I Found It!

Today my mom and i drove to Jackson. I had to turn in a copy of my Mississippi teaching license...I finally got it in the mail. I also had to do fingerprinting. Oh by the way I am a total pro at being fingerprinted. Today was the 4th time I have had it done in the last year...crazy I know.

Other than business at central office, we were going to apartment shop. Can I say I hate, hate, hate apartment shopping. The driving from complex to complex, looking at apartment after apartment, apartment managers begging like dogs for a treat to get you to sign the lease. UGH...it can be so miserable.

This morning, I had to go to the post office for a money order for fingerprinting. There was a long line and I started talking to the lady behind me in line (I love this about the south, you can gain a new best friend in any line and know their whole life story in the time you are in line together-it's the BEST!) Well, she told me she is a librarian at a high school in Jackson, and I told her I was a kindergarten teacher. I also mentioned I was apartment hunting and she asked where I was looking. I said I would love the Belhaven District (it's historic), but I was also looking in Fondren District (arts district) and Ridgeland (a city outside of Jackson). She said she lived in Belhaven and loves it and that it would be the perfect place for me to live. She told me of a realtor that had worked the area forever and would know any and all properties available. Sweet.

After I finished my business at central office, we went to the Chamber of Commerce to get a map of the Jackson area. The lady there also recommended the same realtor as the post office lady...hmmm....maybe we should go see him. Well, first we tried to see this apartment in the Fondren District, however, it is gated, we couldn't get in or find the office and no one would answer the phone. Then we went to find the highly recommended Henry. He was so personable! He had 3 properties available. The first was a 2 bed/1 bath on a busy street. Henry said he didn't think it was the best place for a young single lady, but wanted me to see it. The second place, known as 'the 721 building', was a 1 bed/1 bath. Very cute, but small but the building was built in 1939 and was absoultly charming. The kitchen is sooooo tiny! The third apartment was still occupied unitl the middle of the month but it is an option. It was also a 1 bed/1bath but when we walked in the door, there was a STRIPPER POLE in the living room. Now, there was supossed to be a GUY living in the apartment...hmmm. It was a nice apartment with a walk in closet. We thanked Henry for his time and went to see another realtor I found online. The realtor was less helpful than Henry. She told me the properties available, and they had 2 in my price range. She handed me the keys and pointed me in the direction of the properties....ummm, ok. The first was a 2 bed/2 bath the previous tenants moved out this morning and it was dirty but the cleaning crew was hard at work. It did have A LOT of storage... 6 closets total! Nice! The second properties was called a 'studio' but it was really a 1bed/1bath. It was nice and the lowest in price at $505 a month. However, it was on the 3rd floor and I am not looking forward to hauling furnature or all my stuff up 3 flights of stairs. We brought the keys back to the realtor and thanked her for the little effort she put forth in making me feel like she at least wanted me to be her next tenant. Ok, I didn't say all that but I did say thanks.

So now after looking at only 5 properties, I was already tired and didn't want to look anymore. I honestly had made my mind up about one. They all had their pluses and minuses, but only one I could see myself living in...

can you guess?

I decided on....

The 721 Building!!!

Charming with history. Hardwood floors. I can see the capitol building from it. I LOVE IT!!!

Here is the only picture online I could find of it... more to come soon!

My apartment is on the second floor...you can't see my window because it is covered by the tree.