So, you're moving out of your parents' place for the first time.  Maybe it's for school or you finally decided to try to go out and make it on your own.  Either way, like many things in life, there are pros and cons to an experience like this too.

Let's start with the pros:

1. You might/will learn to cook for yourself resulting in learning more about your tastes and preferences.  You will also learn how much time and preparation it takes to cook.  You will either learn to love and appreciate this or not, but it will definitely make you appreciate the effort it took for your parents and anyone else who cooks for you ever again.  It, at least for me, may also help in teaching you patience for when you go out to eat.  You begin to take into account the different preparations that need to be done for each dish and how many orders have been placed ahead of your own, and so, complain less.
2. You will learn to do laundry.  In some cases, you may ruin a few pieces of clothing along the way.  In others, you will learn what to do with certain kinds of fabrics.  You may or may not learn to love this also.  Personally, I have.  I saw it as a point in the day where I could do something just for me; I didn't have to think about anyone or anything else.  It helped to clear my mind of stressful thoughts about school and work most of the time.  Other times, it might cause a touch of tension just because it has to be done while you're focused on other work, but most of the time, it can be quite enjoyable and calming.
3. You will learn to clean.  This has its own reward whether it seems like it or not.  If you are living with roommates and you don't think you're the neatest person in the world, you might realise that you prefer things much cleaner, still, than others.  As a direct result of that, you will learn what you like to keep particularly clean, how clean, and how often you need to clean that thing or space.  It's a lot of work, but you will feel so good once you have your own space that you can keep clean to your specific preferences because seeing a place that's much cleaner than what you might have lived in previously and having it stay that way brings so much peace to your mind.
4. You will learn to shop more economically.  You will look for cheaper items that still satisfy your needs.  Finding quality in cheaper products doesn't have to be difficult, it just takes a little experimentation.
5. In connection with your shopping more economically, you may also find ways to live more environmentally friendly, if you're the type of person who worries about this, while also wishing to remain frugal.  One of the best things I have happened to stumble upon online was cheap ways to be environmentally friendly, to be honest.  I didn't know that living frugally and being more environmentally conscious could be two living styles that coincide.
6. You start to realise that you may have way more stuff than you need to live be they knick knacks, towels, electronics, what have you.  You start to notice the things that you brought with you and what you use versus what you don't.
7. You begin to appreciate everything your parents do for you even more, if you haven't begun to done so already, because you learn how much money and work goes into supporting yourself and think about how many people your parents are/were supporting on top of themselves.

Some cons to living on your own for the first time are:

1. You realise that you are forced to learn to do a bunch of things on your own and quite quickly, such as how to pay your bills, how to cook, clean, shop, do laundry.  But, it's not the end of the world.  Some of these come easier than others and you might learn to enjoy some of these things.
2. If you are living completely on your own, you have no one with whom you can share the chores.  Not always a loss depending on your cleaning style and preferences, but it does mean all of the work is yours to do alone.
3. You realise how much work and money actually goes into living on your own.
4. You may have to work more to meet your cost of living depending on where you are and your particular living style.
5. You develop your own living style and rhythm to the point where it might/will become difficult to live with someone else whether that means moving back in with your parents or living with a roommate or friend.  This can lead to relationship problems with your family, friends, or roommates because if you are not particularly confrontational or generally less vocal, you may begin to develop resentments towards people you have to live with, however temporary it may be, simply because you don't feel like you could come forward and talk about your issues with whomever it is you are sharing space.
• As a side note, this can always be worked on so that you can live with people comfortably.  It just takes a while to get used to.  Trust me.  This is something I've been worrying about lately in terms of living with Boyfriend in the future, but having seen me go through what I did with my past roommates and the two of us generally being more open with each other than with other people, we can see this working out.  He's a lot calmer about it than I am and have been, but his faith and support in everything has been incredibly helpful in making me feel better about our potential living situation.

As many cons as there are, and as much detail as I might have gone into them, living on your own truly is a great learning experience that you may or may not want to leave should you get into it for long enough.  It gives you a huge sense of independence that you don't have while living with your parents and the feeling of self-reliance can be a wonderfully rewarding one.  It is definitely worth trying or getting into when you have the means and opportunity to do so.

Hi everyone,

So, in the time between finishing school and going to Singapore, I've been pretty busy with getting the house ready to be put on market and moving back in with my parents.  All of this is giving me a really weird feeling.  I'm excited and nervous to be going on this trip, but I'm also quite sad about leaving and selling the house.  I've lived in it for the past four years and, honestly, despite the spiders, I really love it.  It's a small little wartime house that's actually the perfect size for one to three people.  I can clean the entire house within two hours and it's walking distance from everything I need.  It is small and calm and has some interesting colours.  Whoever had the house before me really liked their earth tones and, for that house, it's great.  If anything, it added to the calmness, that is, if you're one of those who's okay with lime green.  I don't mind it, myself.

Even the neighbourhood is calm and the kids actually go outside and play together.  It's nice seeing them knock on each other's doors to come out to play.  It's not really something you see anymore because many tend to play online together and talk through Skype more now, I find.

Everything about where I was situated for school between my second and fifth years is great.  If you had asked me in my earlier years of university, I never would have admitted it, but secretly, I did enjoy having a place to call my own away from home.  To be on my own has been a great experience and I really wish it's one I could keep at right now, but I just don't have the resources to do that at the moment.  If I really could, though, I think I'd actually keep that little wartime house.  It's done me well.  My dad told me that if I were to stay in the little city, we would look for a better house, but I don't think I'd stand for that.  Not after everything this sweet little house and I have gone through.  Sure, it has its faults, but who and what doesn't?  Besides, it's very...Brantford.  It has a...stitched together sort of feeling.  When you walk through the house, you can see which parts were added on later or modified, maybe even repainted.  Not like the cookie cutter houses you get now that are all perfect and two dimensional.  No.  This house has character.  It has spice.  It has life.  It's seen things that I haven't, that my parents haven't, and who knows?  Maybe it's even seen things that my grandparents haven't.  I guess it's true what they say: If these walls could talk, they would have so much to say.  To hear the stories and experiences from that house and all it's been through would be amazing.

I'm really going to miss it.  The house.  The city.  The people.  Now, I just hope that whoever lives in the house next will love it the same way I did.

À bientôt, Brantford. Je t'aime.
Dusk

Hi guys,

So, I've been in the house that I stay at for school for about a week now with Boyfriend and Dad to fix it up a bit before we sell it and can I just say that this has been an incredibly tough thing to deal with?  Sure, I'm done school, I'm what you call a "grown-up" now, but I'm not sure I want to be.  I love learning and as you might have seen in a previous post, I've learned to love this city.  Well, in addition to loving the city, I've also learned to love this house.  It has its fair share of spiders, which, let's just say involves using the vacuum cleaner loads, but aside from that it's been good.  It's held up for more years than I know (it's a great little wartime house with a few add-ons over the years) and surely for many years to come.  I just wish we didn't have to sell it.  Part of me wants to stay here and keep the house, but another part of me knows that to stay here means giving up on a few things that I really enjoy back at home like the company of my friends and food.  I know that I can make more friends and find a job here, but it's just not entirely the life for me.  I love the small town feel over the hustle and bustle of big city life, but it doesn't have the variety that I need.  Here, I have a good number of fast food options, but all are basically the same.  The same goes for the grocery stores, there are a good few with some variety in foods, but they're mostly catering towards the Caucasian demographic because that's mostly what we have here.  At home, there are more food choices in the grocery stores and the restaurants, which comes with it the different price ranges.  Here, I have discovered select places to go for decent food prices in terms of groceries, but only for a few things.  At home, because there are Chinese supermarkets as well as the more Caucasian geared grocery stores, I can get many of the same things for a much lower price.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I've really learned to love this city and this house and I'm really sad to leave, but in the long run, it doesn't quite have everything I'm looking for.  I know I'm in a good spot and I truly am lucky to even be able to afford living away from home and gaining this sort of experience, but everything has to end and continue on eventually.  I want to visit again when I can to meet with my professors and catch up, but it just won't feel the same checking into a little motel instead of coming to this house.  We've been through a lot together and in its own way, it has been quite the friend to me.  I'm going to miss it here.  Knowing that although I will be able to drive by the house to see how it's holding up, but I can't come in is somewhat heart-wrenching.  And to even consider how much the next owners might change it, even just a little, makes me afraid to even drive by because like my profs, I want to remember it for how it is.  For what I believe its essence to be.  So, also like my profs, I have not taken a picture of it.  Not of the exterior anyway.  I took a few pictures of the interior prior to the renovations.  I might still consider taking some pictures of the exterior, but we'll see.  A picture just won't be able to capture this house for what it really is and that's what I want to remember.  My profs, on the other hand, I have taken no images of interior or exterior (haha, I'm so funny--not really).  I had considered briefly, but either in class or not, it didn't feel right.  It would either feel too posed or like it still wouldn't capture the people for who they are.  I would never be able to capture their liveliness, their charm, or the way they captivate the students with their excitement over the topics being discussed.

A lot of things and people have changed my perceptions of this city and this house tremendously in the years I've been here.  I feel like living here and meeting the people I have have really helped me to grow up and learn about who I am and how I've changed over the years.  I know that moving forward is my only option, but to continue living here in this somewhat relaxed environment would be nice.  The only problem is that I know that there is so much more exploring for me to do out there and within myself.

I know that this, and a few of my previous posts, have been a little blue because of my current state of mind, but what can I say?  That's just how things are right now.  I have entered my so-called "blue period" in which I will be discovering, even more so, who I am, where I should go, and what I want to be.  Things will go back to normal with the odd rant or sarcastic post here and there soon as well as some book reviews, so hang in there and thanks for reading.

Dusk

Brantford, I'll be honest, I was pretty hard on you in the past. I chose you because you were a small city where I would feel comfortable. But, for some reason, I quickly began to feel like you were a grimy and unappealing place to be. I just wanted to say that I was wrong.

Truly, I've learned to appreciate you again for how small you are and how, even though you do still have some less appealing aspects to you, I've learned to acknowledge that every place and every person does. If anything, it adds to your charm. It gives you another dimension. You aren't merely a happy little borough, nor are you a gross, run down city with lost potential. You have life in you. Maybe not the life people expected, but life and that's important. In a way, I guess that's how we're sort of similar. Some times underestimated, some times given expectations that we can't meet, but we have a life of our own. A life with potential that only we can see and realise because that's who and what we are.

You're a strong little city and even though you didn't become the capital like once expected, you are still a great place to be. I've seen you in good weather and in bad and you hold up well. Similarly, while being here, I've experienced my own good and bad weather and I've learned to deal with it too. I want to thank you for the experiences you've given me. I'm really going to miss you and I hope I can visit relatively often. I've made friends and memories here that I'll never forget. I just wish I could come back to the same house; the sweet, dinky little house I never thought I'd be able to call "home", but have also learned to love.

I hope things go well in my absence and I hope that we can meet again soon.

You will be missed.

Alright, everyone. 

So, I've handed my keys back to the don.  Officially checked out, right?...Nope.  They lost my forms from the beginning of the year.  I need to set up another meeting with the don again to get that done.  But, I am half way there!

I can't wait for this to be done!  Can't wait to get passed these assignments and exams too.  So much stress. @_@

Anyway...it's pretty late here...I just thought I'd give you all a quick update before I sleep.

I can't guarantee that I will have much coming in the near future since exams and assignments are eating my face...figuratively, of course, but still.  Until all that is done, you might not hear much from me for the next few weeks.

Regardless, I hope you all have an awesome time being you!

Dusk