“If the light is in your heart, you will find [a] home.”

A week before I learned that I was about to lose the walls I was renting, I saw that one of my favourite artists, James Jean, was releasing a limited edition print on my birthday. It was a time-limited print, which meant it was only available for purchase during a 24-hour period.

I base most of my purchases on whether I need or want it. After a week of mulling, I decided to fulfill my want. Even after learning of my eventual eviction, I decided to not let my landlords stand in the way of this beauty:

I love it.

It currently hangs above my bed. In a few weeks, it will be moving with me, along with about 20 other pieces of art. The roommate seems jazzed about all this incoming art despite not seeing most of my collection.

Yup, I am entering a shared living accommodation again. I’ve decided to be excited about it. While I enjoyed my one year of solitude, it wasn’t all fun and games. It’s also not a lifestyle I desire to pay an additional $500 a month to maintain. The rental market in Victoria has gone bananas.

Zack–beloved friend and co-worker–was ready to take me in as a roommate had I not found anything before the first of April. What a guy! However, in a bizarre turn of events, instead of living with him, I’ll be his next-door neighbour.

Instead of living with a co-worker, I will live with a former co-worker whom I worked with thirteen years ago.

Upon learning of this, a friend exclaimed, “That’s great! It’s not a complete stranger!”

If the keyword is complete, then this assessment is accurate. But we are strangers. I’m banking on being the strangest of the two of us. I mean…

Conveniently, his current roommate seems to be taking the few pieces of furniture that I will be bringing with me. Most of what is in my current place is staying in there, including the armchair from which I’ve spent hours uncomfortably consuming media. The rickety shelving units won’t be coming with me, nor the wobbly kitchen chairs.

Other upsides include a shorter commute to work, a larger living space, a dishwasher, an already-mounted hangboard, and the option to enjoy cannabis indoors! I will have my own washroom, so I can spend hours voguing in the mirror. As he and I are the same age, I could probably throw some inflatable furniture in the living room and put up a poster of an alien smoking a joint, and he’d accept all that in the spirit of nostalgia. And I will be Zack’s neighbour, yeah!

I’m delighted to be staying in Victoria, surrounded by people who want me to stay here, including acquaintances who apparently have ambitions to become a top-tier friend. I’m into it.