Boxes, boxes, everywhere!
It has 2 upper cabinets, 4 lower cabinets and one large "under the sink" space. And four drawers.
Dude, seriously, there's half of my storage/organization space. RIGHT THERE.
Then there's the issue of The Wall.
Yes, this wall.
Now, walls themselves don't bother me. It's when walls are in weird places and serve only to take up space that would be better used as say, cabinets and counter space, that I get upset.
Seriously, WHERE am I supposed to work in this kitchen?
So I asked The Landlord if I could put some shelves on The Wall, a cabinet being a poor idea due to the fact that the floor is slanted and Parker's ball likes to move in mysterious patterns over it. (I think that the floor should have been leveled when the kitchen was being remodeled, but hey, what do I know? I just sit at a computer all day, right?) I also asked if I could stencil a border at the top of the walls, for some color. This border, to be exact. And, oh yeah, I said that we wanted to install a pots-and-pans rack above the stove. (You caught the "we need storage solutions!" vibe? Good.)
The Landlord says that he thinks that the shelving would make the kitchen too crowded. But if I really feel that I need the shelving, as long as I patch'n'paint over it, he doesn't care. And that we shouldn't repaint the whole kitchen because he just had that done. And ps, you guys have a lot of stuff, and should maybe consider getting rid of some of it. (He did not mention the pots-and-pans rack.)
In my email, I stated that a) I would patch'n'paint as needed when we moved out, b) that we really need more storage space and c) that it was a border I wanted to paint. I did not ask for c) his opinion on how cluttered the kitchen would look or d) how cluttered the rest of the apartment is. He tried to temper it with some statement about a fatherly opinion. But let's get a few things straight here.
We have a business arrangement. I ask questions, and I want answers. I do not need - nor desire - long rambling statements that have very little to do with the answer I actually need. It was a seriously weird, rambling answer.
We do not have a familial relationship. Nor are we friends. When I want someone's opinion on something, I ask. (Really, I do. I ask lots of people for lots of opinions, all the time.) If I wanted "fatherly advice," I would call my dad. Or Le Boyfriend's dad. Or any number of my uncles. Or some of my friends' dads. I would not ask my landlord.
Unfortunately, I have this weird desire for people in positions of authority to all see me as a happy, perky, pleasant person, so I'll never write and send something as passive aggressive as the following faux-mail, but my Midwestern soul burns with the fire of a thousand suns and wishes it could.
Dear Landlord,
It's my opinion that sometimes, you're bat-shit insane and can't plan anything in a timely manner. Please refer to the fiasco that was refinishing the two bathrooms on State St and the fact that my kitchen wasn't completely operable until Tuesday. Also, the rest of my floors could use a refinishing, and we'd all appreciate it if you'd stop referring to Caesar as "my Mexican." He is not "yours" and do you even know if he's actually from Mexico? We have a lot of Ecuadorians around here, you know. I'm just saying this as a culturally sensitive member of society, so try not to take it too personally.
Love,
Us
PS, Most of the boxes in the living room are BOOKS. Because I READ a LOT and have an education in the liberal arts and we like to compulsively keep our books. And I have several boxes of winter stuff, because the stupid state of Connecticut is going through some ridiculous schizophrenic stage where the winters are make-your-boobs-hurt cold and summers are in the please-everyone-I-know-it's-hot-but-no-one-wants-to-see-that-much-skin category. So, yeah, I have a lot of clothes, I know, but it's not really your problem. I also play two instruments and sing, which is why there's so much music stuff. I'm so sorry that I'm a person of diverse talents.
PPS, You didn't tell me that one of the downstairs neighbors is an infant. Would have been nice to know before I started banging on shit when we moved in. Some of us try to be considerate neighbors, which is easier when we know what's going on. Just sayin'.
2 comments:
Just curious (not criticizing your decision)... why'd you pick this particular apartment if you didn't like the kitchen (one of the most important rooms) and if you knew it didn't have a lot of storage space? I actually rented my last apartment primarily because of the kitchen.
Also, landlords tend to feel like the place is theirs (which it technically is for the most part). I've had landlords who really loved the places they owned and it showed. They didn't want me changing stuff, but showed understanding. That's how it is when you're renting from a person instead of a company (I've rented from one of those and it was the worst experience ever).
Good luck, but I have a feeling you're either going to downsize your belongings or move (even though you said you will never move again).
I think the biggest issue is that when I saw the kitchen pre-remodeling, there was a fair bit of cabinetry and storage. It looked OK. When we were moving things in during the week before Aug. 1, we then saw a lot of stuff in the front room, and we assumed that all of it was for the kitchen.
Turns out that half the stuff in that room was furniture that the previous tenants had "kindly left" for us, in case we wanted disgusting aluminum cabinets and half an IKEA bookshelf. (We got rid of it pretty damn quick and it disappeared over the course of the weekend.)
I should have asked what, exactly, constituted a remodeling of the kitchen, but I seriously never imagined that it would include less storage/shelf space than what I saw.
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