welcome to hermitzville*  

I have been thinking about buying over my apartment from the landlord for a bit now. 14 months to be exact. And yet I cannot decide.

Firstly, I hate long-term commitment. And 25-30 loan years would seem like eternity. But I'm thinking - if I'm constantly paying the rental every month, I might as well own it. And gosh, I've been renting for the past 5 years now.

And I do love the house to death. I've looked after it like my own. Decorate it. Sweep and mop the floor twice a week. After all, I always believe just because it's rented, it does not need look shabby. Or like a sty. It should feel 'homey' and I do believe I have achieved that to perfection.

The place is big - 1222 sq feet; with a spacious balcony overlooking the garden below, 2+1 rooms, 2 big baths, 2 kitchens (wet & dry), comes with fitted kitchen cabinet. And it's going for only RM130K though I'm trying to bargain down by another RM10K. Hee. Need to pay lawyer fees mah.

Really, I cannot decide...So here I am, giving you a virtual open house. Do let me know what you think? Should I buy? Or not?


LIVING ROOM

This is my favourite place of all. The first thing I did when I moved in was to paint the wall in ruby red. Then came the plants - green and red make damn jolly good color combination.
The painting was purchased at Stanley Market, HK (only cost me RM30, but the framing was at RM168!) while the digital clock from Jordan Street market. Hmm. Memories. Memories.



Left pix boasts of my mini book cabinet, with 2 more birdnest plants, a fake banana tree (from Medan) and a scrawny plant fighting its height with the cabinet.

Right pix - This is part of my jungle, on the right from the tv cabinet. There's the mother-in-law tongue, the bird nest, the money plant on my mini fountain (there's actually a small fish splurting water) and 'Adrien' - my five year old hall monster. I only name 2 of my plants, read on and you will get the full picture.



And here's the full pix of the main wall in the living room. There's the fake plant hanging from the ceiling. Most people can't tell the difference. Heh.



Next we move to the other side of the living room where the sofa sits. On the left to the sofa is the where I place another plant (close cousin to the money plant) on top of the side table. Sitting comfortable with the plant is a wooden statue bought from Bali - I like its pose. Very feminine and sexy.



Sandwiched between the sofa and the TV cabinet is the coffee table. And there you will see Rookie, my baby Rottweiler, sitting comfortably watching the tv. 'Fear Factor' is his favourite.
And on your below right is where I usually spend many hours lying watching tv or reading. I really like the swinging bamboo plant above me when I lie. Feels like paradise.



And here's my darling Rookie. I was mesmerised with Rookie during my Phuket trip last year. Rookie is made out of fibreglass. Looks real, eh? Why the name 'Rookie', you ask? Well, I thought that's how an Ah Lian would mispronounce 'Rocky' lor. Bwahaha.




DINING AREA

I painted the dining wall dark prussian blue to contrast the ruby red. The batik painting was given to me by Ardi, my Indonesian friend. The dining table is decorated with a simple bunch of white daisies in an old porcelain water container and the lacquer fruit plate is from Vietnam. Notice the lone red apple?



Below is my second favourite corner. I love the whole deco composition - the sporadic mirror arrangement, the cherry blossom, the money plant, the Parisian flea market painting (which only cost me RM50), the candle decos and the great white chest, which was given by Emelia, a close girlfriend. Mind you, the chest is custom made and painted by Emelia personally. She had to give it away to make space for new furnitures in her own apartment.




KITCHEN

And on the left, please allow me to introduce to you my new plant resident 'Brody'. See the connection to why I only name 2 of the plants? Next to Brody is my 8 year old faithful Toshiba fridge, which may soon be traded off. On the right pix is the spider plant and another birdnest. The window leads to the wet kitchen area, where you can catch a glimpse of my new Sanyo stove.



The digital camera battery died on me halfway. So that's the tour for now.
So, should I buy up the place or not?

Update 17 Jan: After much thought, I have decided not to have the Pt II on this subject as I'd like to keep my bathroom and bedroom to myself as these are private areas. Selfish hermit me, haa. In Hokkien, I am "Beh Hoo". Thank you all for the compliments and advice - I am truly honored ;-)

January 11, 2005 // anjali* pranced on tip-toes all over the keyboard at 9:11 pm
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