2015 in review - Part 3: Living with a best friend

2015 is the year that I . . .

Moved in with one of my best friends

Midway through 2015, the opportunity arose to move in with the friend that I have known the longest. We have known each other since pre-kindergarten, so for about 27 years. That's a long time!

Pretty much the only downside was the increase in rent. I had been very fortunate for the last several years, renting a room that really did not cost me very much. Sharing an apartment with my friend who require me to pay more than $300 more a month, which would definitely decrease the amount of money I could put away or use for other things. However, having lived with her for about half a year now, I can confidently say that it was worth it.

I had forgotten how much of a difference it can make to live with a friend. I was able to do so the entire way through college, but since graduation I have bounced around between several places where I lived with random people. My most recent place was with a friend, which made it better, but it was a friend that I did not know very well and wasn't all that close to. Living with one of your best friends makes all the difference. I'm not one to come home and shut myself in my room (well, maybe sometimes). I like to socialize. I like to chat with someone about their day. I like to be able to give and get advice from someone I trust. My current roommate has long been one of my closest confidants and is a very encouraging person. Her advice is often second to  none among my friends. We are similar enough that we are able to relate to each others' struggles. We are different enough that we compliment each other fairly well.

While I do miss my former roommate and the cats we lived with, it's wonderful not having to deal with a third roommate that I don't know and who is always changing.

I have even proposed that my roommate and I start having meetings where we encourage each other to make, pursue, and achieve our goals. This is really the number one thing I have to work on now that I have spent the last several years finding myself and learning how to cope with loss and pain (from my first breakup).

So, as I stand on the precipice of 2016, I feel like I am positioned well for the changes that will need to be enacted to bring my life to the next level. Here's hoping I'm in an even better place come 2017!