Claire

Stiffed again.  I could not wait tables any longer.  The obvious solution? Move to New York City and attend fashion school.  Six months after making this decision, I served my last table and began scouring through craigslist for a place to live.

Two bedroom converted. Bedroom is 7’ x  9’, no windows, but charming early century walk-up.  Full-size refrigerator in the kitchen. Unfurnished. We share hallway coat closet for clothing storage.

$ too much.

Mature 29-yr-old female looking for quiet, responsible roommate.  Must be away during business hours as I work from home.  No late nights.  No guests.  No kitchen privileges. Cat-lover is a must.

$ yeah right.

FREE RENT! Male seeks female roommate for severely discounted or free rent in midtown studio.  Compensated by you occasionally walking around in your underwear, no physical relationship, I just want to look.  $ rape is not rent.

Animal-loving widow seeks responsible roommate to occupy 12’ x 15’ upper west side bedroom.  Private bathroom, windows, furniture, walk-in closet, utilities, internet + cable included.  I have two lovable pets, a large dog and a cat.  Pre-war doorman building 1 block from central park. 

$ yes please!

Though I contacted over 100 of these postings (excluding the underwear perv), the choice was clear.  Gay, the craigslist “widow”, returned my email, drilled my references, and finally called me.  I had made the cut—just 10 days before I was to haul all my belongings 831 miles from the quaint southern charm of Chattanooga, Tennessee to big city bustle.

What a difference a year can make!

Did you ever notice that the years seem to fly by more quickly the older we get?? Do you think it has something to do with the % of your lifetime that year represents?  When you were 6, a year was about 25% of the lifetime you could remember.  So it seemed to take it 's sweet time getting through seasons, to holidays and birthdays...  Now its in the low single digits as a %...
Anyway, to update you:
Anna finally sold the Dorm. ( sob!) and she and I moved uptown to a nice new apartment in the sky.
Less charm, more light but Dorm-mates were scarce to be found. The only other person Anna and I have actually living here, doesn't.  She is a doctor that lives a long train ride away and keeps a room with us for emergencies. So far, not ONE emergency. And frankly, we miss the additional stimulation! We had hopes that a winter snowstorm might bring her to our door for a night, but alas.... nada!  We called her "the Phantom".
Ruby is back home, in Washington, and works part time in LA. We miss her like crazy!
Claire is all grown up with a real boyfriend and a great job in the fashion industry. They come to visit, not frequently enough, but always with the familiar laughter returning easily.
I had put together a consulting project for another apparel company in NY. Nice people, but didn't want to pay what I really needed. So when I got an offer to return to Dallas with a company I knew, in a lucrative executive position, I  made the difficult decision to move on.
What will the next chapter bring to each of the members of the Dorm?

If you have enjoyed reading some of our adventures ( with the names changed to protect the guilty)
Post a comment and let us know what you liked or didn't, as we are considering putting our memoirs into a book called "The Dorm".
Thanks!
XXOO
Meredith

Transition
Wow! We have so much to tell you!
The business that Ruby and I started was going so well... then the company that was financing us ran out of money.... It happens in the apparel business. So... Ruby and I are unemployed for now. That means Ruby is now back home with her family and the Dorm is a quieter, more sober place. Oh how we miss her! Her eggplant Targine and chicken thighs were THE BEST!
I am working on a consulting business, the dorm sale is once again in question. So Anna and I are anxious to find out what the future will hold.
We have a new roommate from Berlin who is gorgeous and talented as a film maker and reporter! Her friend Anna is here, also from Berlin, visiting so the Dorm again has an international flavor and a new level of class and entertainment! Tonight we shared Lemoncello, as Anna peeled organic lemons on the couch, we inhaled the magnificent fragrance and sipped the last of the original lethal batch.
The last time the lemoncello was out in the open was a few weekends ago. Anna and I were by ourselves for a change and decided to have a serious cocktail and share stories of our youth. It was almost like a small intimate game of "truth or dare", as we compared numbers and escapades. Then after a few more sips, we dropped a few names, when much to our surprise, we discovered we had shared a partner!  What does that make US???  ...Like "sister wives" ,but since we were not married or Morman, I guess it's "Sister Sluts"...But we really weren't THAT bad.  We just,  apparently, have the same taste in meaningless sex with a guy we knew who was charming and hilariously funny! Those were the days...after the establishment of women's lib, and "free love" and before AIDS.  Sport fucking was a socially acceptable activity if done with discretion,  good manners and a lighthearted attitude.. .
But what way it this for a sophisticated and classy 60 something professional business woman to talk???
Forgive me ladies....
It's no wonder that I heard our latest Dorm mate describe us as a cross between "Sex in the City" and "Golden Girls"!  Can you imagine?!!!!

Back by poular demand

Hi, It's Merdith the Blog Hog! I guess I'm the designated driver of this project. Thanks for your comments and for wanting more of our stories! I guess we have been so involved with living our great adventures that we forgot to stop and document them for posterity. So here goes.... Clair has left us! Left the "Nest", more acurately, to seek her fortune in the big city with her own kind (25 year olds). She has double degrees, graduated from Parsons with flying colors, and no thanks to the bad economy, is treading water as a waitress (not that there is anything wrong with that). I know she is dissapointed she hasn't found the right job in the fashion business where she belongs. It's the industry's loss! But the fashion industry is hurting right now.... Her stories always involve the "lamour du Jour" and she is enjoying finding herself as she learns more about the realities and wonders of the personal side of NY life. She's a darling and we know she will wind up very well. But we miss her!!! The next occupant of the room in the corner was Annick, from Belgium, working here for a few months doing training at the UN. What a lovely person she is! For starters, she brought us Belgia chcolates that were to LIVE for! So she was immediately our new best friend! She jumped right into our routine and cooked some fabulous Belgian dishes which we thoroughly enjoyed. Toward the end of her stay , her boyfriend and her best girlfriend friend came to NY to see the sights with her. What amazed me most, was the evening we were all together having wine and conversaition about a myriad of topics that somehow managed to circumvent language, age and cultural barriers. We chatted and joked just like old friends. One of the more memorable experieces at the dorm! Annick has come and gone, a former resident came back for a few months and then went home and so now, we actually have a vacancy for a month! On to the next adventure as the chemisty changes with a new member July 1. Stay tuned... Anna has actually SOLD the Apartment which houses our Dorm family. So early FAll we will be looking for another 3 bedroom so we will not have to miss the excitment of meeing new people and having our Dorm adventures. Lots more to catch up on so I'll be back in a few days! to visit and see the sights