Must Haves in a New Place?

#sol18 March 4, 2018, Day 4 of 31

I am moving schools this summer and that means moving house (I am living in Kuala Lumpur and moving to Phnom Penh). In my last move, I purged big time so that most of what will move with me is books for my classroom and professional books- very little else. I have lived for years in places where I have done almost no decorating, but in my next apartment, I think I am finally ready to put in a little more effort to make it feel homey.

On my new school’s site for new teachers, there is a section advising us about housing options. There are descriptions of where people live, what you can expect to pay, possible realtors, and much more. The most helpful tidbit for me was left by a teacher who recommended making a chart, including: Column A- your non-negotiables (4-5 max) Column B-what you would really like your apartment to include (can be 7-8 items) Column C- what you would love to have, but can live without.

This has me thinking about what my non-negotiables are. Before moving into my current apartment I never considered that a kitchen might not have hot water. It never occurred to me to ask (turns out that it is rare here to have hot water in the kitchen). I did notice that many apartments did not have an oven, but chose one that did. Will that be the case in the new city too? I like to think that I have simple tastes, but living in the tropics air conditioning definitely is in my Column A, but what else should be? Then there is Column B and C… I know I am lucky to have options, but this will definitely take me some time to complete. Luckily I have been told that there are lots of choices there, but this may be a case of choice overload. What should make my list? What might I be forgetting? Until I make the move in July it is great fodder for distraction!