From the moment I laid eyes on it, I fell in love. And within hours, the ink was dry and it was all ours. It was all Neil and I could do to gather all of our belongings from our third story, 900 square foot apartment and into the new glistening, oyster-of-a-place downtown, as fast as humanly possible. It was a beauty. Allow me to be more specific; it was a goldmine of a discovery, at the exact right time and in the exact right place. I had the butterflies like in a new relationship or from a new pair of shoes. All I wanted to do was be with it, near it, get to know it better... and that's exactly what we did, leaving behind the Pinnacle Towne Center (PTC) like a bag of used diapers. Hello, downtown Phoenix!
It took me one solid week of unpacking and just exploring the nuances of my new love to realize - I hadn't given a proper goodbye to the old place. When I sat down to think about it, I was ashamed in myself. How could I move on so quickly, and not stop and recognize good old unit 349? Yes, it had its flaws (monster pigeons, creepy cats, a dryer that needed to be run three times per load), but scrolling through the list of changes that old pile of rocks saw me through, it only seemed fair. Off the cusp, the PTC endured and saw me through quite some shit:
Ahem...
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A newfound passion for Yahtzee (thank you, Focker). Many-a-night did I resist the urge for sleep for just one more round of "Yahtz" on the patio with Big Neil.
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The breaking into of Sam (also known as my car). One less air freshener later, the Neil Diamond CDs remained. That's just bad judgement.
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Heartbreak and Stalkers. Wasn't going to put this on the list, but let's be honest. It made the cut.
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My First Gray Hair(s). Grrrrr
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The befriending of a [neighbor] prostitute. Part Jamaican, part Puerto Rican, all lush. We loved ole girl.
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BECOMING AN AUNT. To a red-headed little guy, too. Words can't attempt to describe my love.
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The joining of not one, but two book clubs. Busy reader bee
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The first cavity. Which caused me to have a complete breakdown on the drive back from the dentist at which point I had grasped the severity of what had just happened WHICH led me to a speeding ticket, which leads me to...
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FIVE speeding tickets. And one shiny, running a red light ticket earning me one full day in defensive driving school with the other maniacs.
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Roller Derby. I don't know about you, but I'm rooting for Jenna Talls. Or, Nacho Girlfriend.
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Serving my civic duty. Six week murder trial leading to a hung jury, lots of life lessons and a new nickname - #9
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Mr. Itule - round two. Produce anyone? Keep "slangin' that produce," sugar.
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New job. With state government at that. Who would have thought I'd love it so much?
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The breaking of the metatarsal. Also known as possibly the worst six months ever. Third story apartment and 33 stairs each way = death. However, that experience took the first handicapped step in bridging the prejudist gap between myself and fat people. Whatever it takes.
I salute you, PTC apartment unit 349. You did us right.
