Dream House

Every day on my way to work, I pass by a bunch of old buildings in downtown Ogden.  If you've ever been there, you know what it looks like--rundown old pawn shops, bars, taco stands, autobody places, etc. surrounding a more civilized area (a few blocks square) with a train station, a few nice restaurants, and lots of little stores with over-the-top window displays.  In this area of town, the buildings are taller (3 or 4 stories) with stores on the bottom and apartments on the top.  These are classic big city apartments, complete with rusty old fire escapes, roof access, narrow staircases leading down to the street, and numerous windows.



It may sound odd, but right now I would love to live in one of those apartments.  I have this overly romanticized picture in my head of me as an aspiring writer, sitting in a chair by the window to look out at a busy street corner, typing away on a laptop and brushing my bangs out of my eyes.  Sometime in the afternoon I could grab my purse and keys and walk to the Needlepoint Joint (a nearby yarn place) or go to the bus stop to catch a ride to the grocery store.  At night I could go up to the roof and watch the city lights flicker like so many little urban fireflies (unfortunately, there aren't any real fireflies here).  I might go out onto the fire escape and lean out over the street, watching the people come and go on the sidewalk.  Inside, the floor would pulse beneath my feet with the sounds of whatever business occupied the bottom floor.

Obviously this picture doesn't include the gunshots at night or the threats of burglary and/or mugging.

I don't know if this sounds odd or not.  I guess it depends on who I'm talking to.  Chances are good that I'll never live in a place like this, but it's a nice thought.