My family and I went to check out a house we are considering renting today, about 20 minutes outside of the city.
The place is huge, with about 6 bedrooms spread out over two stories. The house is old which is a major turn off for most of the market here. It must have been absolutely gorgeous in its day (indeed, it still is gorgeous in many ways), which would have been in the 70s and 80s.
The landlord, whose ancestors have lived in the area since the Edo period (1603 - 1868) was amazing. She’s offered us full use of whatever furniture is there that we may need (much of which is in the beautiful Japanese traditional style), tools in the shed, and said we can pretty much do whatever we want with the adjoining lawn/garden/grassy lots. She’s also said that having a dog in the house is no problem, which is a huge bonus for my son!!
Go-jiyuu ni douzo, were her exact words to us, which mean: “By all means, do as you please.” This turn of phrase makes me feel awesome every time I hear it!
The main reasons we are moving are as follows:
My son is active and needs more space than a cramped apartment in an urban area can provide.
We want silence so we can hear our own thoughts. The place we are considering is surrounded largely by bamboo stands, hills and forest, and nestled into a little pocket at the end of a small street.
I want an office from which to Steem, write, create and crypto, and some land on which to garden/wander.
My wife wants to continue her massage business in a more serious way, which requires a little more space.
We want to be able to entertain more people, hold meetups, not worry about neighbors, and do pretty much whatever we damn well please.
MY SON WILL BE RIGHT DOWN THE ROAD FROM THE FREE SCHOOL HE WISHES TO ATTEND.
If I move here, I would also be able to give English lessons if things ever got rough, seeing as there are plenty of rooms available and open spaces where students could gather. The place is essentially two houses. One on the second floor with its own kitchen and bathroom, and another complete living set up on the main floor.
That all sounds great, right? Well here are the potential drawbacks:
Old, cold, and drafty.
Muddy! The water runoff from the nearby mountains comes out right where the house is. When it rains, as it was today, walking around the property is a pretty muddy affair.
Possible mold problems (we have to ask about that)
Saggy, uneven floors in some places.
All that said, the benefits seem pretty strong, and after all, we’d only be renting! Same price as our current quarters but about 5 or 6...or 7?...times the space! I’m pretty sure I already know what I want to do, it sounds like, huh? :)
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~KafkA
Graham Smith is a Voluntaryist activist, creator, and peaceful parent residing in Niigata City, Japan. Graham runs the "Voluntary Japan" online initiative with a presence here on Steem, as well as Facebook and Twitter. (Hit me up so I can stop talking about myself in the third person!)