Pam Webb

image: flickerriver.com Looking out over the world from my penthouse view…

This week I am on my yearly sojourn of eldest progeny visitation. She now lives in a third floor apartment with a view of the neighborhood park–well, sideways squint from the bathroom window. There is no elevator. This is an o-l-d building. If I were a realtor I would employ the words “charming,” “has character,” “a link to the city’s past.” In other words, the stairs are steep and the hallways long, and the foyer smell is a bit aromatic. The apartment itself is charming with lots of light from the east, west, and southern exposure. Her last place was a basement studio. The window and light were practically non-existent. The landlords seem to be trying to update the building. There are mock wood floors, cream-colored stucco walls, deadbolts, and newish windows. They don’t quite close all the way but there is hope for a fix in the works.

After the fourth night of staying in a third floor walk up having lived in relatively ground level dwellings all my life, I have the following observations:

• Costco shopping hauls are ludicrous because all that is bought can only be hauled if held in each hand
• Always think about if you have everything before leaving the apartment
• Should I take the garbage down?
• Looking at life from a bird’s-eye view lends a pleasant start to the morning
• Going outside for some fresh air takes on deeper meaning
• The opportunity to develop voyeurism is tempting
• Less is more when it comes to gathering possessions, since it all has to be moved down eventually
• Having neighbors below makes one more sensitive to noise being made since we were once the neighbor below
• Streetside parking involves intuition and strategy
• Buns of steel and stamina are a bonus to the view

These observations might be different if the building had an elevator–then again the rent would probably be higher. There seems to be an irony here: most places charge more for the tippy-top real estate, then again elevators must be part of the equation.

Perhaps if I were in my formative years of twentyish ,a walk-up domicile with windows would be exciting. At present, I am learning an appreciation for my yard, driveway, and ability to amass belongings without too much consequence.