It Must Be Me

Lately I've been looking at furnished apartments to live in part time. Looking for something nice and not terribly expensive. In my mind's eye I fancy myself the open-minded kind of roomie, able to live in modest abodes. Then I start looking. And I hate to admit it, but I'm kind of a snob. I travel the world and regularly stay in cheap hotels. Motel 8, Rodeway Inn, Red Roof - all nice but simple places to stay, but it seems that when it comes to a place to live, I want a little luxury. A little style. A little touch of chic. What I seem to find are decent enough apartments with ghastly furniture and a terrible sense of interior decoration. Okay, yes $350 a month is a nice price, but can't you have curtains? Or non-remnant furniture? It seems that many people prefer to have as much stuff as possible (no matter how crappy or cheesy-looking it is) than take the minimalist approach by purchasing nice, quality things at a slow pace. And single beds? What am I: five? Twin bed? Good God. Double bed? No. No, it must be a queen-sized bed. I mean, I need room to maneuver! A desk would be nice. Or at least a table with decent chairs. I need a place to work. Then there's the couch. The number of plumpy, frumpy couches with terrible fabric leaves me aghast. Never mind that horrible rattan thing that passes for a media center. Oddly enough, I don't really care about having a television. Any decent sized LCD flatscreen will suffice. I don't watch much tv anyway. Then there are the apartments that I would describe as nice. Penthouse lofts with multiple levels and tremendous views of the city. Polished steel railing and wood floors so well finished they look like you could ice skate on them. Not to mention the glass shower stalls, marble walls and porcelain vanities. Or the brilliant sized kitchens with modern appliances. Nice. Of course, these seem to start in the $2000 and up range, and I'm really just a cheap bastard. So, No to those as well. I've been looking for awhile now and I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever find a decent, tastefully furnished apartment to share at a price I can smile about.