully, chronically, here it is - if i had to move my shit, i counted it

• may 2008 to present - the presidential (market & laguna; sf, ca) - it's a converted boarding house that apparently the u.s. presidential team used when he was in town in the 1950s, but i'm not so sure if that's completely true. it's efficiency-meets-residential hotel style rooms, and i think i live in the smallest one on the floor. this place is prime to everything i need to get to in the city, and while there are drawbacks to the place itself, it makes up for being so central.
• july 2007 to april 2008 - the giant peach (20th & anza; sf, ca) - after five years of first meeting each other, i moved back in with the BFF and her boyfriend as well as a friend from the restaurant we used to work at. i was a little upset as to the location of the house considering the stellar one of my last place, but this one is undoubtedly the prettiest one i've ever lived in; hardwood floors, fresh paint, renovated moulting and kitchen. i lived in the conversion room again but i think i made it look like a normal room. my friends were always over and i loved having an open door. sadly drama went down and i had to move before our lease was up; good memories at this place.
• september 2006 to june 2007 - the ministry (4th & california; sf, ca) - we got this place by chance when i called the landlord to ask if he'd received my fax. we moved in immediately and this was the best located apartment, albeit it being in ruins; we were located around one of my favorite drags in the city, and getting home or taking cabs was very easy. our neighbors were also really fun to hang out with, and the house soon became a revolving door for all of our friends to come over. i had the conversion room, which meant no closet but a huge room. we also hosted some amazing parties and dinners. things turned sour in the end as one roommate left before the lease was up, and the other two took advantage of the chill attitude of having people over. i began to resent living in the place and moving out was an ordeal. i still have very fond memories of the house but if i had the chance i'd pick different roommates...or at least handle things differently.
• august 2006 - jenn's tendernob apartment (hyde & bush; sf, ca) - after whipple we couldn't find an apartment fast enough, so we stashed our stuff at a friend's in redwood city and i crashed with someone temporarily on her floor; when i got tired of the small space i stayed with jenn on her house, having already spent a lot of time with her otherwise. we had different schedules but managed to still see each other. i don't think she had had a roommate since college, so it was interesting gettting to know each other again in that way.
• august 2005 to july 2006 - whipple manor (mission & whipple; sf, ca) - my first off-campus apartment. it was brand new when we moved in. all four of us knew each other but not well enough to bicker, so the atmosphere was excellent. some epic parties and drama happened in that house. we used to BBQ on the roof and had a sweet little produce market and laundry right under us. we didn't have neighbors as the flat under us was the rental agency we rented from and people on either sides of us were far away from us by sf standards. i was initially hesitant to move into that place because it was in the south part of sf right before you hit daly city, but we were lucky there was an owl line that connected to other owl lines. i had the smallest room but it was always the warmest; my roommates and i would have long talks while in my bed together. i was sad to leave but two of my roommates were moving out of town. we had a huge living room with three couches, so guests were always welcome to stay.
• 2005 summer - centennial towers, room 101 (750 font; sf state, CA) - right before i left i was coaxed to become assistant director for the summer on-campus housing program, which included my own one bedroom apartment in upper division housing by myself; i took the opportunity to have a lot of people after work over and have drinks while watching VH1. since many working in the program were friends of mine and we all had master keys, i became accustomed to friends keying into my apartment to have breakfast or watch TV at their leisure. it was one of the best summers i had since that one i made it a point to learn new things; my staff taught me how to ride a bike and i started to re-learn spanish. i was sad to give up that apartment up since i knew i was going into roommate territory.
• june 2003 to may 2005 - mary park hall, room 636, with a stint at the ingleside house during summer 2004 (802 font; sf state, CA) - i became an RA after my freshman year and stayed for two years. both staffs i was on and the supervisor i came to adore were so invaluable to me in different ways and the program fell apart after i left, so i was glad to be on staff when i was. having residents was a true test in my patience, but a few ended up becoming some of my best friends. having a room to myself and housing paid for also satisfied my parents much; they initially couldn't understand why i'd wanted to leave when i did, but i was on the cusp on embarking on the last part of my education that i wanted to truly focus on, and i was turning 21. the summer of 2004 i went to europe and they were painting my room in the time i was gone, so i crashed for three weeks with a friend who lived nearby. she had a lounge space and a bedroom in what was technically the attic, but it was huge considering. when i came back from the UK i moved back to state to finish my last year being an RA.
• aug 2002 to may 2003 - mary park hall, room 633 (802 font; sf state, CA) - the site of many freshman memories and drunken escapades. i started to blossom as a person and start over from scratch as a new woman in college. my roommate melissa was the first person i officially met in sf and we ended up being best friends (to this day). state was a pain in the ass to get home to from anywhere else in the city. living in on-campus housing was great for my first year as i wanted to meet new people and have a good kickstart to new life; my parents took out a loan to help pay for my housing and i also wanted to make them proud. i met people that to this day i either am still good friends with them or that i have never heard from again. our room was also a hub for all our friends to meet up in since our door was always open.
• 2000-2002 - d'amico cul-de-sac house (san jose, CA) - my parents were beyond ecstatic when they found this house. it is probably the biggest place i ever lived. my brother and i got to paint our rooms and i actually got my own bathroom. christmas one year was at our house on my dad's side and my mom went nuts trying to be a perfectionist. we had a pow wow the night before i went to college in 2002 and we all had a slumber party in the living room. during most of my college years, every time i came to visit, i felt like it was my home away from my sf home even thought this was not the house i grew up in. i loved waking up early on christmas day and waking up everyone. it was only a few minutes away from my high school and very central to everyone's work and school locations in the house. my parents bought a house in late 2006 three houses away from this one, so i was excited they got to stay in the area they fell in love with.
• 2000 - tio joel and tila's house, sherwood (san jose, CA) - this place was also very temporary. we lived in the living room and out of large tupperware storage bins. since it was on the border of santa clara and san jose, school was extra far away. i started to avoid coming home since there were 9 people in this place. it was a good location to santa clara university if i was going there though.
• 2000 - tio javier's house, by oakridge (san jose, CA) - i liked this place okay, but he smoked and my mom is very anti. we didn't stay long here.
• 2000 - abuelito's house, 13th street (san jose, CA) - this was a temporary arrangement while my parents tried to find a house in evergreen, where my brother and i were enrolled in school. there were at one point 11 people in a small two-story house with one bathroom. i didn't enjoy being downtown away from all my friends and when i did extracurriculars, i had to call my parents at least a half hour before i was done to make sure i got picked up. the only things i can think of positively is that i got to know my abuelito more and that i bonded with my cousins.
• 1988-2000 - harmony house (san jose, CA) - the house i grew up in. it was nowhere near my elementary or middle schools but my parents were determined to keep me in the school district i started out in. our old landlord decided he wanted to move back in; my parents were only renting. there was a city park nearby where we used to feed ducks, a school with a basketball court my dad played with me on so i could make the team; i have such fond memories of this house.
• 1984-1988 - grandma's house, massar ave (san jose, CA) - we lived here until my brother was born and it was the site for all major family events; gatherings, birthdays, holidays, anniversaries. the neighbors on the right used to take care of me when i was little, and the neighbors' kids on the left were about my age, so we'd play. i was crushed when my uncle decided to sell it a few years in 2004 after grandpa died, every single grandchild in my family lived there at one point.