In August it will be three years of living small for me. I still really like it 95% of the time. At least I am not sharing living space with another person and I have my own kitchen and bath, but I know the ritual of having to clean up and put things away all the time in order to do something else, otherwise extreme chaos reigns.

There are a few things I miss - having a couch to lounge on is one of them. I get tired of using my bed as a couch - I put my lap top on a bed tray and I watch Netflix that way. It's a bit harder when my boyfriend comes over to watch something with me but we make it work for us, albeit a little awkwardly.

My little downside is living and working in the same space - it definitely has its advantages but also many disadvantages. My food and my refrigerator are so close by, it feels like I am snacking all the time. The lack of privacy between the gallery space and my living space can be weird; even if I am not working and I am home, I hear everything going on in the gallery. And when I escape outside to my private deck, I can hear people going into the gallery on the other side of the privacy fence. They have NO idea I am there, and I get to hear snippets of every kind of conversation imaginable. The summer is a bit harder - that is when I make a point of doing day trips and errands on my days off because the gallery is open seven days a week with dozens and dozens of people coming and going. It gets to be a bit too people-y even if I am in the back working on jewelry and then I have to escape from the premises.

Even after this job stint is over I can see my next living situation doesn't have to be that much bigger and I'd be perfectly happy.